Yuki really liked drawing, but what she didn’t like the fact that she never seemed to get around to draw, somehow something always seemed to get in the way.
She used to draw a lot and over the last couple of years had made a couple of attempts to get back into some sort of regular drawing routine. She found that she could summon up the enthusiasm to start, but it always seemed to fizzle out a week or two later. It was just like her friend Sue who always a diet or going to the gym, but never sticking to either of them. She never used to understand how Sue could always be starting and stopping, but now she was finding it was exactly the same for herself and drawing.
Intro
It’s better to get into the routine of drawing a little something everyday, rather than hope to draw something elaborate but never actually get around to it
Here’s what we’re going to cover:
Link to an existing activity
Cartoon it simple
Start really small
Link to an existing activity
One of the biggest problems with starting a new habit, or restarting an old one, is actually remembering to do it.
Think of all the times that either yourself or someone else has tried to start a new fitness campaign or diet, only to have it falter a few days later.
However, there are a number of habits that you already do automatically without even thinking about them. Some examples could include brushing your teeth, getting on the train in the morning or taking a break at work.
The trick is to link the new habit you want to do, in this case drawing, with one of your established existing habits.
You won’t even have to think about making a routine of your new drawing habit, as by linking it to an existing activity, you will instantly create a routine.
Here are a few suggestions:
-As soon as you get on the train in the morning, pull out your sketch book and do a quick doodle.
-After washing the dishes in the evening, sit down for two minutes for a quick sketch.
Over to you:
Think of one existing habit that you could start to connect to your new drawing habit
Cartoon It Simple
We sometimes take a bit of an ‘all-or-nothing’ approach - we’ve either got to do something good or not at all. In this case, unless we have a chance of drawing a densely picture, then it’s hardly worth bothering in the first place.
You may not think doing a quick doodle is worth it, I mean what’s the point? - it’s only a quick doodle.
But the point is not about the quick doodle - it’s about establishing a habit.
It’s better to do simple sketch every single day, rather than to wait until one day sometime in the future when you finally have more time and space - a day that might not actually come.
Over to you:
Instead of trying to draw something complex, what simple sketch could you try?
Start really small
B J Fogg, a behaviour scientist of at Stanford University has a program called Tiny Habits which helps people to start a habit one baby step at a time.
For example, if you wanted to get into the habit of flossing, he would recommend you to floss just one tooth and then stop.
It sounds ridiculous flossing one tooth only.
But if you floss one tooth or draw one face, then you’re more likely to do some more once you’ve got started.
Over to you:
Pick up a pen write now and draw a simple face, any old face will do.
Done it?
You’ve now drawn one more thing than you had a minute ago.
Here’s what we covered:
Link to an existing activity
Cartoon it simple
Start really small
One more thing
To give you a chance of doing all of the above, it helps to have a drawing pad or tablet to hand, so probably the best way to get started on building your drawing habit right now is to put one in your pocket or bag right now.
What’s next
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