Anyone got some tips for general advice and motivation?
Essentially I'm in my second year at Uni, I feel like I have a good amount of potential but I find it hard to give things my all and make my work look great and as such I hate everything I've made for Uni. So far I've mostly been getting 2:1's but I find the modules that we're set to be a little boring and I lose drive and interest.
I'm surrounded by people who I feel are much better than me and find it really easy and being older than most here (25) I'm struggling to feel like I have what it takes.
I recently decided to start doing something like a prop a week to keep myself focused and give myself practice and chance to learn but I often never finish what I set out to do and it annoys me. This time I'm going to try really hard to actually do this as its something that could influence the rest of my life.
Sorry for the rant but I was just wondering what any of you do/did to keep motivation alive and how you've improved?
I'm surrounded by people who I feel are much better than me and find it really easy and being older than most here (25) I'm struggling to feel like I have what it takes.
I recently decided to start doing something like a prop a week to keep myself focused and give myself practice and chance to learn but I often never finish what I set out to do and it annoys me. This time I'm going to try really hard to actually do this as its something that could influence the rest of my life.
Sorry for the rant but I was just wondering what any of you do/did to keep motivation alive and how you've improved?
Replies
Also modules can be boring but ultimately think of it as if it was a job, you boss tells you to make "X", then you have to make it whether you like it or not, or you don't have a job. It doesn't matter if its not interesting, its up to you to make it interesting. Finding a way to make what can seem like a dull project interesting is hard but you can always use it as an excuse to try out some new software or a new technique. Or putting a spin on task that others might not expect.
The main thing is keep at it, with hard work everything should fall into place.
There are already tons of motivational threads on here - look up Hazardous' excerpt on motivation, its pretty well known. Your first problem is depending on motivation to get work done. It's fleeting and fickle - you need to develop self discipline with your work and have more of a set schedule if you feel you aren't getting ahead. It's very easy to feel like people are way better than you and that they get work finished easily, when you're not completing the assignments yourself. In terms of finishing assets, its just something you have to sit down and do, rather than moving on to another project. Better to have a sparse portfolio with 1-2 well polished, complete assets than 5-6 half assed ones. Again, self discipline is key.
Another way to put it is if you can't take an asset from concept to completion, why would an employer hire you? Why should they put any trust in the quality of your work? Also, there are already tons of people abroad who would do an asset for half or even less the amount you would charge. The competition is pretty damn fierce, there's no room for self doubt or concern about failure, you just have to get it done.
Lastly, having struggled with a similar issue myself in the past, I don't think there's much point to asking how do people motivate themselves because everyone is motivated for different reasons - some want to just be able to say they work in the industry, others want recognition amongst their peers, etc. so it's really whatever drives you as an artist to keep working, sounds like you need to identify that.
It's difficult to find clarity when in this kind of situation, but I would start off by coming up with some goals of where you want to be after Uni ends, what studio/s you want to work for, do you want to work remotely or in-house, etc. (I mean specific goals, e.g. 'by this point, I want to be working with Insomniac', not 'Get better at texturing.')
Coming up with a clear set of goals may make it easier to figure out what direction you are headed in.
That's not the life I want to keep living, I'd say that's enough to kick into gear.
However I'm going to agree with Sycra's here (youtube 2D artist) ,I'v done drawing drills for a few years without improving much. When I said 'ef this' and just went back to the things I loved improvement came along much quicker.
I do believe thers a balance between the discipline of creating daily and enjoying what you're doing. Also having a personal project has really helped a lot of people.
You have so much free time at Uni and I wish I had made better use of a lot of mine, it just takes a bit of discipline to make the most of it. Its really worth putting the effort in because I am working for A second hand game and electronics retailer while I look for an industry job and trust me that's more than enough motivation to want something better.
Look, i'm probably just as broken as you as well as half of polycount when it comes to motivation but this is something i've mused over a lot and gotten a lot of advice from a lot of different sources.
I'm starting to gather that this really never goes away. You just have to work through it, even if sometimes its the last thing you feel like doing.
You are on the right track with setting yourself small props to do, give yourself a deadline, no matter where the prop is at that deadline it goes on your blog, and you put your blog in your sig so we can all oogle at it.
This is going to drive you into pushing for better work quicker, which is what we should all be practicing, but at the same time, getting you used to the fact that we are really never satisfied with work we do, it still has to go out the door.
Works for me every time.
Funnily enough Jon Fletcher was probably the main reason why I started to do 3D art in 05/06' while he was making model packs. He was at a beginner level at the time. I worked hard at it for a couple of years and actually made money and then lost motivation going through life, with my parents lack of understanding that 3D art was an occupation. They just thought I was sitting at my pc wasting time so they restricted my pc use use. When I did get to use the computer I would look at 3D art.
