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HOW YOU DEAL WITH GETTING WORSE AT SOMETHING?
Posts
CashmereCat
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CloseI feel like lately I haven't been improving - I've been getting worse! Things like art, game-making, writing, anything really. I look back and I see myself being more skilled than I am now (how does that work?). How do you deal with that? What are some strategies to get that fire back?
If there are, in fact, any.
If there are, in fact, any.
LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
You probably didn't get worse. Your taste probably just got better, causing you to stop thinking you were amazing and start noticing flaws in your work. This is sort of demotivational, but will ultimately result in you doing better work, so stick with it!
If you really did get worse, then uh, just go back to what you were doing before? Or start improving from where you are now. Either way.
If you really did get worse, then uh, just go back to what you were doing before? Or start improving from where you are now. Either way.
RyaReisender
200
Well, I personally kind of booked it under "I'm getting old". Like the fact that as a child I had to many unique game ideas and these days I can still create solid game designs, but they just don't have those unique "nobody has ever seen it" ideas anymore.
And I guess I also just stopped doing stuff that I'm bad at and just focus on what I'm good at, but that might not be the best advice.
And I guess I also just stopped doing stuff that I'm bad at and just focus on what I'm good at, but that might not be the best advice.
author=LockeZ
You probably didn't get worse. Your taste probably just got better, causing you to stop thinking you were amazing and start noticing flaws in your work. This is sort of demotivational, but will ultimately result in you doing better work, so stick with it!
I wish you were right, but this is a case of me actually revisiting my previous work and discovering that some of it was better. Some, not all! But some of it was. And that creeps me out more than a little bit.
author=RyaReisender
And I guess I also just stopped doing stuff that I'm bad at and just focus on what I'm good at, but that might not be the best advice.
Yeah, I've been thinking of doing that too. I find I'm generally better at puzzles and gameplay mechanics than I am at anything else. Except maybe creating believable worlds. So I'm guessing I'll follow your advice and pursue these avenues that I'm strong at, in order to make them stronger than before.
Maybe it's just my cynicism that's growing, though. Today I had a huge mindblock when it came to writing, and it seems that only now, after I've finished watching the movie Guardians of the Galaxy (which was fantastic by the way), that I realized you can package something naive and crazy inside an attractive pill casing, and it will go down nicely... as long as you put a spoonful of sugar in that throat too. I mean, it's not selling your soul, per se. I guess I like to see it as more making the audience feel at home right now, by using comfortable language, comfortable cliches, and then poking fun at itself in a really interesting way. That way you can feel comfortable about being you without worrying about writing wrong all the time (as if there's some correct way to write, or something. Ha!)
Thanks for your help, guys.
SnowOwl
5188
Maybe you have been putting too much time on it lately and just make things on rail? I find that this is often the case for me when I start making things that are not quite up to par.
How about taking a break, maybe a week or something. It might also give you some time to think about what to do, or stuff that could be improved.
How about taking a break, maybe a week or something. It might also give you some time to think about what to do, or stuff that could be improved.
Crystalgate
694
author=CashmereCat
I wish you were right, but this is a case of me actually revisiting my previous work and discovering that some of it was better. Some, not all! But some of it was. And that creeps me out more than a little bit.
I've had something similar happening. When I looked at maps of abandoned projects, I noticed they were often better looking than in my current project. They contained more mapping errors, but any place that didn't have mapping error looked way better. Currently I'm going trough how I approach mapping to try to identify the culprit. I have made some headway, so maybe analyzing the difference in how you work now and how you did work back then will help you as well?
author=CashmereCatWhich there isn't'.
