Celebrate Sucess - Motivation Monday

What does success look like to you?

I originally started to learn to paint nearly 20 years ago when I was very sick.  I wanted to be able to paint the beautiful sunrises and sunsets I see here on the farm in Kentucky everyday.

A year or so ago, I spent a week painting nothing but skies and clouds.  The above painting was the first of that week and it has always been one of my favorites.  

The colors are my favorites and it was one of those magical days when a painting just flows off your brush.  I wish every day in the studio was like that day.

 Here are the four cloud paintings I did that week.

Success can be a difficult thing to define because it is so personal and different for every person.

For some it is monetary,

for others it is accomplishment,

for others it is recognition,

and for still more it is fulfillment.

Achieving success is almost as difficult as defining it.

Often we work and toil and sweat for success,

only to give up an hour before it appears.

My first attempt at clouds was pathetic.

My first 20 attempts were also pathetic.

Maybe about attempt #50 I started to see improvement.

This was one of the first times I felt like I was getting it.

This was probably 5 years or so ago when I participated in Leslie Saeta's 30 paintings in 30 days online challenge.  

Many of those paintings had clouds, but this might have been the first when I became convinced I could do it.

I would get discouraged and not paint clouds for a while,

and then my passion for it would come back and I would try again.

 

That's the phase I was in when I spent a week painting clouds.

 

In art, if you want to get good at something, you have to work at it and do it over and over again.

You have to study your mistakes, learn from them and then try again and again. 

 

I think that process is pretty true in most other endeavors.

Business people seldom are successful on their first try at business.  But they learn from each trial and if they stick with it,

success is likely to follow.

 

So once you work hard, struggle, keep trying,

and then achieve some success,

shouldn't you celebrate that.

 

I know at the end of the week of painting nothing but clouds,

I felt exhilirated.

I felt like I won.

I felt successful.

 

Did the painting sell?

No.

But I painted them for me and if they didn't sell that was OK.

But I love it and every time I look at it 

I remember all the things I learned along the way in order to paint those paintings.  

 

My heart celebrated with the success of those paintings.

I still celebrate them.

 

Don't be afraid to celebrate your success.

Any success.

Every success.

Success leads to success.

 

 

 

I continue to love to view and paint clouds,

and many other things.

 

And after I have success, I celebrate.

 

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you have a 

successful day.

 

If you enjoyed this post, you might want to read these also.

 

Read this for encouragement. 

 

Don't let FEAR stop you. 

 

If you want to learn to paint click HERE.