And then there was Jon. Every single year making art. He kept at it and I saw over the years his growth as an artist to become a professional. I suppose I have a lot of regret not pursuing this after 8/9 years. I know artists younger than me producing professional quality art.
The thing I realized is that you can never be too old to learn something. 25 years old is still a young age to put your foot in the door in the industry. I'd say if you're persistent and work on it every single day, studied the methods right, improved with every single piece, you'd be in a very good spot after 2 years. From what I've seen on polycount, people have been able to get professional work even after 3 years of progress.
There are also a billion threads on this site in regards to lack of motivation. It's a thing artists constantly struggle with. What helped me is creating a mindset where you value time so much that you have to keep asking yourself "what is the most productive thing I could be doing right now?". The hardest part is just getting started, but after that it gets easier.
Also check out these motivational polycount posts. Incredible stuff:
http://www.polycount.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1794475&postcount=46
http://www.polycount.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1419064&postcount=1
When I graduated i had a website like this
Lets just say i got no where FAST. AFter 2 years on polycount university and all of the amazing help and resources I was able to do some stuff like this
In my own eye my stuff is still terrible and I have alot of work to do, but it was enough to get my first job
As far as losing motivation for school projects. Yeah that's school. It can be a grind at times. Do the work and then go onto a personal project that has you excited. It's cool if you don't finish the personal project. Use it for growth.
Making video game art is not hard. There's some people that develop faster or put in 110% effort and make huge strides in work quality. Just keep at it. Put in those 10,000 hours and you'll get there.
Try reading/listening/whatever to this book sometime. Talks a bit about the 10,000 hours to gain mastery. Some will argue this. Sure you can argue anything in life. But I've found for most things this is a good guideline to stick by.
http://www.amazon.com/Outliers-Story-Success-Malcolm-Gladwell-ebook/dp/B001ANYDAO/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=&qid=
[ame]
Not trying to beat you down any further, but that subconscious thought of "there is something wrong with me, and I need to fix it" is the wrong way to look at it. Welcome to being an artist
“Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work." - Chuck Close
And I think it echoes the motivation vs. discipline ideas stated by others in this thread.
You can spend your day waiting for motivation but really, what has motivation ever done for you? Motivation doesn't help you finish projects, lose weight, or learn a new language. Motivation might be a catalyst for starting but discipline and commitment will be what brings a person across the finish line.
Take any Ironman Triathlon. Those athletes are not finishing because of motivation. They finish because of a sickening, unfathomable level of grit and determination.
Anyways, my 2 cents.
/opinion off
Fuck motivation.
Motivation is fickle. It comes and goes. It's fleeting and unreliable.
You need to cultivate discipline. Force yourself to finish those props. Force yourself to work hard and develop your skills.
Motivation just comes and goes. No effort is required to become motivated. Discipline is reliable. With discipline you build a solid work ethic that powers through creative plateaus.
Every amazing artist/musician/writer/academic I know got good through habit, hard work, and dedication. Even when they didn't feel like it, they HAD to power through it because they conditioned themselves to.
So fuck inspiration, fuck motivation
It's perspiration or nothing.
I'm also in a similar spot in that I'm trying to get into game art a bit later in the game that is expected. It is rough seeing kids way younger that you churning out fantastic stuff and you're still trying to figure stuff out. But, it's definitely not all doom and gloom. I'm getting better at my motivation and self-discipline so I think you can, too.
First off, I've found that I gain motivation though self-discipline. As I force myself to sit down and work, I find myself motivated to work. The fight, in my experience, is getting the ball rolling. Once it's off, I'm pretty good.
I've collected a fair number of tools for self-discipline. My best friend is HabitRPG. It's a stupid web game where you set yourself daily and once-off tasks and if you complete them your little guy gets xp, and if you don't, you take damage. I've often only sat down and opened Maya cus I didn't want to take the damage.
I also use Happify. With lack of motivation can come anxiety and self-doubt, and Happify is a free site that has been a big help for me.
Find background noise that works for you. For some people it's music or movies. I've left the same movie on loop for a whole day sometimes. There's Noisli.com and Coffitivity.com. Background noise keeps the internal monologue from being so loud.
Lastly, I keep in mind that there are 6 stages of every project.
Sounds like you're getting caught in 3 and 4. I was, too. Just put your head down and keep plowing forward. Even if you just do 15 minutes.
"Sometimes you're doing good work, when all it feels like you're managing to do is shovel shit from a sitting position."