Maybe it's just my cynicism that's growing, though. Today I had a huge mindblock when it came to writing, and it seems that only now, after I've finished watching the movie Guardians of the Galaxy (which was fantastic by the way), that I realized you can package something naive and crazy inside an attractive pill casing, and it will go down nicely... as long as you put a spoonful of sugar in that throat too. I mean, it's not selling your soul, per se. I guess I like to see it as more making the audience feel at home right now, by using comfortable language, comfortable cliches, and then poking fun at itself in a really interesting way. That way you can feel comfortable about being you without worrying about writing wrong all the time (as if there's some correct way to write, or something. Ha!)
Usually I just take a break or just take whatever I’m doing right now a bit slow for the moment and just give myself a bit of friendly distance away from it. I’ve had some funks before, but that’s mainly because my brain probably just needed to relax a little and think of something else to do for a while, like watch some T.V., play some more video games or just go outside and chuck the ball around.
I don’t really believe you get worse at something over time, more like what LockeZ said where your overall tastes are just evolving and changing. I’ve looked at some of my old stuff in the past and have constantly said to myself, “What the hell was I thinking!?” I’ve gotten better since then, if that helps.
Yeah, just take it slow for a while and don’t worry about it that much. We’ve all had these days before. Usually give it a day and you’ll be back to your old perky self in no time. :)
I don’t really believe you get worse at something over time, more like what LockeZ said where your overall tastes are just evolving and changing. I’ve looked at some of my old stuff in the past and have constantly said to myself, “What the hell was I thinking!?” I’ve gotten better since then, if that helps.
Yeah, just take it slow for a while and don’t worry about it that much. We’ve all had these days before. Usually give it a day and you’ll be back to your old perky self in no time. :)
LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
Some aspects of the things I made earlier are certainly better, not because I was better at making them, but just because those aspects were all I really knew how to do, and so I spent all my time on them. Creating fleshed out environments in my text game's rooms, for example. These days I will often spend less effort on those things and so they'll be kinda sub-par, but that's really because I'm making a better overall game, and I think other things are more worth my time (or maybe just more enjoyable).
Also totally worse at humor, because I used up all my good jokes in older games already. Running out of ideas is a thing, I guess. No rule against doing the same thing twice I guess, it's just not satisfying to do so.
Also totally worse at humor, because I used up all my good jokes in older games already. Running out of ideas is a thing, I guess. No rule against doing the same thing twice I guess, it's just not satisfying to do so.
I'm thankful that some of you guys are saying maybe the solution is to take it slow. Because maybe it is. My strategy so far, rather than to hold back and think about things objectively, instead has been to dive even deeper into the rabbit hole where I got lost in the first place. Maybe, like you guys have said, it's better sometimes when you're in a pickle creativity-wise to step back and take the elements in... even if you're really encouraged about a certain aspect that you know if you dive back into it the passion and self-confidence will just fizzle out. It's been like banging my head against a brick wall - unfruitful and painful.
Even if that absurd reality is so, I'll never stop, if I get worse at something, I'll work at it until it's better.
In your particular situation, you might just yeah, want to take it a little easy so you aren't constantly striving for better results or perfection.
I never seek better results or perfection, I just always aim to do my best, even if my best is someone else's average, because I don't let other people be a bar for me.
I am me, I make headway through my own inspiration to do my best, try out new things, no one else concerns me.
Not to say I don't get inspired by art, but i never seek to outdo my competition, I only seek to do the best I can, if I give it my all, I can be happy.
Perfection is a foolish goal, but competing with your own set standards is even more foolish.
You will never be happy if you endlessly try to outdo your superiors. A superior is essentially your subjective viewpoint of a person, anyway.
Perfection is also subjective. There is no such thing as "perfect" art, because perfect is much like right, wrong, good and bad-- a word of mortal invention, and it's victim to scrutiny or conversely notoriety based on the perspective of those who revere you and those who revile you.
Life is flawed, nature is flawed, alas-- art will also be flawed.
Perfection is fiction.
In your particular situation, you might just yeah, want to take it a little easy so you aren't constantly striving for better results or perfection.
I never seek better results or perfection, I just always aim to do my best, even if my best is someone else's average, because I don't let other people be a bar for me.
