Here are 15 tips for reducing artistic anxiety so you can create with more ease and confidence:

1. Shift from Judgment to Curiosity

Instead of asking, “Is this good?” ask, “What am I learning?” Curiosity removes pressure and keeps you engaged.

2. Set Small, Playful Goals

Give yourself permission to create something “bad” on purpose. Make a messy sketch, write nonsense, or experiment just for fun.

3. Ground Yourself with Rituals

Create a simple pre-creative ritual—light a candle, make tea, stretch, or listen to music—to signal to your brain that it’s time to create.

4. Use Constraints to Free Your Mind

Sometimes too much freedom creates anxiety. Set limits: use only three colors, write a poem in five minutes, or paint with your non-dominant hand.

5. Separate Creation from Evaluation

Create first, edit later. Don’t judge while you’re making—wait until the next day or after a break to assess your work.

6. Work in Timed Sessions

Use the Pomodoro technique (25-minute focused sessions with breaks) to make it easier to start and prevent overthinking.

7. Move Your Body Before Creating

A short walk, stretching, or even dancing shakes off tension and helps you access flow faster.

8. Connect with Other Artists

Anxiety shrinks when shared. Find a supportive community, even if it’s just one creative friend who understands.

9. Create a Safe Space for Your Art

Have a private sketchbook, journal, or folder where you allow yourself full creative freedom, knowing no one else will see it.

10. Normalize the Anxiety

Feeling anxious about your art means you care. Instead of resisting it, acknowledge it: “Oh, there’s my creative anxiety again. That’s normal.”

11. Focus on the Process, Not the Outcome

Remind yourself: Your job is to show up and create. The results will take care of themselves.

12. Have a “Creative First Aid Kit”

Make a list of go-to activities that help you when you’re stuck—watching a favorite movie, rereading an inspiring book, flipping through past work, or taking a break.

13. Stop Comparing Yourself Mid-Process

Looking at others’ polished work while you’re in the messy middle fuels anxiety. Save inspiration for before or after you create.

14. Develop a “Good Enough” Mindset

Perfectionism breeds anxiety. Allow yourself to create something that’s just “good enough” for today.

15. Make Art for Your Future Self

Imagine looking back in a year and thinking, “I’m so glad I kept going.” That perspective makes creating today easier.