I've been working really hard but ... maybe I'm too easily impressed, when I see beautiful game model I'd start a low poly project, I see stunning Zbrush sculpt I'd switch to doing that, see a cool render and I'd play with Vray/MR for a few days, etc etc the list goes on and on, game environment, Vue for matte painting, high poly cars rendering, etc etc.
The problem is I'm switching to a new thing all the time but I got nothing done for almost a year. I can't stay on 1 project, I'm not improving. I can't choose and can't stop myself from feeling very excited every time I see new shiny arts of various discipline. I bought tons of Gumroad covering many subjects, joined workshops and online classes, and it's just all over the place.
I want to sculpt something cool like this.
At the same time I want to create background like this.
Would greatly appreciate any help on this.
I can have the same issue as you and the complete inverse. I will obsessively overfocus on something, making it impossible to work on anything else till the dam breaks. These are both symptoms.
I've also talked to another creative person who was diagnosed and he assured me that the medication did nothing to hamper his creativity. On the meds, he finds he's more creative and can produce better work, because he's not hopping around or over focusing. Things just flow better for him.
Working on a project for a client at the moment and that quote made chuckle. So valid - i've just got to step 5 which is why i'm so upbeat about it.
I ask myself this constantly, and it wrecks me. I should be so lucky to be able to fill my day with making art, making games or just saying fuck it and sitting on my ass playing games/watching tv. But they're all bad. Each one busts up the other, while my sense of self-worth plummets thanks to it being inexorably tied to needing a job. Nowadays, indecision is indiscernible from depression. I try to keep up the discipline and force myself to work. It kinda works - I draw a thing, write a thing, do a tut. Then back on the merry-go-round.
Before that I'd struggle to bring myself to do any work because I was working on a shitty pc and used a table as a desk, which was very uncomfortable.
Also nootropics can help.
In the end you do have to just force yourself to work though.
This might have been the best tread I'v ever stumbled upon, exact same problem here.
(just keeping it compact )
Because this hits so close to home its uncomfortable. Thanks, like huge thanks, gonna see if I can get tested somewhere, fingers crossed it doesn't take years.
Starting out do a bunch of everything! Characters, vehicles, weapons, environments, effects, animation, whatever isn't nailed down try it!
After you get that out decide what makes you happiest or you feel that you enjoy the most. For me it was characters. For about 2 years. Then a company asked me to test for a general/environment position and I've never looked back. I'll sketch characters now and then. But it's just goofing about. My portfolio for any sort of job is 100% props and environments. Because it's what I enjoy doing for 8 hours a day.
I spent the first year and a half doing..
2 characters
1 weird apocalypse chainsaw
A few rigs, and a face rig (ewwww..)
Some dynamics (nhair, particles, etc).
A bit of animation
A so-so UDK environment
Then, this past year, I did everything in my portfolio. While I would have liked to focus (especially on games), earlier than June of 2014, I don't think everything else was a waste, because I was finishing every project and taking that knowledge into the next one.
I think the key, is FINISHING!! Just like it doesn't matter if you hate a project, you just have to finish it. That link above with the "hate this work, hate my life" has happened on every single project I've done so far. You just have to work through it and make sure you don't cut corners to get past it!
Snacuum, Yeah, its so easy to get down on yourself cus you're not being productive enough. You think of everything you should be doing and should have already done, and you feel crappy, so you don't want to work, so you just sit there, so you feel more crappy.
Another thing I've found that helps is [ame="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1585421464/?tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=48966404438&hvpos=1t1&hvexid=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=17947452183786715555&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=b&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_2rwdoftul3_b"]The Artists Way[/ame], a self help book for blocked creatives. The author can be a bit preachy, fair warning, but in amongst the flares of religious crap there's solid advice, especially about indecision and self-doubt. And you can generally pick it up at used book stores for cheap.
You sound like you're stuck in stage 3 and 4. Those stages are murder. They really are. I keep reminding myself that 5 is there, if I can get to it. (Good for you, Coljwood, it's an awesome feeling.) And when I get caught on the loop of indecision I step on it as hard as I can and squash that wriggly feeling flat. Right/wrong choice? Oh well. Light the fire and burn that bridge. Better something done that's imperfect than perfection never finished.
And when you feel it creeping up on you again, just remember to go easy on yourself. You're doing the best you can; just keep trying.
Discipline is the key not motivation. There is a lot on the topic of "Motivation vs Discipline" just do some research, but here is a link to one I find to be really insightful http://impossiblehq.com/get-disciplined-not-motivated
Hope this helps as it really helped me when I was going through a similar situation.