I am me, I make headway through my own inspiration to do my best, try out new things, no one else concerns me.
Not to say I don't get inspired by art, but i never seek to outdo my competition, I only seek to do the best I can, if I give it my all, I can be happy.
Perfection is a foolish goal, but competing with your own set standards is even more foolish.
You will never be happy if you endlessly try to outdo your superiors. A superior is essentially your subjective viewpoint of a person, anyway.
Perfection is also subjective. There is no such thing as "perfect" art, because perfect is much like right, wrong, good and bad-- a word of mortal invention, and it's victim to scrutiny or conversely notoriety based on the perspective of those who revere you and those who revile you.
Life is flawed, nature is flawed, alas-- art will also be flawed.
Perfection is fiction.
SnowOwl
5188
author=BizarreMonkey
Monkey buisness
You don't live in a void, like it or not. Anyone that says they don't compare themselves to others are lying. I do it all the time, too. The trick is to not obsess over it. Or to be better than everyone else, but y'know that's just for me (<joke).
Davenport
5200
author=BizarreMonkey
Even if that absurd reality is so, I'll never stop, if I get worse at something, I'll work at it until it's better.
In your particular situation, you might just yeah, want to take it a little easy so you aren't constantly striving for better results or perfection.
I never seek better results or perfection, I just always aim to do my best, even if my best is someone else's average, because I don't let other people be a bar for me.
I am me, I make headway through my own inspiration to do my best, try out new things, no one else concerns me.
Not to say I don't get inspired by art, but i never seek to outdo my competition, I only seek to do the best I can, if I give it my all, I can be happy.
Perfection is a foolish goal, but competing with your own set standards is even more foolish.
You will never be happy if you endlessly try to outdo your superiors. A superior is essentially your subjective viewpoint of a person, anyway.
Perfection is also subjective. There is no such thing as "perfect" art, because perfect is much like right, wrong, good and bad-- a word of mortal invention, and it's victim to scrutiny or conversely notoriety based on the perspective of those who revere you and those who revile you.
Life is flawed, nature is flawed, alas-- art will also be flawed.
Perfection is fiction.
Indeed, I bet there is no formula for prime numbers.
author=SnowOwlAhahaha, I'll admit that whole spiel was a little dramatic in retrospect.author=BizarreMonkeyYou don't live in a void, like it or not. Anyone that says they don't compare themselves to others are lying. I do it all the time, too. The trick is to not obsess over it. Or to be better than everyone else, but y'know that's just for me (<joke).
Monkey buisness
Inspiration is totally gonna be a thing you do, I don't actually know what I was trying to say, except don't let the assumption your skills have faded bring you down? Same goes for seeing peers who totally out do you from your point of view, I yeah, probably do have a bar I move towards, but I take it like a game I have to win, not a battle against an unbeatable boss.
Sorry, existential crap started spilling out everywhere, was listening to KH music. :3
What a mess.
Yeah the solution is to take it slow. Its like all game devs, once you get working, you want bigger and better things from yourself and your games.
Darken
3952
Nothing is ever steadily incremental. It is usually a curvy up and down slope rather than a linear staircase up to improvement. It is very obvious when you start out drawing that you cannot always recreate that nice curvy line you did last week. Part of experience is being able guarantee what you want so you know what direction to go in.
I think you got just a little bit rusty. I've once stopped drawing for like two years and after that found myself drawing like 7 year old. You just need to practice a bit and it'll all come back to you,
RyaReisender
200
I found drawing is less about skill and more about how much time you are willing to spend on a few pixels.
author=RyaReisender
I found drawing is less about skill and more about how much time you are willing to spend on a few pixels.
Except it was regular drawing. With a pen, duh! Anyway let's get back to the topic...
Nivlacart
1571
You just gotta prove yourself otherwise by just wailing at the skill until you get good again.
Improvement requires growth, not change.
Improvement requires growth, not change.
