Out of My Comfort Zone

Yesterday I did something that, a year ago would have been unthinkable for me and is still definitely WAY out of my comfort zone. I submitted 11 images as an “image suite” to a well known and respected publication.

I don’t expect my work to be published but getting my work ready for submission has helped me grow mentally and creatively.

Creatively I pushed past former limitations and allowed myself to work in black and white and be more free with my editing. This is so far out of my artistic comfort zone and I love it!

Most of the angst surrounding pushing past my beautiful bubble of mental comfort has to do with confidence. Confidence to believe that my work could be considered for publication. Confidence to create the body of work with almost no feedback from external sources. Confidence to put it all together and press submit while embracing imperfect art. I know I don’t need to have 100% confidence but I can move forward if I can get to 30% and allow myself to feel uncomfortable while still doing the work.

This all reminds me of my journey to complete an impossible goal of hosting my own gallery show as a beginner and the confidence I’ve created for myself along the way. I had no idea how it would turn out so I just started with the belief that it was possible for me to overcome any obstacles along the way.

I write this post mostly as a reminder to myself that I can create the confidence to push myself out of my comfort zone but also to encourage you to do the same. We CAN do hard things!!