If you ever wondered how to paint consistently, then this article has two helpful habits to answer the question. Being an artist not just requires you to paint but also being consistent with it. My process of oil painting in layers requires me to sit with my paintings in multiple sessions to complete one artwork. Additionally, we cannot ignore other family and household responsibilities. Imagining that we have all the time in the world to paint is an illusion. You need to carve out time for yourself. You must be strategic in building habits that help in painting consistently.
In today’s world; technology, responsibilities and unexpected situations can suck your time easily. This results in exhaustion and no time to even paint a little. Let us discuss two practical habits that can help you in painting consistently.
1. Make it easy to start the painting process
When I say “make it easy to start the painting process”, I mean that it should not feel like a huge task to even start painting. Think of all the tiny things you do before starting the painting process. Maybe you clean your paint brushes, maybe you take a clean cloth, maybe you arrange a chair for yourself, you search for colours you need, you need a clean colour palette and so on.
Now think of the ways you can minimize this stuff to just hold the paint brush in your hand and start painting the canvas. Keep everything ready in one place. When you finish a painting session, wash all the painting brushes before the next session. Keep lots of clean tissues/rags nearby to dust your canvas, color palette lightly before continuing the painting.
Everything should be handy; you should be able to find everything quickly to minimize the effort. It is almost like a brain trick. Think of other creative ways you can reduce the tiny tasks before starting the main task.
If you feel it is easy to start the process because the prior tiny tasks are easy, you will have more chances of starting the painting session.
To know more about this habit and more such habits, I highly encourage you to read “Atomic Habits”. It is this book that made me more consistent in my efforts and introduced me to this magical habit.
2. Paint at the same time in every painting session
If you paint at the same time in every painting session, that time itself will be a signal for your brain. Even if you forget one day, your brain will tell you, “Hey, it is time to paint”. All you will need than is to break your inertia and go paint. Additionally, breaking that inertia at the same time in every painting session will be so much easier.
Routines matter and they add a discipline in your life without you even knowing it. Even if you do not feel like it, follow the same time habit and you will realize that you want to paint more. If inertia is really overpowering, tell yourself that I will paint for just ten minutes. If you love painting, you will not even realise that you painted for two hours instead of ten minutes.
This habit is again mentioned in in the book, “Atomic Habits”, one of the best books on self-help I ever read.
Conclusin on creating a daily painting habit
I hope above tips help you in painting consistently and stay close to your love for painting. Whenever I have questioned myself how to paint consistently, the tips shared in this article have saved me. However, even if you miss the chance to paint on some days, do not be hard in yourself. I have days when I do not paint despite the best practices. It happens to most of us. What is important is to be kind to ourselves and keep moving and keep painting and keep building that muscle of being consistent!
0 Comments