Creative project done and dusted, but you're left feeling anxious?

Here are 6 steps for managing 'Completion Anxiety'.

You’ve done it. You’ve put something out into the world. Perhaps you’ve just pressed send on your final draft, uploaded your self-tape or finally emailed that person you’re really keen to work with. Maybe you’ve just walked out of a meeting, off the stage or off set. Or it might even be that you’ve built enough courage to post your work on Instagram for the world to see. Whatever it is, you’ve completed it. Done. Wrapped. Wonderful.

But then it sets in: that hot panic. A creeping sensation of dread bringing a nauseating self-doubt. What if they hate it? What if you made a mistake? What if they laugh at you? What if you’ve mortally offended someone and they never want to work with you again?

Sound familiar?

This moment is what I refer to as Completion Anxiety. We all know the feeling. It’s our brain’s infuriating response to having finally completed something, big or small, that we’ve been working towards, that we care about and that is now in the hands of someone else. In other words, it’s the moment that we are no longer in control.

Whilst this feeling is extremely normal (you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn’t experienced it), left unchecked, Completion Anxiety can turn very nasty. It can result quickly in the ‘domino effect’ of negative thinking, where we spiral into critical and toxic thoughts about ourselves and our creativity. Over time this can drastically hold us back, preventing us from wanting to create, reach out or show up for ourselves and our creativity.

It’s therefore vital that we learn how to get a hold of Completion Anxiety before it drains the joy from our creative journey.

See below for 6 in-the-moment steps to managing Completion Anxiety.

For more on why we experience Completion Anxiety, check out our free eBook on Overcoming Self Doubt.

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Your 6 in-the-moment steps to managing Completion Anxiety

1) JUMP IN!

You did it! Immediately jump in and celebrate your achievement. Go on! Celebrate loud. Your inner critic might be fighting hard to dampen your success, but the jubilation that you felt the very moment before the Completion Anxiety set in was there for a damn good reason - because you showed up for yourself. You did that. You. And that’s amazing.

So take a moment to say “well effing done me, I deserve a biscuit” Then go get yourself that biscuit [cupcake/walk/cocktail/holiday or any other treat of your choice].

2) notice growth

Whilst eating your biscuit, take a moment to think about how this completion, large or small, has moved you towards your creative goals. Perhaps you have learned something new? Or been reminded of an old lesson you can now act on? Perhaps you have created a potential connection with someone or proven to yourself that you are capable of showing up for yourself?

Whatever the outcome and however you’re feeling right now, note that this step has somehow moved you forwards, and forwards is a wonderful way to go. In front of you lies so many new and unexpected opportunities and even the tiny steps are taking you there.

3) don't celebrate alone

If celebrating yourself right now feels tough, find someone supportive to celebrate with you. Whether that’s a friend, family member or a community, surround yourself with those who build you up and allow you to feel empowered.

And if you’re not sure who would care about your completed task (and I bet it’s more people than you think), drop me a DM or send me an email at Core Creatives and let me know what you’ve just done. I would LOVE to hear from you.

4) let's get some perspective

Ok, this one’s brutal but it needs to be said so all you overthinkers out there, listen up. No one else cares as much as you do about your own work. Of course, they don’t! They’re far too busy up to their eyeballs in their own self-doubt. I say this with love: your audience is significantly more concerned about their own lives to notice whether you were playing your acting objective fully and the person that you just emailed is simply too busy to care that you wrote their instead of they’re. And even if they do notice (which they probably won’t), it’s unlikely to be the reason not to work with you.

Remember, this is one small moment in your own life, and it’s a spec in the life of everyone around you. So stop picking it apart and move on.

5) time to Move on

Which leads me nicely to our penultimate tip: do something creative to move you forwards. Tempting as it may be to pick apart every word of that email you just sent, re-watch your audition tape or replay that entire meeting in your head, cringing at every word you said, it’s not moving you towards your goals.

The best antidote to fear is action so it follows that the best antidote to creative doubt is to create. Ask yourself, what is one tiny action that I can take to get me creating? Then go have some bloody good creative fun! (Please note this does not have to be you working on your next masterpiece - paint a face on a conker if you so wish).

6) dare to focus on success

As Completion Anxiety sets in, your brain is likely playing out every and all of the potential negative outcome like a little horror movie in your head going round and round. As a creative being, the details and imaginativeness of this movie are likely to be extremely convincing and utterly alarming. But it’s all make believe - none of it is real. You’re simply creating stories in your head.

Here’s the fun bit. Just as you can concoct these potential negative outcomes, you can also create positive ones too. Evolution has programmed our brain so that it churns out the negative stories subconsciously in an attempt to keep us away from risk and danger. Annoyingly, there’s no subconscious mechanism generating the positive ones, so we have to actively create those ourselves.

So go on, close your eyes for a moment and dare to envision things going well. Picture your faceless audience’s smiles as they watch your work. Imagine how your creativity or communication may have brightened someone’s day - even if it’s just for a moment. Visualise the moment that you achieve your goals, how it feels, who you’re with, what you’re doing.

Because I’ll let you into a secret, whether you berate yourself with potential failure or focus on the possible success, it will have absolutely no impact on whether you get the meeting, publishing deal or job.

It will however allow you to enjoy this moment in the way that you deserve, empowering you to continue showing up for yourself again and again with confidence and enthusiasm.

And that is how you will eventually achieve your goals. Just you wait.

If you would like more support with overcoming self-doubt in your creativity, sign up to our newsletter and receive support, updates and guidance from Core Creatives, as well as a FREE eBook on 10 Steps to Overcoming Self-Doubt in your creativity.