That's a really good read, cheers!
https://careers.mcdonalds.ca/mcd-careers/applicant/location
Definitely works for some tasks. My logo there got finished much faster once I gave myself a deadline date.
I've been having great success with adobe 3ds maya 1993 lately.
http://www.dustinbrown.com/getshitdone/
Self-imposed deadlines is one thing that has had zero effect on me. A deadline from a client and I'll move heaven and earth. A deadline from me? Nothing.
I don't know why. I'm extreme when it comes to regular deadlines, but I have no ability to motivate myself with arbitrary (to my mind) time limits.
Well it was probably lucky for me that I was near done and could see the end is near, and also had a decent idea about the work required each day. I have a funny feeling if I made the deadline at project start I would've dropped it early.
Absolutely this. Branch out while you can. I did a bunch of the same stuff in college and while I learned a bunch, I wish I had experimented more. I'm fairly certain I want to do props/environment work, but making a couple characters (including the one I'm working on finishing now) has taught me so much.
I also agree with the dedication > motivation people here. Waiting for motivation will only result in time wasted - trust me, I was there for nearly a year, occasionally starting projects, but never finishing them (and now I have to catch up, grrr...).
I think you might have misunderstood what I meant. The idea of "What is the most productive thing I could be doing now?" is meant to contribute towards your goals. Being tied to a job is fine, because it's mandatory towards taking the steps towards your goals by supporting yourself. There is a big difference between what is productive with watching tv/playing games compared to sitting down and focusing/concentrating on art (unless you have specific shows on a backlog). If your goal is to improve as an artist then there is no reason why that isn't productive by working on the craft. Technically this applies to any future skills people want to learn in life eg. learning a language etc
If that kind of mentality is difficult to hold, I would probably recommend setting up habitual routines. Like doing at least 1 hour of productive art a day and maybe extra on weekends. 1 hour watching your favourite show/winding down etc. You don't NEED to dedicate all your free time to making art if you want to be a good artist, but if you want to be the best of the best then that IS what you have to do.
@Dustin
That chart scares me a little. I'm tempted to have one.
Yeah I know what you meant. I was just pontificating on repeatedly asking the question, "what is the most productive thing I could be doing right now?" as for me these days is a guilty reaffirmation. I value a lot of things, so making the sacrifices is difficult (I know it should be) but they hurt so bad. (cue whining)
Since I've gotten lazy or more confused (or both) my goals have become more fuzzy and distant, or as I ask the aforementioned question, I realise they always were. The lack of job is terrible, like an embarrassing thorn. On one hand it's always sad to wonder how far away that dream job looks, on the other it's trying to find that unrelated job is a reliable fashion. I know I'm not yet good enough for a games/art/design job, yet that skill set is all I know. It's woefully depressing trying to get a simple job at say, a warehouse, and not having the slightest clue what they want or how to get it.
Yeah I got stuff on backlog, I know that if I chill I'm not being productive, but when I'm productive it's like it calls to me "Come have some fun with us!" These days it's like the most enjoyable thing to me and art isn't. Not like to say art isn't fun at all, just shades of grey. I expect this to change if I can keep up the discipline and work at it daily in some form or other where I can see some progress over time.
I don't particularly want to be the best. I'm a dirty commie, why would I want to compete? Unfortunately many of the material I've read points to only the best getting any opportunities for work, so I suppose I'm in that race whether I want to be or not. Haha, but really I'm such a generalist. ATM I'm not particularly into any form of art or subject and don't find one more enjoyable than the others (don't get me wrong, I have an idea of what I don't enjoy). My past and my sketchbook/folio speaks of this with a little 3d, a little 2d, a little traditional, a little design, for digital, for print - blah blah. I sure this is more than contributing to my mental state.
Routine is something I'm working on. It's not going very well. I can hardly get a proper sleeping pattern down and I've got nowhere private in my house to do work, and so become pushed and pulled by the timetables of my gf and housemates.
That's enough of my impromptu blog. I'd like to say mention that this thread is really nice. I'm combing through the links and attempting new rites of self-discipline and adjusting my thoughts away from self-flagellation. In the last week I've continued to do something creative daily and already feel better and more 'motivated'. Of course if you check my post history, I've said all this before so feel free to disregard!
Good luck to you too
@Snacuum
My life seems to be in a very similar situation heh. Wish I had advice but I can't even pull myself out of here, just keep making stuff and learning.
[ame]
"dont be afraid to fail"
[ame="
Though it always disappoints me when these inspirational videos are just about sports. There should be artists and scientists and doctors in this. Being great at anything requires the same traits this video talks about, not just sports.
Best motivational speech ever, thanks for this