That feels hard, so hard right now. Every art guru or marketing guru urges you forward: telling you that you need to make it happen; that you need to follow steps a, b, and c, and, even if nothing seems to be happening, just keep going.
Perseverance sometimes pays off. If you give up before you start, clearly, you won't succeed, but sometimes we really need to give ourselves time off. Don't be hard on yourself. Don't beat yourself up.
We've all been there. Some days it feels like we aren't making headway because we aren't. It doesn't mean there is anything wrong with you. There is nothing wrong with your art or your craft or your dream. Sometimes we just keep trying to push that boulder up the hill, but it won't budge as much as an inch no matter how much we sweat.
These are not ordinary times. A lot of possibilities have been taken away, making it even harder to realize those dreams. It may be that you keep reading stories of people that are making it. You see profiles of people that turned their art dreams into success despite the pandemic via a viral video on some social media platform or maybe someone finally had their dreams realized because they were discovered by a celebrity.
Their success doesn't negate your ability or your craft or your truth. You are still amazing. Sometimes we don't get the success we deserve. Sometimes it's just a long fruitless slough through the mire. Sometimes it feels like we are just screaming into the void.
I can't promise that the pot of gold is at the end of this journey. All I can say is that it's ok not to achieve the gold. It's not you. It was never you.
I don't know what the journey has in store for you, if there is a golden pay off for the hard work. Just know that you are valuable. You are loved. I see your struggle and I honor you for it. I hope all your dreams are realized, but that is not a marker of your true worth.
The journey and the struggle are part of who you are. Monetary success does not measure your value. Shiny things are nice, I won't deny, but they don't make you deserving of love. You are already deserving of that love.
Keep going. Try to find pleasure and worth in the struggle, but don't let your financial success be a measure of your inner worth. Give yourself time off. Take time to meditate and just be. Feel the love as you journey forward. You are amazing and I am very proud of you.