Painting and Exercise: Getting support doesn't have to mean asking for help

Another important component to both finishing armies and exercising more is to have support. Just because you're a rugged Emersonian American doesn't mean you have to go it alone all the time every time. I think a key part to this is to notice when you are receiving support from someone else and appreciating it for what it is.

Getting support doesn't mean you're asking for help.

I say this because sometimes our pride gets in the way and we refuse to do things that require other people to help us. For a long time I tried to paint stuff without talking about it. Then later, when I started exercising, I didn't tell anyone what I was doing because I embarrassed by the little progress I was making.

For many people, they want exercise and painting armies to just happen overnight. They will step out of the shadows one day with a fully painted  army or toned muscles and everyone will notice them. They want the change to appear effortless because effortlessness is a sign of skill and is to be admired.

But I think it's okay to tell people what you're doing when you start, share your progress, and use the feedback people give to encourage yourself to try even more.

For example, when I started painting models for the 520 models per year challenge, I posted a thread on the forums and told people what I was trying to do. I wasn't asking for help or admiration, but I did want and need encouragement. Every now and again I asked for advice.

Once I started exercising, I spoke to my co-worker Matt Guidara about it. He lost a ton of weight in his senior year in high school and talking to him encouraged me to work harder at my exercise. I wasn't asking him for help in my own journey, but words shared with a friend gave me extra motivation.

And in this day and age, you have all sorts of tools for this kind of encouragement.

Online forums, facebook, twitter. Your social network isn't limited to people that you know.

So go out and find the people who will motivate you. It won't be the source of your successes (the best source comes from within), but it will certainly help ease your journey along the way.