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Even Van Gogh Was Insecure
and how he silenced the voice of self-doubt
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If you’re a creative thinker, you’re no stranger to the battle against self-doubt.
And even though creative self-doubt can be a sign of untapped creative genius, it can also lead to self-destruction.
Self-doubt is the voice of the oppressor. It sits on your shoulder, yapping all day, reminding you that your work isn’t enough, that you’re not talented enough, and that you’re wasting your time.
This voice is the number one cause of wasted creative potential in our society. The public education system is number two.
During a recent trip to the Art Institute of Chicago, I learned a valuable lesson from the legendary Vincent Van Gogh. A lesson he shared with his brother in an intimate letter. A lesson that can help you silence the voice of your own self-doubt.
But more on that later …
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Even Van Gogh Was Insecure
Van Gogh is a creative legend.
His works are admired by the greatest in the field and hang on the walls of the most prestigious museums and galleries. But there's a side to his genius that many don't know.
Van Gogh didn't start drawing until he was 26, and he didn't pick up a brush until he was 28.
One of the greatest painters in the West didn't produce a single thing until his late 20s.
He was no child prodigy. He wasn’t born into the life of an artist, either. But that didn't stop him from creating over 2,000 pieces before his death at 37.
Yet, despite being a global success and a master of his craft, Van Gogh was deeply insecure.
In a series of letters to his brother, we see a Vincent filled with a self-doubt so crippling most creatives couldn’t handle.
"I feel – a failure – that’s it as regards me – I feel that that’s the fate I’m accepting. And which won’t change any more."
Van Gogh confided in an intimate letter to his brother, Theo.
In a different letter, the artist revealed he was his own toughest critic.
“It constantly remains a source of disappointment to me that my drawings are not yet what I want them to be.”
This deep-seated insecurity likely contributed to Van Gogh selling only one painting in his lifetime.
But his insecurities, as bad as they were, didn’t stop him from creating 900 paintings and 1,100 drawings in only 10 years.
Let that sink in.
Van Gogh was plagued by self-doubt and still revolutionized the art scene.
In that statements, you’ll find an important answer to an important question.
What separates those who fantasize about creating from those who actually do?
The creative understands that there is no magic cure for the voice in your head that says, "You're not good. You're not creative." The creative understands the only option is to rebel.
Or, as Vincent told Theo,
“If you hear a voice within you saying, ‘You are not a painter,’ then by all means paint, boy, and that voice will be silenced, but only by working.”
And so here I am, working, silencing the voice — creating.
How are you battling your self-doubt? What are you working on? I’d love to hear from you!
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