How do you guys deal with discouragement and lack of motivation?
- Thread starter Sentri
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Dirtdives2424
Division Scheduler and Keeper of Con Lists
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- S2424
OK Monday morning rerpot: ChaosDynasty how did your gig go? How you doing?
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Sentri
Active Member
Dirtdives, sorry about the late response. work and martial arts have kinda kept me busy for the past couple of days. I'd say the gig went okay. As it turned out, I was more just like background music, but it was okay. I still got paid, and got free cake out of the deal, LOL. I also passed my second pretest, so my next test for martial arts will be for my 1st DAN black belt.
As for my armor, well, I kinda ran my printer out of ink with printing business cards, so there is that, but I do have a case of plastidip on order and got the last of my tools for cutting the foam.
As for my armor, well, I kinda ran my printer out of ink with printing business cards, so there is that, but I do have a case of plastidip on order and got the last of my tools for cutting the foam.
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Dirtdives2424
Division Scheduler and Keeper of Con Lists
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- S2424
Glad to hear you had a good weekend......now that the week is half over.....good hump-day to you......w/ those cards you should drum up some more business.....next gig put money towards ink.......and there is nothing wrong w/ free cake!!!! Also, congrats on passing your 2nd pretest.
Seth Knight
Well-Known Member
Go to conventions, talk to other artists in person (though learning here helps too!), find out your style of building. I know some people who don't work on things at all, then they take 24 hours and build almost their entire costume, and others work on it every day.
Creativity is a hard thing to define, however, after building props 5-7 days a week for the last 6 months, I've had days where I've had to force myself to build/make, but it's okay, if you grow your "maker" muscles it will become easier and easier for you to get into it. Also, if the time isn't right to make it, don't be to aggresive in forcing it, if you need to take care of other things first, do them, then use the motivation you get out of finishing those things to start in on your armor. I've been cosplaying over 3 years, made one "kind of okay" suit (my own words, spartan wise), so I'm still not done with my goal spartan armor, so I can understand you there, but as everyone above has said, learn yourself a bit more and how you work and play off your strengths and minimize your weaknesses, and most importantly, have fun!
-Seth
Creativity is a hard thing to define, however, after building props 5-7 days a week for the last 6 months, I've had days where I've had to force myself to build/make, but it's okay, if you grow your "maker" muscles it will become easier and easier for you to get into it. Also, if the time isn't right to make it, don't be to aggresive in forcing it, if you need to take care of other things first, do them, then use the motivation you get out of finishing those things to start in on your armor. I've been cosplaying over 3 years, made one "kind of okay" suit (my own words, spartan wise), so I'm still not done with my goal spartan armor, so I can understand you there, but as everyone above has said, learn yourself a bit more and how you work and play off your strengths and minimize your weaknesses, and most importantly, have fun!
-Seth
Sentri
Active Member
I would love to go to more cons than the 4 that I go to, but sadly my budget (or lack of) doesn't allow for that. That and talking to people that I don't know is actually really hard for me. I'm really shy IRL and socially akward. I'm the person that, in a room full of people, is the one sitting in the corner table by themselves. I'm the DJ that will play the hour straight mix set, so that they don't have to speak. I'm also pretty much the one that will never start a conversation.
I, myself, have been a cosplayer for 9 years, but this is my first time 'making' one. all of my others are what I call 'pieced together' as nothing had to be made from scratch.
ChristianSpring
New Member
If you feel like everyone in your side is discouraging you to pursue what you really want, don't mind them!!!! Instead, keep on searching things online like registering to community or forums of your interested niche, there you can find people with your the same interest, you can talk to them about how to accomplish it step-by-step. Stop wasting your time worrying about those people who discourages you, they're a waste of time actually, instead go to the people with the same interest as you.
If you have a deadline to meet, why not try to put in a calendar and make it before the deadline.
If you have a deadline to meet, why not try to put in a calendar and make it before the deadline.
eric draven
Member
We all have our ups and downs, like right now i am a little under the weather, so motivation is out the window. AND I still have to go to work. But I know this cold won't last. Hang in there. Just load up some Halo EDM and have fun.
FirstPick
Member
- Member DIN
- S509
I move onto another project or I watch/listen/look at whatever inspired me in the first place.
In the example of building the Halo suit, I watched Halo clips, cutscenes, the FUD movie and other things to get my juices flowing. Also, change my phone ringtone/notification to something Halo. It usually worked.
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using Tapatalk
In the example of building the Halo suit, I watched Halo clips, cutscenes, the FUD movie and other things to get my juices flowing. Also, change my phone ringtone/notification to something Halo. It usually worked.
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using Tapatalk
davidsmith
New Member
Assignment Help There are ups and down in the life of everyone don't worry everything will be ok.
tomboy
Active Member
Best thing you can do when motivation is running dry is take a break. These builds can take a long time; there's no reason to push yourself and burn out.
Pick a date a few days or or even weeks away, mark it on your calendar, and then do anything but your build. Read a book, watch movies, play video games, or even *Gasp!* go outside. You can even go back to what motivated you to start the build in the first place, whether it be book, movie, video game, etc. Just recognize that your brain is tired and needs a break.
There's no need to push through and burn yourself out. That's just how projects get dropped. If you tried to do too much with too little time before a convention you wanted to premier at, just suck it up and realize you're going to have to wait to show your build at the next one. Things will go wrong: pieces will break, materials will be out of stock, the dog will sit on a piece. Even just moving your finish date can relieve a lot of stress and make the project easier to do. These projects are long term commitments. Treat it as such.
