The Art of Letting Go: Where the Real Magic Begins

What happens when we stop gripping the outcome and start trusting the process? In this solo episode, host Kat Collins shares a personal story from her painting practice and reflects on the transformative power of letting go. This is an invitation to soften your grip, reconnect with your intuition, and remember why you create in the first place. 

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EPISODE CREDITS
Produced, edited, and mixed by Kat Collins Studio
Artwork designed by Kat Collins Studio

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Podcast: https://www.artistisin.com
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Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
Hey friends, and welcome to The Artist is In.
I'm Kat Collins, and today Iwant to explore something that's
been whispering to me in thestudio, and maybe shouting a
little louder in life, andcoming up in conversation with
other artists.

(00:21):
And that's the magic of lettinggo of the outcome.
As artists, and honestly ashumans, We're taught to focus on
the end result.
Chase a finished product, apolished thing, something
measurable, something thatproves we're good, successful,

(00:41):
or worthy.
Maybe you felt this too, thatpressure, that invisible weight
that says prove yourself.
If so, you're not alone.
But here's what I'm learning.
The real magic is doesn't livein the outcome.
It lives in the letting go.

(01:02):
There was a painting I wasworking on a few weeks ago that
I kept trying to fix.
It was late afternoon.
I was tired and hungry.
After working on paintings mostof the day, I felt this low hum
of frustration building behindmy ribs.

(01:23):
The negative self-talk startedcreeping its way in.
You're not good enough.
Why even bother?
You should just trash thispainting.
The painting had layers thatfelt heavy, overthought,
disjointed.
I was gripping the brush withthis quiet desperation, trying
to make it work and force it.

(01:45):
I had an idea in my head, and itwasn't translating to the canvas
very well.
The painting needed to be partof the submerged series that I
was creating for a solo artshow.
I put a ton of pressure onmyself to make things perfect,
to have an end result that wasworthy.

(02:07):
After all, I was creating it fora solo show, which is a big deal
for an artist.
But you know that moment whereyou're not creating anymore?
Instead, it feels like you'remanaging an expectation.
Like you're trying to controlthe direction so tightly that

(02:28):
the life gets drained out of it.
That's where I was.
The joy was gone.
The energy was flat.
I shoved the painting in acorner of my studio and gave up
on it.
I left it there for a week.
But then I came back to it.

(02:48):
And something in me softened.
I stepped back, I breathed, andI reminded myself, this doesn't
have to be anything yet.
I stopped painting what Ithought it should be, and
instead I started responding towhat was actually there.

(03:10):
I made a bold turquoise blue andgold green swoosh across the
surface.
Something unplanned.
And suddenly, I felt a shift.
That one gesture crackedsomething open.
That moment reminded me that thework doesn't always want to be

(03:31):
shaped.
It wants to become.
The outcome doesn't mean we stopcaring.
It means we stop clinging.
It's the trust fall thatcreativity requires.
We show up.
We do the work.
And then we let the work becomewhat it needs to be.

(03:53):
It means you're creating from aplace of presence, not pressure.
It's trusting that even if itdoesn't go the way you imagined
or plan, it will go the way itneeds to.
It's making the mark withoutknowing if it will work.
It's painting what moves you,even if it doesn't sell.

(04:16):
It's speaking your truth.
even if no one claps.
Learning to ignore your innercritic doesn't mean accepting
work does less than your best.
It means accepting your work forwhere it is, and more
importantly, allowing it to takeits own form.

(04:37):
By starting anything with theintention that it has to be
perfect, we leave ourselves opento disappointment, harsh
self-criticism, endprocrastination.
We close ourselves off frompossibility.
There's this beautiful kind offreedom that arrives the moment

(04:58):
we stop performing for thefinish line.
The moment we stop asking, willthis be good enough?
And start asking, is this true?
I recently shared my response inmy email newsletter to asking
the question, what have Ioutgrown?
Creatively, emotionally,spiritually, that I'm ready to

(05:23):
let go of.
The answers are still unfolding,but some truths are already
clear.
I've outgrown the beliefs that Ineed to make myself small.
That I have to stay quiet, takeup less space, wait for
permission.
That my art must look a certainway to be worthy.

