Remember when you were a kid and loved to draw—just for the pure enjoyment of it? When you didn’t have a care in the world and time would slip away without you being aware of it? Ah, to have those days again! When our right brain takes over, drawing can seem effortless but sometimes it is difficult to get into that mode when things like responsibilities get in the way. These other times can seem like a chore when the left brain is telling you, "You suck! Why even bother?" or you can’t figure out why the feet or hands you've drawn don't look right. I’m sure we’ve all been there at one time or another. It’s important to push through because, believe it or not, you are learning and that knowledge is at your right brain's disposal when you are in the mood to play. Keep at it!

I’ve learned from experience that when I stop for too long, I get rusty. So I try to draw even when I don’t feel like it.

Here are some ways I try to keep myself motivated:

Whenever I’m having a bad drawing day, I look through my work from past to present to see the progress I’ve made. It reminds me of how far I’ve come and helps put things into perspective.
I look to other creative areas for inspiration: music, poetry, art, animation, whatever it takes to bring out the emotion I need and I always like to listen to music while I draw.
In the past, I have participated in online art challenges but recently I've stayed away from those while I concentrate on my drawing fundamentals because I felt I was getting ahead of myself. However, these challenges can be useful to an artist's growth; they can identify gaps in our skills and may stimulate our creative problem-solving.
Doodling. It is amazing what happy accidents may occur when you doodle.

Do you have a technique to keep yourself motivated? If so, feel free to share in the comments below.

Some sketches from this weekend:

Chalk Full of Dreams