Comparison and Your Art: How to Stay Inspired, Not Discouraged

I want to talk about something that comes up for almost every artist I know, including me.

Comparing your art.

Maybe you’ve felt it too.

You open Instagram, Pinterest, or an artist community and see beautiful work everywhere. Artists landing licensing deals, creating stunning collections, sharing polished portfolios. And suddenly your own work feels smaller. Behind. Not enough.

If you’ve ever felt that quiet sinking feeling while scrolling, you’re not alone. Comparison is one of the most common emotional hurdles in a creative journey.

The Early Comparison Season Every Artist Goes Through

I still remember early on in my journey, around the time I was learning watercolor and beginning to explore surface pattern design. I would scroll and see artists whose work felt so refined and recognizable. Their style looked established. Confident. Effortless.

And I wondered:

Will my work ever feel like that?
Will I ever be recognizable?
Is there even room for me here?

What I couldn’t see then is what I know now:

Those artists weren’t ahead because they were more talented. They were simply further along in building their voice, skills, and body of work.

That perspective shift changes everything.

Why Your Art Is Irreplaceable

Here is the truth I want you to hold onto today:

You are the only person who can create your artwork.

Your eye. Your hand. Your experiences. Your stories. Your way of seeing color and shape and nature and meaning.

There are people who will be drawn specifically to that. To you.

Not to the artist you admire.
Not to the artist with a million followers.
To you.

Just like it took years for the artists you look up to to build their skillset and business, that same unfolding is happening in you right now. And that unfolding is exactly what will make your work special and identifiable over time.

How to Stay Inspired Without Falling Into Comparison

So how do we stay inspired without slipping into discouragement?

Here are three anchors I return to again and again, both in my own creative practice and in mentoring artists inside my community.

1. Let admiration become education

When you see work you love, pause and gently shift the question from:

Why isn’t mine like that?

to:

What about this speaks to me?

Is it the color palette? The spacing? The looseness? The storytelling? The motifs? The way the repeat flows?

You can learn from what draws you without losing yourself. In fact, studying what you love is one of the fastest ways your own artistic voice becomes clearer and more defined.

Admiration is not a threat to originality. It is often the path toward it.

2. Measure against your past self, not someone else’s present

The only fair comparison is you to you.

Your work today compared to six months ago. A year ago. Even last month.

Creative growth is often quiet and gradual. You may not notice it day to day, but it is happening every time you create, observe, refine, and try again. That steady progression is exactly how recognizable styles and brands are formed.

The artists you admire also went through seasons of awkward work, uncertainty, and experimentation. You are simply seeing them at a different point in their timeline.

3. Remember that resonance is personal

The art world is not a single lane with limited space.

Different people are drawn to different aesthetics, moods, and stories. There are buyers, brands, and collectors who will connect with your softness, your motifs, your themes, your way of arranging a repeat in a way no one else does.

Your difference is not a disadvantage. It is the very thing that creates connection.

In licensing and design especially, brands are not looking for the same artist over and over. They are looking for fresh voices, distinct perspectives, and work that feels authentically its own.

That is where you come in.

If Comparison Has Been Heavy Lately

If comparison has been weighing on you lately, I want to gently encourage you:

You are not behind.
You are exactly where you should be.

And one day, without even realizing when it happened, someone will look at your work and think:

I wish I could create like that.

And you’ll know it didn’t happen overnight. It happened through all the small, faithful steps you kept taking, even when you weren’t sure where they were leading.

Keep going, sweet friend. Your voice is unfolding beautifully.

P.S. The course that laid the foundation for my creative practice and business, Immersion, is closing Tuesday. If you’ve been feeling the pull to grow your skills, clarify your style, and build a body of work you truly recognize as your own, this is the exact path that helped me do that.

I’m gifting a few more 1:1 coaching spots to those who enroll through my link below. I would truly love to support your journey. Learn more and Join HERE. 

p.s. Want weekly encouragement, creative tips and resources like a custom monthly mockups? Join Studio Notes Here🤎