I have no talent for drawing... what now?

How many times have you been dissatisfied with the outcome of a drawing and blamed it on your " lack of talent "? You create a whole excuse about how you weren't born with artistic talent and that's why your drawing looks like it was done by a blindfolded, lame mole, and leave it at that.

But is this the reality, or is it just another excuse we create to relieve ourselves of the burden of having done work we don't like? It's true that this thought activates millions of escape mechanisms, and we tend to avoid talking about it, but I think it's necessary to be a little uncomfortable so that we can understand ourselves as people and accept ourselves as artists.

Talent who?

No one is born knowing and no one is exceptional without dedication.

Things don't just spring from the sky. The greatest artistic geniuses didn't have their first works praised and considered revolutionary—or do you think Da Vinci NEVER threw away one of his drawings? And do you think he would have managed to create a Mona Lisa without first throwing away so many other sketches?

Skills don't come for free, and there's no shortcut to greatness (artistic or otherwise) other than years of hard work . Even after you've mastered a skill (which can take years in itself), it's practice and curiosity that will keep it going and allow it to continue evolving.

It's also important to mention that everyone develops at a different pace. Just because your friend managed to do something incredible in a month doesn't mean you will too —and the opposite is also true: just because you managed to do something quickly doesn't mean that those who can't are not as good as you. Part of the process is accepting that everyone will evolve at their own pace, and that's okay; we'll all achieve our goals as long as we keep striving for it.

Don't fall into the trap of appearances

Many people will challenge this idea that talent doesn't exist by giving millions of examples of successful people who launch success after success and seem to have found a magic formula that prevents them from making mistakes, but have you ever stopped to think that reality is not just what we see ?

Especially when we talk about public figures (famous artists, Instagrammers, YouTubers...), the information we receive is meticulously curated. Most disappointments, anxieties, and failures are confined to the person experiencing them, and this can give the impression that these situations simply don't happen to some people. If you want a spoiler, they do happen ( a lot ).

Not all the hours spent practicing, sending emails, thinking, discarding ideas, participating in meetings, seminars, events, lectures and courses are visible either, but they happen and take infinitely more time than sharing any successful work - and you can confirm this by asking anyone you consider exceptional.

Failures that inspire

Even though it might seem a little destructive (I swear it's not the intention), I thought it would be cool to share here a list of failures of people we consider talented that will put an end to the idea that "talent" is the only thing responsible for all the incredible things we do:

• Albert Einstein only began speaking at the age of four. At 16, he failed his high school entrance exam. He passed college with low grades and was seen as a failure by his father.
• Beyoncé 's group lost a talent show when she was 9 years old.
• The hardware for Bill Gates ' first venture failed at the time of presentation and his business died before it even started.
• Dr. Seuss 's first manuscript was rejected 28 times before being accepted by Vanguard Press.
• George Lucas pitched Star Wars to two different studios before it was accepted by 20th Century Fox.
• While studying music, Madonna worked as a server at Dunkin' Donuts and was fired for spilling jelly on a customer.

To close

Talent doesn't define who you are, what you can do, or how far you can go. The only thing that can define you is the amount of effort and dedication you put into it, so don't be too hard on yourself—you are enough, and you will get there.

Fe made a YouTube video talking a bit about all this and also about the mystery of Asian child prodigies (let's face it, it's a super relevant discussion). If you haven't watched it yet, I'll leave it below:

Meanwhile, I'll be here eagerly awaiting the moment when you prove that person who told you you weren't good enough terribly wrong (even if that person ends up being you).

With love,
Re