📝 Point out what is good.

How to help someone grow.

You would think that the best way to help someone improve is to point out what is wrong so they can fix it. That rarely works. Or does not work nearly as well as pointing out what is good.

Tell someone they’re funny, and they are likely to tell you another joke.

Point out a good effort and you will see more of that kind of effort.

Tell a kid that’s a nice drawing, and they will do many more drawings.

So if you want to make the world better, instead of pointing out what is wrong with it, look for the good, and point it out.

Point it out it in your spouse, your kid, your friends, and when you start to get really good at it, look for it in you enemies too, and transform them.

This, like everything else I write, is advice for myself.

It feels amazing to get feedback on exactly what you are doing well.

So if you are going to comment on someone’s art on instagram or in class try doing the same. Try pointing out what is good. It will do them a real service and it will help you build repport. It’s lovely to here “I love your work” or “that’s great” , but it’s an order of magnituted better to hear: “I like how you drew that pose” or “your work made me feel X because of Y” of “I like how you captured that detail”. Try it!

I’m so thankful for all the encouraging notes I get from you all the time about this newsletter and about my work! It really keeps me going!

PS: I’m excited to tell you …

Writing this newsletter is now officially my job (one of my jobs), thanks to a handful of people subscribing I’m now able to block out some ‘work time’ rather than do it in the scraps of time I have between things.

If you get a 🎟 Backstage Pass - Here are 4 Topics I’m starting with:

1. Steps I took to become a picturebook illustrator (where I include some of my unfair advantages)

2. Picturebook portfolio checklist ( what I’ve done and still aim to do and why)

3. Breakdown of my illustration process

4. A list of the daily, weekly, monthly, systems I use or have used (and I’ve used all of them imperfectly)

I’ll tackle one a month for the next 4 months (So that’s what the subscribers will get)

📝 YES a lot of the ideas will spill out into the daily notes.

🎟 But, for the longer, more elaborate and maybe more personal things, I’m more comfortable sharing it with people who I know really want to hear it, rather than make it available publically on the internet. If that’s you please subscribe if you haven’t.

Either way,

I look forward to seeing you in the 📝 daily notes which continues to be the short advice that I would give myself about being an illustrator.