Beyond Talent: The Magic of Consistency

Imagine this—started with a small notebook, a freebie I snagged from a random conference. Little did I know, this simple act would reignite a long-lost passion, drawing. But as I drew, I soon realized something—I had lost the touch. The answer was crystal clear: nearly a decade had passed since I last practice this. Thus, my journey to reclaim my skills began, driven by a single principle: consistency

Not so long ago, I rekindled an old hobby of mine—drawing, specifically character sketches. Some of you may have noticed that over the past few months, I've been sharing a lot of my drawings. Drawing has been a passion of mine since childhood, which is why I pursued Architecture as my major and profession (sounds stupid, I know). However, after entering the world of Architecture, I found myself missing the pure joy of drawing. Don't get me wrong, I still love designing buildings, but there's something different about drawing something you truly adore.
​It all started with a free notebook I received at some random conference on green building. "Great, free stuff!" That was my broke ass mindset speaking. That same notebook sat untouched for nearly a year until one day, out of sheer boredom from reading papers, I picked it up and started doodling with an (also free) IKEA pencil. Ah, the life of a broke graduate student, hahaha.
Stroke by stroke, a long-lost sensation began to flood back, a feeling of getting drown into drawing. Before I knew it, I had filled five pages of the notebook with random doodles. Then came the human characters, and that's when it hit me, I couldn't draw as well as before! My pencil strokes were stiff, and the proportions were disaster.
I wondered why. There was only one answer: I hadn't been doing this for almost 10 years! No wonder my strokes lacked fluidity, as I had become accustomed to drawing building plans and sections, losing my delicate touch in the process. Being unemployed (some argue that a Ph.D. is a job, and I agree) and having the time, I was determined to reclaim those skills. There was only one way forward—learning and practicing.
We often come across individuals with remarkable talents—an extraordinary sports player, a gifted artist and musician, or someone who excels at their job. It's easy to feel overwhelmed and think, "Oh, they're so amazing! I'm nothing compared to them," or even doubt our own talents, believing we have none. But what we often fail to realize is the amount of time and dedication these people invest in building their skills. They all have one thing in common: consistency. They consistently devote themselves to what they do, gradually mastering their craft over time.
​Returning to my own story, I've been diligently practicing my drawing skills since last year, even picking up a few new techniques. I've been consistent (believe me, I've tried) and have come to a single conclusion: being consistent is incredibly challenging, especially when it's something unrelated to your job. In my case, I'm not an artist; I'm an architect and a doctoral student who is currently focused on research, writing, and reading academic papers. On top of that, I'm also lazy. So, being consistent with something that's not directly relevant to my job is tough. However, as I write this, I'm still making progress. So, let's embark on this journey of learning to be consistent together, shall we?