We were lucky to catch up with Greg Turner recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Greg, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.
I feel like I only recently overcame it. I can’t even begin to describe how many times I’ve compared my work to someone else’s I saw on social media and was like, “That looks way better than what I did. I need to do better.” Or feeling like any lack of support from those around me meant that what I created wasn’t good or worthy. But after continuously trying to redo and redo my art, I had to face that none of that was the case. What I created is great and just because I feel like it’s not as good as something else I see, doesn’t mean it’s not. And after deciding that the art I do is something I do to make myself happy and express my dreams and form of storytelling and imagery, I felt much more confident in my work. Now I can look at what I create and be proud and say “I did it.” I made something great. I made something that I personally am happy with and am excited to share with others.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I’m a 3D artist who specializes in character creation, but I also have been doing more world modeling as of late when needed. It’s always so amazing to me once I’m done with a model and think of how a bunch of geometry is now something interesting to look at. Something I can move and pose and make expressive, anything. I’ve also invested in a 3D printer so that I can make some of the things I create digitally tangible in the real world. Something people can hold and look at up close.
I occasionally offer services if someone wants a custom gift made for a loved one. so far I’ve completed two pieces with a third order in the process. and, of course, I do custom 3D models for those who need something custom-made for digital purposes.
What I’m most excited about is finally getting things worked out on the back end to get my 3D graphic novel completed and ready to share with the public. I’ve had a few setbacks, but everything’s finally falling into place. It’s definitely had my anxiety through the roof with both nervousness and excitement. So as soon as I release it I think I’ll crawl into a cave for a few days to hibernate.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Three qualities I think were most impactful for me are confidence, discipline, and the hunger for learning. I had to build that confidence in not only myself but my work to mentally push me to finish what I started or else I’d forever be in limbo. That confidence carried over into giving me the discipline to put in the time and effort into making everything as clean and close to my standards as possible. And the only way I was able to get my projects to my standards was by constantly feeding myself more knowledge on my craft. With the speed technology is growing and the number of helpful resources that are forever being created and shared on the internet, we should never stop learning. I’m constantly learning new ways to do something to make my art better. New shortcuts to get the same result, and better ways of improving my writing. I currently have a Bachelor’s degree, but the learning doesn’t stop just because I’m not in school.
What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?
When I feel overwhelmed I stop. I stop everything I’m doing and I think about how I can make everything more manageable. I’m the type of person whose brain is always moving. Sometimes with ideas and theories and sometimes with random thoughts that may not mean anything. A good chunk of it is me replaying past events in my head and thinking of what I could’ve done differently to prepare myself to be better in the future. But as I stop and think about how to make things manageable, I realize it’s like everything else in the world. Everything, whether it be buildings, objects, ideas, or even my 3D models, they’re made of small pieces. Even the most complex things can be split into smaller pieces. Like building something out of Legos. I split every overwhelming issue into smaller pieces or in its own section and map out how to split my time to accomplish what I need to.
So that’s my long-winded way of explaining my time management. What is of the most importance needs to be completed first. If there are multiple things of equal importance to me, I allocate time accordingly. But I still need to give myself time to breathe. There are enough outside forces to stress us out in life. We need to create our own peace when we can.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://gmind_art.artstation.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gmind_art
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregory-turner-44052174/
