I believe this image speaks for itself.

It is hard to please everyone around with what you do. Some people have unique tastes or conclusions that are different than others and your own. You try hard to them be pleased with what you do/say/think/create, but chances are, you won't be able to impress them at all with the final outcome or conclusion or even punch-line.

Being an artist is hard, especially getting the final results with what you create for the client. There are times I create something for the client and don't really get a real "positive" response or any at all. I get a "Thanks. Looks great." or "Good work." and I wonder if the artwork I created was enough for the client. The artwork is done, the client says "thanks" and pays you, and the job ends there. However, I sometimes feel like something I created was not enough for the client, or something that the client wasn't proud of. Sometimes, I would redo the commission for them and make it better than before. Sometimes I would get a great response or sometimes get a similar questionable response. This is difficult when its online texted based communication. They reply to you with just simple texts, but you don't know how they really feel - the tone in their voice or the expression on their face. If they love it, post it on their page and say amazing things about it, that's great. But a simple "Thanks. Good work. Bye." reaction when the work is done, you don't see it posed on their wall or them mentioning it or advertising your work, it does kind of leave the artist wondering if the final product was good or if the client just felt like they wasted their money on something they didn't expect or want. This is something many honest artists don't want to do - to take the clients money for something they are not pleased with.

This is even more frustrating when the artist ITSELF is not pleased with their own work. No matter how many times they try to create that idea in their head, it still doesn't look right and they immediately jump on it again from scratch until they are finally pleased with the result or abandoned the idea and more onto something else.

Some of the artist's motivational drive is to make their client and customers happy with what they create. They would love to hear what are the strengths in what they created as well as the areas on where the image can be improved for the next time the client commissions the artist. This is part of how artists grow - hearing feedback from others and that their artwork is appreciated and where it can be worked on to make it even more fantastic.

An artist also needs to draw the line and conclusion, learn to stop, and say "I did what I could. I gave it my all. If you don't like it, than you are asking for too much or you have no idea what you want." I fixed several commission for past clients when the image is done but the clients still felt that something was off, explainable or not. Constant "free" revisions were made on the image until something positive comes out from the client. After so many revisions and I still have an unsatisfied client, I have to put down my tools and tell them that nothing I do impresses them and I shouldn't bring myself to a heavy sweat just because "this or that is off by a milometer" or "the number of hairs on your head is not correct." etc.

If you spend too much time trying to please those around you, you will only drain yourself out and working yourself to the bone just because everyone is not amused on what you do. Put your foot down, know when to stop, and move on. There are times that most important person there is to please, is yourself.

artwork © 2015 Alex Cockburn