We’ve all heard it, and you might’ve said it yourself: “I can’t draw!” You can, you just have to kick that inner critic. Here’s a great way how.
I’m afraid there’s an elephant in the room. I’ve been putting up these tips and techniques about using simple sketching to help you think better for quite a few weeks now, but all along I’ve ignored a very important factor in helping you sketch. You know what that is?
It’s your inner critic.
Yeah. That thing inside you that holds you back. That voice that silently says things like:
- “You’re going to suck at this”
- “You should be doing more productive things with your time”
- “People are going to think you’re stupid”
- “Just give up”
You get the idea. Not fun to be around, hey? But we have to tame our inner critics if we’re ever to get ahead. Here’s a true story about making mistakes in front of bosses:
A true story about making mistakes in front of bosses
Once I was in a meeting with a couple of very senior executives and my immediate boss. While they were talking, I was trying to capture a summary of what they were saying on a whiteboard. I was really nervous and hesitant in front of these guys.
At one point, I drew a few boxes and arrows that I thought described their view of the technical system they were talking about. One executive looked at what I drew. He immediately blurted out, “No, that’s wrong, that’s not what I meant.” But then he paused, still looking at the boxes.
And then it happened. He asked me why I drew the boxes the way I had (it had to do with what part of the system conceptually ‘contained’ another part), so I explained. It turned out that I (and others in the room) had been carrying an assumption about the system, and once that assumption was called out, it unlocked a whole new – and much better – conversation about how the system should work.
See? Even though the sketch itself was ‘wrong’, it was a catalyst to a better conversation.
Never ever be afraid of other people seeing your sketches. Your sketches will be viewed through a different lens than your lens, and the catalytic potential they have is huge.
But back to that inner critic.
Your inner critic is just trying to keep you safe
There’s lots of advice around about kicking the inner critic, but to me it’s all mind games that don’t really work (at least not for me). But what is important to understand that as fun as it might be to externalise this urge for self-editing and self-criticism, it’s still actually an integral part of you. And what’s more, it’s being critical because it’s the part of you that is just trying to keep you safe from harm.
Safe from physical harm, sure. But also safe from judgement, safer from failure, and safe from disappointment.
Sketch your inner critic
A big part of taming the inner critic is to face up to the negative talk. Not dismiss it, ignore it, or manage it, but acknowledge its value to you, and deal with it as if it was a real conversation with a real person. And this is where sketching your inner critic comes in. When you make it ‘real’, on paper, in front of you, it’s out of your head and in front of you, for you to talk with it, and have true command over it.
It goes like this:
Think about your inner critic. What does he/she/it/they (insert fav pronoun) actually look like? Sound like? What does it say to you? What habits does it have? Think about the times it has held you back from something, anything.
Now sketch that critic in all its safe-seeking glory. No-one else is going to see this sketch, so go nuts. Is it small and dark? Big and pale? Horns? Bad teeth? Droopy eyes? Big mouth? Bad acne? Really pour what you think of it into that sketch.
Write a name there, too.
Take a good look at that inner critic that you have now made real on a piece of paper, and listen to what it’s saying. Try to find the gift in what it is saying; there might actually be an inner strength or a super-power hiding in there. For example:
- From: “Your drawing looks dumb” – To: “I have great visual taste, and my drawing abilities don’t match my great taste yet“
- From: “This is useless” – To: “I get to draw, which exercises my imagination and helps get ideas out of my head and into the world“
- From: “Nobody is going to like this on social media” – To: “I like to share who I am and what I care about on social media, and people will appreciate my authenticity“
You get the idea? Bonus points for turning each critical statement into a power statement.
One of the best pieces of advice I ever got about getting rid of negative self-talk is to talk to yourself like you would your very best friend.
Once you’ve had this heart-to-heart with your (now visualised!) Inner Critic, you can thank it for its contribution, reassure it that you’re in command now, and that you don’t need it anymore.
Now screw up that piece of paper, and put it in the bin.
Go ahead and try it. It takes 5 minutes, and it might be the best 5 minutes you have today. And if you’re brave, why not share a photo of your inner critic sketch on social media? 😉 Let’s normalise being authentic about our drawing abilities!