Only Listen to the Critics that Count

Recently, after doing an invigorating open water swim at Bawley Point on the South Coast, I began chatting with another swimmer and the conversation came around to my work. He inquired about what I was painting at the time, and when I said a commission of Wentworth Falls, he observed mildly, “Well, that’s been done before.”

As imperceptively as the air I was breathing, doubt crept in beneath my confident exterior.

When I returned to my studio a few days later, I noticed a reluctance to take up my brushes. His words echoed my usually dormant fears of not being enough, spawning a low-frequency shame dialogue in my head that threatened to drain my enthusiasm for the painting. Despite it being nearly finished, part of me wanted to radically alter it, to somehow prove (mostly to myself), my creative prowess.

I’m sharing this story with you because it highlights one of the key difficulties of creating art and putting it into the public domain.

As creatives, we lay ourselves open to the criticism of almost anyone. In public, complete or virtual strangers, novices and experts alike, get to comment on what we have done. Even in private, our family and friends, or visitors to our workspaces, can become critics of our work.

If brimming with confidence and sailing along merrily this may not be an issue, but if we’re still exploring an idea or languishing in a creative block, any criticism can make it super challenging to stay focused and motivated.

So, how do we avoid getting sidetracked or influenced by criticism, well-meaning or not?

Firstly, follow your own compass…

Usually, I am my own harshest critic and greatest champion. What I mean by this is that, when it comes to my creative work, I choose to listen to and follow my internal voice, ahead of anyone else’s.

If I allow the criticism of others to impact me, it can shift me off course, away from my inner compass. Their perspective could change both my process and the outcomes. On the other hand, if I stay in my own lane, trusting myself, what I generate is more likely to be unique and authentic to me.

This may sound stubborn. After all, isn’t it sticking your head in the sand to ignore opinions? Shouldn’t we listen to the wisdom of others?

When it comes to creativity, I think the answer is sometimes, which leads to the next point.

Choose your moments…

While in the vulnerable stage of germinating and exploring a creative idea, I have found it is crucial to be extremely selective about whose voice you let in. This is never more important than when you feel uncertain about your idea or competence or are experiencing a creative crisis. Then your lower confidence may mean that the criticism extinguishes your desire to take the creative project to fruition.

So, when you feel that tingle of excitement, I suggest protecting your idea and its latent energy. Like a foetus forming inside the belly of a mother - it needs time to develop and grow, to take shape and reach its potential without harmful influences from the outside world. You need to provide a safe space to allow your unresolved and developing thoughts, images and dreams to percolate.

Thirdly, choose your people….

Whether at the beginning or end of a creative process, if we listen to the criticism of just anyone, taking it to heart, we may become disempowered and irresolute. Not everyone deserves that privilege. On that South Coast beach, I may have unwittingly allowed the values and perceptions of a man I barely knew, rather than my own, to determine my reality.

Does this mean then, that to be creative, we need to never discuss our ideas or work with others, or hear their honest feedback?

Not at all, but we do need to be careful when deciding who to trust with this power. Do their values, actions and words, demonstrate that they are a person that merits our respect in this arena? Do they truly understand and respect our ‘why’ and can they appreciate our struggles as well as our successes? Are they someone who also steps up to be vulnerable, takes risks and is courageous? Do they get what being creative takes?

In summary…

Only listening to the critics that count means choosing wisely - who to share with and listen to, about our creative work, and when best to do it. This may save us from heartache, disappointment, lost time or even direction.

On the other hand, the right critic, a person who has our values and interests in mind and who gets the complexities of our process and purpose, will be an invaluable resource and sounding board - an ally and mentor to be cherished on our sometimes lonely path.

The happy ending to my story is that I persisted with making the Wentworth Falls painting without any radical revisions. I learned a lot from the experience and the client who commissioned the painting was thrilled. Rather than listening to the shame-inducing voice in my head that told me it wasn’t novel or valuable, I chose to trust myself. I acknowledged that while many artists had certainly painted this place, it was new to me, which felt exciting. The intrinsic value of the painting lay not in whether the subject had ever been 'done' before, but rather in the authenticity of my artistic exploration and expression.