Last Spring, I took my first ceramic wheel throwing class and I remember what a stressful experience it was for me.
I was slower than all the other students in class who seemed to pick up what the instructor was saying with much less difficulty than me. Even though many of their pottery creations were uneven and awkward looking, I was jealous that they could even produce something. It took me many classes before I could even make something ugly.
This time around, my experience has been much less stressful. I still haven't mastered the basics yet, but the negative self talk has been toned down (it's hard to get rid of it completely).
Mostly, it's due to the fact that I have more experience now. I know the studio. I took two ceramics classes last year, so the feel of clay isn't foreign. I'm familiar with the clean up process and how much time that requires. The terminology isn't new and basically, I've done it before. Lastly, the pressure is off. Because I took two classes last year, I've gotten the pressure to produce pieces out of my system. Now, my main focus is on practice. I'm not trying to end up with a certain number of finished pieces.
I admit that I still compare myself to others and wish I've progressed more quickly. I do have to remind myself regularly to not get worked up and to stop it with the negative self-talk, but overall, I'm glad I'm still keeping at it even though I'm not very good at it. I think that itself is something I'm proud of.
I was slower than all the other students in class who seemed to pick up what the instructor was saying with much less difficulty than me. Even though many of their pottery creations were uneven and awkward looking, I was jealous that they could even produce something. It took me many classes before I could even make something ugly.
This time around, my experience has been much less stressful. I still haven't mastered the basics yet, but the negative self talk has been toned down (it's hard to get rid of it completely).
Mostly, it's due to the fact that I have more experience now. I know the studio. I took two ceramics classes last year, so the feel of clay isn't foreign. I'm familiar with the clean up process and how much time that requires. The terminology isn't new and basically, I've done it before. Lastly, the pressure is off. Because I took two classes last year, I've gotten the pressure to produce pieces out of my system. Now, my main focus is on practice. I'm not trying to end up with a certain number of finished pieces.
I admit that I still compare myself to others and wish I've progressed more quickly. I do have to remind myself regularly to not get worked up and to stop it with the negative self-talk, but overall, I'm glad I'm still keeping at it even though I'm not very good at it. I think that itself is something I'm proud of.
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