“I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it.”
Vincent Van Gogh

More Thoughts On Overworking

I hope you enjoyed last weeks “10 Thoughts On Overworking”. Check it out if you missed it.

I have done some more thinking about overworking, especially when it concerns my own experience with it. Here is what I came up with:

Overworking is totally necessary in order to learn and grow.

When I find myself in the middle of overworking a painting, I know that I am pushing boundaries that I previously set for myself. Overworking tells me that I am “stepping out of my comfort zone”. It reminds me that I am most likely trying something new for me. It indicates that I may be pushing what I thought was the limits of my medium and how I am using it.

Overworking is not about overworking.

Overworking is about learning. And, it is usually about learning what doesn’t work. Which is just as valuable, if not more so, than learning what does work.

Overworking is about learning to adjust and correct. Overworking is about learning how to survive overworking. If you overwork enough times, you eventually start learning what it is, what it means, what it looks like and why it happens. Each time you overwork, you learn, grow, and gain the confidence to keep going, and not let it beat you.

I don’t think I will ever learn how to avoid overworking. But, why would I want to when there is so much to be gained from doing it?

Overworking can be a positive thing to happen.

Best,

David