Everyone struggles to make the “perfect” something or use the “right” supply. It never failed that I would pass judgement on myself for each and every imperfection in my art. That immediately shut down my creativity and took the joy out of play. No shocker that being creative often ended in frustration for me back then. But it doesn’t any more. Why? I just say O.O.P.S.
An O.O.P.S. is an Outstanding Opportunity Presenting Suddenly.
You’ve probably heard inspirational quotes like, “when one door closes another one opens” or “inside every problem lies an opportunity”. When I had just screwed something up, made a mistake, or “ruined” what I was working on those quotes didn’t help me. In fact, they actually made me more frustrated!
Lives did not hang in the balance if I used the “wrong” color. Civilization would not come to an end if I smudged the ink. I was not using the last piece of paper on the planet. Yet, I had to find a way to not take it so seriously.
That’s where the O.O.P.S. came in handy. Instead of bad words, I started saying O.O.P.S. Even when I was frustrated, I just had to laugh when I shouted O.O.P.S.!
So without further ado here are some videos of my many O.O.P.S.ies for your viewing pleasure!
My Secret to Art Journaling without Fear See it here
How do I handle it when an OOPS flares up my inner critic? See how in this video:
What do I do when I go too far? Call it an OOPS and keep going!
Does a spelling mistake ruin it? Nope! It’s an OOPS! See it here.
See what I do when I think my art journal page is ugly! See it here.
There is always a new OOPS showing up when I play and I share those here and in my newsletters. Get signed up and each week I’ll send you creative encouragement and a free weekly download for your play!
