How Posting Has Benefitted My Craft
For years, my gift shop Instagram page remained dormant, untouched because I didn’t know what to do with it. I felt like if I posted things, it could only be massive updates to my Etsy or product photography. However, I have come to realize that there is more to just posting for the sake of posting because the habit of having something to post pushes me to make the thing to post. Did I phrase that strangely? Apologies, I’m not that great at Englishing, so let me try to explain.
Remaining faithful to a posting schedule keeps my projects on my mind when it might be easy to neglect or forget. At the beginning of the year, I thought to myself “Okay, I’ll do 52 comic strips this year,” which was incredibly easy to say. However, once the weeks started passing by, I realized that it was just as easy to let them pass by without making a significant dent in my promise. By promising AND DELIVERING on a weekly comic, I can be held accountable while making progress, slowly but surely. By providing something every week, I am always thinking of how I can switch things up or what trends I can join. This is teaching me discipline and patience as I am dedicated to acting, but I’m not going to burn out by overacting. Just stick to the schedule. I feel like a lot of the time I get kind of anxious about putting a bunch out at once, because I worry about being able to maintain that momentum. On the flip side, I got nervous about putting out too little, and having little to no visibility. I think I found a happy medium for now with regards to my energy levels and willingness to show out for the ‘Gram.
Creating from a mindset of showcasing helps me operate clearly. One of the hardest parts of being such an unconventional thinker is that I struggle to communicate with other people, as evidenced by my opening statements. My ideas come out jumbled and my speech is cluttered. It had gotten to the point where I simply refused to explain my projects and just let people see it when it was finished (which does have its place, don’t get me wrong). When it comes to trying to showcase my work or my mindset, I am forced to learn what ways people receive this information for me. I have begun to learn a little about what resonates with others, whether they’re supporters or other creators. I believe this will become instrumental to my success in the future. Even nowadays, I feel as though there are people who are willing to back me on my projects, but they hesitate because they’re not entirely sure what I’m providing. Cultivating my feed I hope will serve as a prototype for a portfolio. Working on my posts I hope will convey my energy, personality, and style. Even if I never find the proper words to convey my message, I hope it will still be seen clearly.
With constant additional visibility, I can receive feedback! I don’t always want another vocalist in my band, so to speak, but for some projects, I think it’s good to get a vibe check from people who are keeping tabs on me. I’d be lying if I said I only created for myself. I create to express myself, and without witnesses or company, who am I expressing myself to? I have a tendency to get lost in the plot of certain things, so seeing people react in real time helps guide me with regards to what should get my energy. At the end of the day, I will always do whatever I want, but this kind of intel is helpful for when I specifically want to make something for an audience outside of myself.
Making an active effort to post on social media has benefitted me more than just posting on social media. Although it is not the end goal, it being a way to maintain focus and direction has been extremely helpful this year with my creative efforts.
