Artists biggest barrier

Here’s a bit of reflection for today. And I am only sharing this with you, hoping that you might get something out of it. For those of you who don’t know, I turned 47 few days ago. I have no shame in saying that. In fact, if anything, I am proud of it. When I was young(er), I thought life past forty would be very different from what it has turned out to be. I thought I was in a rush to achieve something, and if I wasn’t there by my forties, it would be too late. I think a lot of this also came from the preconceptions the society try to push on you. Now, I feel like I am only getting started

As an artist, you think learning the skills is the most important thing. And in a way, until you have a certain level of skills, it is important. However, the learning never stops. With age you get better at figuring out what are the skills that will help you the most. The biggest part that the 21-year-old J.P. had no idea of, or was scared to look at, was the fact that as an artist, you need to get past the biggest barrier, which is yourself. Learning to love yourself, be the best version of yourself and not let other peoples ideas of what you need to be influence you are the keys to doing what you love. Doing what you think you love and doing what you love can be very different things. And until you start to listen to your heart, it will be a struggle.

J.P.