The Role of Routine in Creative Skill Development
Progress as an illustrator can be incredibly unpredictable, but the best way to make steady improvements is to establish a routine. By treating illustration as a daily routine instead of an occasional muse, you’re more likely to see steady, calculated improvement. That doesn’t mean you can’t be creative when you work in a routine, it just means you’re establishing a framework for your creative brain to operate within. A daily or weekly schedule of creating, learning and critiquing keeps you going even when you don’t feel like it.
One of the greatest benefits to creating a routine, is that you no longer need to rely on inspiration to make a practice. Inspiration is temporary, but the ability to practice is always with you. If you make a routine of drawing, playing with color or exploring composition, then you have something to stand on. With practice, drawing becomes automatic, and you start to get better at it without even trying. And it is this gradual improvement that gives you confidence and makes your creative work seem more approachable.
Another benefit is a greater sense of direction. Committing to a regular routine means you can make progress through the various learning milestones in a steady and clear way, and you can also keep track of what skills need attention and which ones are improving. Additionally, repetition in practice sharpens your visual memory, so you become better at remembering techniques and techniques can be recalled for use in new items. With every repetition you are reenforcing the craft, and with that your work will become more intentional.
The second advantage to routine is that it allows for experimentation. By drawing consistently, you have the room to try new things and fail. The more you draw, the more you can experiment with different styles, techniques, and ways of telling stories. And experimentation is key to developing your unique style. Routine doesn’t stifle creativity, it gives you the freedom to explore.
In the end, routine sets up a long-term courtship between you and your work. It helps you think in terms of slow, incremental growth, not short-term hits. The results you achieve with a daily routine can be attributed to nothing other than your persistence and work ethic. And so, as you get into a daily routine, you start to reward yourself with the benefits of long-term improvement. You develop the faith and confidence you need to take on bigger challenges. Ultimately, your best work will be the result of your routine.
