Don’t wait until you know who you are to get started
Make things, know thyself
Find yourself through your work; the act of creation forces us to confront and refine who we are.
Professionals talk about “Impostor syndrome” – everyone who creates for a living feels like they’re about to be discovered as a fraud. No one knows what they’re doing, so just keep showing up.
Fake it till you make it
Whatever you practice, you become an expert in. Act like a pro and you’ll become a pro.
Start copying
Do master studies. Do a lot of master studies. Vary the masters to explore different styles and learn from each.
The object is not to learn to copy the style, but to learn how the artist sees the world
Imitation is not flattery
Attempts to imitate are destined to fall flat – we are not our heroes – but the adaptations we make to accommodate those shortcomings create a unique style. “Add something to the world that only you can add”, even if you don’t know what that is yet (see point one).