Five things I tell people who swear they can't paint

Someone tells me this at almost every workshop, usually while holding a brush like it might go off. Here's what I tell them back.

1. "Can't" usually means someone was mean about it once. Somewhere along the way, a teacher or a cousin or a stranger said something about your drawing — and you filed it as fact. It wasn't. It was one person's opinion, a long time ago.

2. Nobody is grading you. This is not school. There is no rubric. The only goal is that you make something and, at some point, surprise yourself.

3. Paintings are just decisions. A background, a shape, a color. Each one takes ten seconds, and none of them is permanent — acrylics are gloriously forgiving. You cannot ruin it in a way another layer won't fix.

4. Your "mistake" is your style. The wobbly line, the unexpected color — that's the part no one else could have made. I've watched a hundred people start the same painting, and the flaws are exactly what makes each one worth taking home.

5. You will leave with something you made. Every single time. I've never once sent someone home empty-handed — and I've watched a lot of people who "can't paint" walk out holding something they're genuinely proud of.

Come test me on it. Grab a seat at the next workshop — I'll save you the wobbliest brush I have.