Pick a date a few days or or even weeks away, mark it on your calendar, and then do anything but your build. Read a book, watch movies, play video games, or even *Gasp!* go outside. You can even go back to what motivated you to start the build in the first place, whether it be book, movie, video game, etc. Just recognize that your brain is tired and needs a break.
There's no need to push through and burn yourself out. That's just how projects get dropped. If you tried to do too much with too little time before a convention you wanted to premier at, just suck it up and realize you're going to have to wait to show your build at the next one. Things will go wrong: pieces will break, materials will be out of stock, the dog will sit on a piece. Even just moving your finish date can relieve a lot of stress and make the project easier to do. These projects are long term commitments. Treat it as such.
Phule
New Member
For me motivation comes and goes, but there is no race. The best for me has been getting in with a great community. Some days are build days, some days are "I am stuck and how do I fix my mess days" some days are just spent scrolling through other peoples builds looking for inspiration and admiration. The best part is getting together with build buddies and just hearing how they have some shelved projects, some active projects and just supporting each other. I have a ton of projects in my mind, one by one I will get them done, doesn't matter if I am 80 before I get to them all. I just keep in mind one of the first things said to me when I started costuming - How long did it take to finish? ha ha ha ha you are never "finished" a costume. It's true and I love it.
HydratedFormula
New Member
While I'm new at costuming I've been painting various Miniature models since I was a kid and do find myself lacking motivation at times.
For me it's normally self inflicted as I tend to get a lot of models at once and bog myself down with sometimes over a hundred models to paint.
Somto to counteract that I normally break each "Army" or "Project" down into multiple parts, even sometimes breaking it into squad, then individual models and their separate parts, and make sure to set myself a certain amount of work then take a break.
By break I mean something totally different, make a brew, read a book, go for a walk whatever so long as your brain can't directly connect your current activity to your last.
For me it's normally self inflicted as I tend to get a lot of models at once and bog myself down with sometimes over a hundred models to paint.
Somto to counteract that I normally break each "Army" or "Project" down into multiple parts, even sometimes breaking it into squad, then individual models and their separate parts, and make sure to set myself a certain amount of work then take a break.
By break I mean something totally different, make a brew, read a book, go for a walk whatever so long as your brain can't directly connect your current activity to your last.
Sentri
Active Member
I've slowly been getting back to this, with only 1 month left till con. I'm trying to see if I can work on it during the week as well as on the weekends. I've still been at a loss for motivation, but I just have to keep reminding myself. I really really wanna get this done. I know that part of my problem is not having anyone around to work with. I have lived alone for multiple years, and thats probably part of what is draining me.
I've slowly been getting that spark back, and it's partially due to many trials and failures with not only armor, but with life.
I recently purchased a resin Mark IV suit (halo 3 style) and I went to debut it at a con a couple of weeks ago...it was a disaster. the cod piece kept falling off, the strap for the shoulders kept sliding down my back, and when I went to get off stage for the cosplay contest, one of the buckles flat out broke, and the entire chest piece came off. Not even half way into the day and I already had to take it off and put it back in the truck. I thought my minor repair work, was enough, but alas, it was not.
I might not get to this suit until new years.
I've slowly been getting that spark back, and it's partially due to many trials and failures with not only armor, but with life.
I recently purchased a resin Mark IV suit (halo 3 style) and I went to debut it at a con a couple of weeks ago...it was a disaster. the cod piece kept falling off, the strap for the shoulders kept sliding down my back, and when I went to get off stage for the cosplay contest, one of the buckles flat out broke, and the entire chest piece came off. Not even half way into the day and I already had to take it off and put it back in the truck. I thought my minor repair work, was enough, but alas, it was not.
I might not get to this suit until new years.
Takanuva
Member
I'm already feeling overwhelmed, and I haven't even started my build. I still need to get an x-acto knife, printer ink, and likely more cardstock before I can start. I printed off the first 6 sheets to the shin of my Master Chief build, and I just don't know where I'm going to start.
All the pepakura I've done before just pales in difficulty compared to this. I get that as long as I'm careful and patient, I shouldn't face errors, but I'm just scared I'm going to screw up. Should I practice on a less difficult pattern first?
All the pepakura I've done before just pales in difficulty compared to this. I get that as long as I'm careful and patient, I shouldn't face errors, but I'm just scared I'm going to screw up. Should I practice on a less difficult pattern first?
arma358
Active Member
- Member DIN
- S358
Being scared and nervous is a common response to a project as awesome (and insane!) as armor like this. The easiest thing for me when I was building my very first set was to understand that not everything is going to be perfect, especially after your first attempt.
Even now, with the first iteration of my chest piece being done, it's still not quite right, though it looks pretty awesome.
Being discouraged is also fairly common as well, as I know that I've been there before, especially after screwing something up beyond the point of no return. It's always been a ride, either way. Sometimes everything works out perfectly, and you can churn through multiple pieces...and sometimes, not so much. In the end, just take the time you need, because if CommanderPalmer can complete her suit, anybody can. It's all just how patient and enthusiastic you are about completing it.
Even now, with the first iteration of my chest piece being done, it's still not quite right, though it looks pretty awesome.
Being discouraged is also fairly common as well, as I know that I've been there before, especially after screwing something up beyond the point of no return. It's always been a ride, either way. Sometimes everything works out perfectly, and you can churn through multiple pieces...and sometimes, not so much. In the end, just take the time you need, because if CommanderPalmer can complete her suit, anybody can. It's all just how patient and enthusiastic you are about completing it.
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