u/makerbits

Lately I’ve been struggling a bit with the emotional side of working independently.

Not the work itself, but the lack of feedback around it. When nobody really sees the effort day to day, it becomes strangely hard to tell whether you’re moving forward or just stuck in your own head.

I didn’t expect silence and uncertainty to affect motivation this much.

People who’ve worked creatively or independently for a long time... how do you deal with this without losing momentum or confidence in what you’re doing?

Lately I’ve been thinking about a frustrating phase many creative people go through when you can clearly recognize what “good” looks like, but your own work still doesn’t match your standards.

In a strange way, your eye improves before your hands do. You start noticing weak compositions, average writing, poor execution, shallow ideas — but at the same time, you become painfully aware of the gap in your own work too.

I used to think this feeling meant I wasn’t talented enough. Now I feel it may actually be part of growth.

Curious if others here have experienced this phase in art, design, music, writing, or any creative field.