Keeping Motivated

This post was originally created for the Flush Studios Patreon.

This past year with my move and everything else happening, I’ve struggled to stay as motivated to create new art. You all understand how busy I’ve been and I don’t need to tell you, but one thing that I struggle to show on here and explain in a proper way is how I do continue to keep moving forward, even if they’re baby steps.

EVERY SUCCESS COUNTS.

Over the years I’ve realized when I look at the big picture, I get lost. When I think back on The Good Exorcist or Greywood’s Plot, it makes me nervous to even think about taking on something that daunting with such a small crew and no-budget again. But when I think about Scumbag and “what can I do today”… well, it doesn’t seem so nerve-wracking.

I’m not sure if I’ve posted about this before, but I keep a daily book that I call the 5,3,1 Journal. Here’s what the current one looks like:

Just a little black book I got from Target.

But this book is my key to daily motivation.

Every morning there’s a new entry that looks like this:

I draw 5 (which often turns into 6 or 7, but I start with 5) circles and write out the things I want to accomplish in that day. Some of them can be pretty mundane. I’ll even put fun things like play some video games or paint some Warhammer in there. But I always write down the 5 goals.

Then I write 1,2, and 3. These numbers will be three accomplishments I achieved through the day. Most of the time, these three things get written the following day. It’s a nice way to look back and think about what goals I set and what I achieved.

Then I draw a star. This is something I’m proud of. I’ll be honest, I’ve been terrible about this one lately. Negativity has crept in and many days will keep me from actually feeling proud of the preceding day. One of the reasons I decided to write this post today is because I had this feeling this morning. Finding things to be proud of every day can be so extremely motivating to me and it’s something I need to get better at.

Pat yourself on the back for what you’ve accomplished. That positivity will lead to more positivity and will push one step closer to achieving some goals.

WRITE WHAT YOU CAN WHEN YOU CAN.

I’ve been slowly writing multiple scripts at the same time.

This might seem counter intuitive. Why not just focus on one, right?

The motivation in writing hasn’t been as prevalent as it once was for me. Maybe it’s the weather or intensely slow rate that Scumbag is making progress, but investing myself mentally in one project just hasn’t been easy.

Which gives me two options. Bitch about writers block and crumple up paper after paper in a cliché montage of failure. OR, write what I can when I can. If something strikes me in the moment, if a scene pops into my brain for a certain character — well, I write it! Why not?

I think a lot of us with our art tend to think if we’re not 100% in, if we’re not doing it flawlessly, it’s not worth doing. Bullshit. I think if you have even the tiniest inkling of inspiration, you should embrace it.

TAKING BREAKS ISN’T A FAILURE.

The hardest thing creatively for me is the knowledge that everyday I don’t do something, that’s a day I won’t get back. As you all know, burnout is a very real thing. You hit a breaking point when enough is enough. I think, for me, I always think of that as a very dramatic thing. Like, “it’s over! I’m done! I’m burnt out!!”

But that’s not really how it works all the time. Sometimes in your day you can have these minor burn outs. I often tell myself things like, ‘okay, sit down and just focus for an hour and you’ll catch yourself up!”

That’s a lot of pressure on that hour.

I’ve learned for me, a better method is to work in smaller bursts and then give myself a small mental break. It’s even better when you start to find creative or meditative ways to break.

One thing that’s helped me is painting Warhammer 40k figures. I don’t spend a ton of time on it, but if I get flustered with a project or just need to rest my eyes from the computer screen, I pick up a little Necron and move on to the next paint color in my assembly line of paints.

I’ve also been reading more self-help and parenting books. I’ve learned a lot about relaxing, not stressing, and finding focus from them.

But you’ll find your own thing! Legos? Videogame breaks? Meditation? Whatever it is — don’t be afraid to break when you’re working on your art… unless of course you’re in the zone. Then keep kickin’ ass.

MOTIVATION COMES IN WAVES.

This week might have sucked for you. Last week sucked for me. I went into Monday feeling like this week was going to be a bust. So, I leaned into that negativity and let my feelings take over a bit on a Tuesday

I slept more than usual for a day. I made sure to eat healthy (that really seems to be a key to positivity for me.) I did a little exercise. I read. I went down a rabbit hole about an AEW wrestler I’ve been into…. I did shit that isn’t outwardly “productive”… and it saved my week.

I woke up Tuesday knowing exactly what it was going to be and owned it! This is what the day ended up looking like:

Little tasks. Sleep. Organizing my life and day job. Videogames.

By Wednesday morning I felt so much better. I started on some new projects, got some writing done, focused on my day job more than usual, and just kicked ass in general.

Some days aren’t going to be as good as others. It’s easy to look at the 5, 3, 1 Notebook and think of that day negatively. What DIDN’T I accomplish? Notice how I didn’t put anything positive next to that star? Yeah. I probably couldn’t think of anything in that moment. Looking back, that day saved my week.

YOU DO YOU.

My good friend Aaron McKenna, who was my producer on Rebel Without A Crew, told me multiple times when I’d get stressed or negative and start to look to others for ways to fix my feeling, “you do you.” This is so crucial.

When you start to get overwhelmed by the amount you want to get done, or how much is looming over you, take that break. For me, sometimes it literally is about sitting down with a coffee, a blank notebook page (or Patreon post, lol), and just writing it down. Visualizing why I’m not feeling motivated or what’s causing the negativity. Analyzing how I can fix it or how I can lean into it.

All you can do is you. Tell yourself to take 5 minutes to think positive, assess your feeling, and decide on that next step.

Thank you for attending my TED talk. I’ll be in the lobby eating cookies and muffins. Feel free to stop by and say hi.

CHEERS, everyone! Let’s make some art!

Josh