Just throw the Dart and see what happens!

Decision making, procrastination and getting your art finished. What do you do when you can’t make up your mind what to do first or what to do at all for that matter? Well you could try my suggestion of throwing a dart at a dartboard but Im sure there are better ways to get organised and inspired or whatever it is that is stopping you producing more work.

Im having that dilemma myself at present but mine is more about having too much to do and not enough spare time to do what Im wanting or actually needing to do, especially my painting so that is suffering big time. Im two months behind in my schedule, artworks destined for the Cook Islands busy season are still half completed in my studio (Although they got first priority yesterday so are coming along well to date!), there are projects for art shows and a commission I haven’t even started and then new work that I really really really want to do still at blank canvas stage. I really need a kick up the bum and told to stop taking on so much but that’s easier said than done, lets go into how complicated things are for me at present!

Here are some tips to help you over come procrastination –

• Set deadlines for completion. Try assigning yourself small-scale deadlines like commit to sketching up work, or preparing a canvas or two, or try completing the sky or background to get started.
• Think about why you procrastinate: Are you afraid of failing? Are you a perfectionist and only willing to begin working after every little element is in place or are you easily distracted?
• Get rid of distractions or move to a place where you can concentrate better. Turn off the television, the phone, the stereo or computer in fact anything else that might keep you from your task.
• Try breaking up a large, difficult project into several smaller pieces and tackling each piece separately.
• How about working in small blocks of time instead of in long stretches, allowing yourself a small break or reward after each stint.
• Get others on board to help. Set a goal with your family, your friends or your co-workers that you will finish a particular project by a specified time, or perhaps try to find other ways to make yourself accountable.

Either way, procrastinating doesn’t get the job done; you will kick yourself for wasting time. I’m off to finish my Rarotonga Boozehags and check my list of other projects so I can put them in order of importance and work my way through them.