Are You Good Enough to "Make It"?

If there are 2 things I love, it's making stuff and laughing my head off. 

So when I saw the trailer for Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman's new show, "Making It" I knew I was going to have to start watching.

If you haven't heard of this show, it's basically a competition between a group of super talented craftspeople who all specialize in different areas like felt, wood, paper, etc. 

They compete against each other for the title of "Master Maker"...aka bragging rights, oh, and $100,000.

As I watched the first episode, I picked up on something very quickly.

When I wasn't having an anxiety attack watching the timed craft projects, I was thinking about how observing people that are so good at their craft can be really intimidating, and in turn, make you start to doubt your own talents.

I wondered, "If I was a contestant on this show, would I be good enough to compete with the other artists?"

Immediately, I noticed my thoughts becoming super negative. Thoughts along the lines of:
 

"Um, no that chick is WAY more talented than you"

"I couldn't come up with that idea"

"Well, I don't know much about woodworking, so.."


This is the same exact reason I can't watch shows like Project Runway. The same reason I sometimes skip out on going to the big art shows in SF if I'm feeling stuck with my art that day...

Even though it's so so soooo amazingly interesting and fascinating to me, it all comes down to the SAME thing -


They make me feel bad about myself!
 

Even though I know I'm talented. EVEN THOUGH a gajillion strangers have paid me to teach them my craft!

Even then, I still sometimes compare myself to others and feel inferior.

This was further brought to light this weekend while I was teaching. A student mentioned feeling relieved when I told her that I had messed up a print and was unhappy with it. 

Not because she's a hater, but because she realized that I make mistakes too, just like anyone else. It brought me down to a relatable level.

One of the hardest things about being creative is trying not to compare yourself to others.

Do you find yourself doing this as well? How do you handle it? 

Give me your two cents in the comments <3