Greetings Steemers, Steemians, Steemophiles! My name is Harry, and while I don't yet know the proper terminology around here, I'm in awe of all the talent, good will, and generosity that I've seen so far in this community. I'm not the most outspoken person, but from what I've seen, you guys are very welcoming and I'd like to share a bit about myself with all of you.
This is me, or at least my attempt of rendering myself with graphite on a 9" x 12" sheet of sketch paper. I'm 25 years old, soon to be 26, living in Arizona, and I'm an artist. That may sound like a simple statement, but for me it's a difficult one to make. I've been struggling for while now with who I am and what I truly wish to do with my life. I've played guitar for many years, and I studied computer science in college, but due to my anxieties it's extremely hard for me to commit to either of these as a carrier path. Visual art for me is different. It's something that I can envision myself doing in the long term. There is only one problem with this... I suck! Having only recently rediscovered my interest in art, I feel like I have a lot of catching up to do, and I'm finding it hard to motivate myself. This brings me to my second point.
Steemit as a Motivational Tool
While the allure of striking it rich on Steemit is huge, and probably what attracted me and many of us to it in the first place, I feel like Steemit also has a lot of potential as a tool to motivate us in our other endeavors. It may be a symptom of my generation, but having grown up as an avid gamer, I can say that there is one thing that motivates me above all else, and that's Instant Gratification. Yes, it's become somewhat of a scary term, conjuring up images of weak-willed individuals with no goals or ambitions, but let's be honest for a minute; it works. So long as you make use of it in a constructive way. I see Steemit as a good example of this. I'll be the first to admit that I don't have an iron will, and as an artist it can be very difficult for me to self motivate when I don't immediately see improvement in my work. I've come to Steemit with the idea that if I post my work daily, even if I only earn pennies per post, at least it's a palpable reward that can help to stoke the creative flame.
So that's the Plan
I'm going to try to post my work every day, to document my journey as an artist, motivate myself, and hopefully help out some others who are in the same boat. I'll try to teach some of the lessons that I learn along the way, and maybe do a weekly review of my studies. I invite anyone who's interested in learning or appreciating art to come along for the ride, and sketch along with me if you like! Let's turn Steemit into the thriving art community it deserves to be! (Although it's already pretty awesome) ;)
Thank you all for reading, I'll see you around. Happy drawing, and of course Happy Steeming!