(05:46):
that I need to please others tobe valued, that I'm not good
enough, that I'm a fraud.
I'm choosing to let that go.
I'm choosing to make the workthat moves me, not what I think
I should create.
And in doing that, I feltsomething shift, a return to

(06:10):
freedom, flow, and authenticity.
Because people don't wantperfect.
They want real.
And honestly, so do I.
My biggest fear about myupcoming shows, that no one will
show up.
But I'm not letting fear run theshow anymore.

(06:32):
I'm showing up for myself first.
So I want to ask you from onehuman to another, one artist to
another, what have you outgrown?
What beliefs or expectations areyou ready to release?
What would happen if you stoppedcensoring your voice, your

(06:54):
creativity, and your life?
I've noticed this shows upoutside the studio too.
Often in conversations, inrelationships, in trying to
control how I'm perceived,there's this subtle tension
between wanting to be understoodand and wanting to be accepted.

(07:16):
And sometimes it keeps us fromshowing up at all.
But when I let go of the need tobe perfect, when I give myself
permission to just be, there'sso much more ease and so much
more room.
My college professor once toldme many moons ago, stop treating

(07:42):
your work as precious.
I was notorious for getting to apoint in a painting and
stopping, thinking it was quoteunquote perfect.
I didn't want to touch itbecause I felt I would mess it
up.
So my professor took apaintbrush, taped it to the end
of a three-foot stick, and toldme to keep painting.

(08:05):
I didn't know what to do.
He said, scribble on thepainting.
I thought he was ridiculous.
I was...
angry with him, quite frankly.
I didn't want to ruin mypainting.
But I was also terrified becausethis meant forcing myself to

(08:25):
venture into the unknown, intothe unexpected.
It was an invitation to let go,even though I didn't know it at
the time.
He took the stick from me andasked, may I?
Begrudgingly, I nodded.
He chose black paint, of course.
and proceeded to start makingthese organic scribbled lines on

(08:49):
my painting.
I was a bit shocked, but then hehanded me the brush and said,
keep going.
So I did.
I mixed in oranges, yellows, andgreens with the black and
scribbled.
And I breathed the beginnings offreedom.
As I said, I didn't get it atthe time, but now I understand.

(09:14):
Amen.
Stop putting so much pressure onthe outcome.
Let it breathe.
Let it be messy, unfinished,wild, and full of truth.
Believe it or not, I still havethat painting in my studio.
I don't show it.

(09:36):
I don't display it.
But I like to keep it and bringit out every now and then to
remind myself, to let go.
Isn't it strange how we hold onto perfectionism like it's
protection when really it's acage?
Can you think of a moment whenyou were terrified to mess

(09:57):
something up and what happenedwhen you risked it?
So if you're holding somethingtightly today, a project, a
plan, a piece of yourself you'reafraid to share, what would
happen if If you let go, evenjust a little, what if your job

(10:18):
isn't to force the work intobeing, but to meet it where it
is?
What if you made something justfor yourself today, not for the
feed, not for the sale, not forvalidation, for you?
Can you allow something to bemessy and still beautiful?

(10:38):
There's magic in that space.
There's freedom.
There's you.
If you're listening right nowand thinking, but I have to get
it right, or I have to have anend result.
I see you.
Trust me.
It's hard.
Maybe the first step isn'tletting go completely, but

(11:03):
loosening your grip just alittle.
If you feel stuck in theoutcome, here's something I
sometimes do.
I put on music.
Pick a completely differentcolor than what's in the
painting.
Or I turn it upside down.
Or I do both.
And make a mark that feelscompletely wrong.

(11:26):
One that breaks the rules.
One that makes no sense.
It always shifts the energy.
Try it.
Let it be ugly.
Let it surprise you.
I invite you to try it rightafter this podcast ends.
There's a quote by Julia Cameronwho wrote The Artist's Way that

(11:49):
says, the creative process is aprocess of surrender, not
control.
That's not easy, is it?
Surrender feels vulnerable, butvulnerability is where
creativity lives.
Thanks for spending a littletime with me today.

(12:09):
The idea of letting go is atopic we'll explore this season
in conversation with otherartists.
If something I shared resonatedwith you, I'd love to know.
Reach out throughkatcollinstudio.com or on
Instagram at katcollinstudio.
And if you're walking your owncreative path, just know your

(12:33):
voice matters.
Your work matters.
Trust the process, the pivots,and the beauty in becoming.
Until next time, breathe deep,feel fully, and keep showing up.