I have had interactions in real life where I run into people I haven’t seen or heard from in years, and they’ll say to me, “I’m loving what you’re sharing on (social media platform) with (insert recent creative projects…).”
I’ve also heard friends express fear of telling someone how much they love their work, stating “I don’t want to seem weird.” And I think to myself, ‘Weird about what? This person does a thing, and they share it with the world. You genuinely love it! Why would that be weird?’
So on Instagram, I decided to pose a question:
”Do you ever feel like enthusiastically telling someone how much you like what they do, makes you look over-eager?”
When the poll ended, with 80 people responding, nearly 60% percent said that they felt strange about expressing honest love or appreciation for people’s work. While I suspected I might get this response, it hurt me to the core.
WHY? If you genuinely love what someone does, why wouldn’t they want to know that? Most creatives regularly fluctuate between a reasonable level of confidence to crippling self-doubt. Western Society is especially guilty of undervaluing the importance of music, visual art, and literature. While we constantly consume these things and refer to them as our culture, we discourage people for pursuing their passions to contribute in these areas. Corporate Executives make a living exploiting the work of creatives, while encouraging the labeling of creatives as “Starving Artists”. Even many successful artists regularly struggle over whether they should continue, whether what they’re doing is worth all the hard work that goes into it.
PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE!!!
If someone is doing something, and it makes you feel good, you think it’s done beautifully, or you see it as valuable, PLEASE LET THEM KNOW HOW MUCH YOU LOVE IT! Knowing that we’re doing something that matters helps keep artists going. Most artists create because something internal compels them to create something they may personally NEED to see. They share their work in hopes that others connect with it as well, and perhaps people will purchase the works, which will enable them to keep creating from an honest space.
The importance of an artists work is not always reflected in sales. But knowing that people appreciate the work being made gives an artist fuel to continue investing in themselves, to continue being vulnerable and honest with the world, and to continue sharing the beauty they create! Never feel weird in telling someone how much you appreciate what they do!