{"id":12154,"date":"2022-05-19T12:48:07","date_gmt":"2022-05-19T19:48:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/us\/?p=12154"},"modified":"2026-06-05T13:41:48","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T20:41:48","slug":"this-is-why-you-dont-overuse-the-undo-button","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/this-is-why-you-dont-overuse-the-undo-button\/","title":{"rendered":"This Is Why You Don\u2019t Overuse the Undo Button"},"content":{"rendered":"<b>If you\u2019re a digital artist, the power to undo a line or brushstroke is alluring, but it may also be causing unintended negative consequences.<\/b>\n\n<b>\u00a0<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A couple of months ago, I went live on <a title=\"James Joyce on Tik Tok\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@arczephyer\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">TikTok<\/a>. I\u2019ve done this multiple times before but always as a digital artist. This time I broke out my traditional tools. I opened my new Moleskine sketchbook, clicked the back of my 0.3mm lead pencil, and started the first line of a portrait drawing. My lines were flowing well, and were following the direction that I visualized in my head \u2013 until I made a mistake.<\/span>\n\n<iframe title=\"This Is Why You Don&#039;t Overuse the Undo Button\" width=\"1080\" height=\"608\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/j37z4be7Es4?feature=oembed\"  allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mistakes are common and easy to fix with an eraser, but that\u2019s not what I did. The first movement I made was to tap the sketchbook with two fingers. If anyone uses <a title=\"Procreate\" href=\"https:\/\/procreate.art\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Procreate<\/a> on the iPad, you know this is the gesture for the command, undo. I had just tried to digitally undo my traditional drawing live in front of a few dozen people. I tried to shake it off, but I didn\u2019t stop there. Twice, three times, and a half-hesitating fourth time left me embarrassed and confused.<\/span>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We all make mistakes, whether we have to use the eraser or the power of undo to fix them. But the undo button is so fast and easy that it feeds into a feeling that an artist shouldn\u2019t have and leaves unintended consequences. And it starts with <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/tinybuddha.com\/blog\/7-things-to-remember-when-you-think-youre-not-good-enough\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">feeling like your drawing isn\u2019t good enough.<\/span><\/a>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span>\n\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-12170\" src=\"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/ERASER-1024x576.png\" alt=\"Pencil Eraser\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/ERASER-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/ERASER-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/ERASER-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/ERASER-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/ERASER-1080x608.png 1080w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/ERASER-1280x720.png 1280w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/ERASER-980x551.png 980w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/ERASER-480x270.png 480w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/ERASER.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\n\n<b>You\u2019re killing your curiosity<\/b>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Most artists tend to be perfectionists. They want their sketchbook to look beautiful and their final illustrations to look perfect. They fear even starting work because they\u2019re worried it won\u2019t come out just the way they want.<\/span>\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Perfectionism is not striving to be the best, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thegrowthfaculty.com\/blog\/4destructivetraitsofperfectionismfromDrBrenBrown\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">it\u2019s driven by your fear of judgment.<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Deep down, you\u2019re worried about what other people think.<\/span>\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What if they think my sketch looks bad? What if they don\u2019t like my style? What if they\u2019re not interested in my ideas? This kind of thinking leads you to avoid the failures and mistakes that are required for deep learning and growth. You\u2019ll either try to avoid doing new things that you\u2019ll be terrible at (at first), or you\u2019ll be completely devastated every time you try something,\u00a0 and may even avoid doing art for months.<\/span>\n\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-12167\" src=\"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/md-mahdi-I574-zLkb44-unsplash-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Keyboard\" width=\"300\" height=\"450\" title=\"\">\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The undo button is incredibly useful, but with the wrong mindset you can fall down a slippery slope of never feeling like you\u2019re good enough. You could argue that an eraser can cause perfectionism, but it takes time and effort to use one. The undo button is scarier simply because of its speed and ease of use. That means digital artists have to be more cognizant of becoming addicted to perfectionism than traditional artists. The risk of adopting that toxic mindset is greater.<\/span>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span>\n\n<b>You don\u2019t need to stop using undo<\/b>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My need to undo during my live portrait drawing session was a genuine mistake that I wanted to fix. Not every press of the undo button is a desire to feed into your perfectionist tendencies. There are times when you are actually striving for excellence in your work.<\/span>\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Using undo isn\u2019t a bad thing. Any tool that helps make your process more efficient is a good one. The catch is knowing when <em>you<\/em> are using the tool and when the tool is using <em>you<\/em>.<\/span>\n\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-12168\" src=\"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/undo-300x169.png\" alt=\"undo\" width=\"400\" height=\"225\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/undo-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/undo-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/undo-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/undo-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/undo-1080x608.png 1080w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/undo-1280x720.png 1280w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/undo-980x551.png 980w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/undo-480x270.png 480w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/05\/undo.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you use undo the right way it\u2019s internally driven. You\u2019re trying to be an amazing artist and use all the tools at your disposal. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.habitsforwellbeing.com\/what-perfectionism-is-and-isnt-according-to-brene-brown\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the tool is using you, it\u2019s self-destructive.<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> You\u2019re looking to be perfect in the eyes of others \u2013 an unattainable goal as you can never control the perception of others no matter how hard you try.<\/span>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re using undo more than five times on one line, think about whether you\u2019re striving for excellence or digging a grave towards perfection.<\/span>\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<b>Perfection is a shield you don\u2019t need<\/b>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you feel like you undo more than you draw or paint, it\u2019s a sign you\u2019re protecting yourself. You weren\u2019t perfect enough so you keep hitting the undo button until you find the perfect line that no one can judge poorly.<\/span>\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your art journey is a massive adventure. If you overuse the undo button and hinder your curiosity, you won\u2019t ever take the risks necessary to make great discoveries. Mistakes and failures are opportunities for learning and without them you won\u2019t get anywhere as an artist.<\/span>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span>\n\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At the end of the day, ask yourself if you use the undo button out of fear or out of curiosity to do better. If it\u2019s the former, confront the toxicity and turn it around. If it\u2019s the latter, take even greater risks to discover worlds you never thought possible.<\/span>\n<div class=\"post__body\">\n<div class=\"entry editor-content\">\n<h1>About James Joyce<\/h1>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-11100 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2022\/02\/james-cartoon.png\" alt=\"James Joyce\" width=\"146\" height=\"152\" title=\"\">\n<div class=\"post__body\">\n<div class=\"entry editor-content\">\n\nJames is an artist from Maine and resides in California. He\u2019s been drawing for over 10 years and knows that learning to draw feels like a long and hard journey. That\u2019s why he created\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.zephyer.co\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Zephyer<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 to give artists a healthy creative process that nurtures their growth. He aims to create a new educational framework designed to help you discover the best ways to learn to draw. James uses traditional tools along with his\u00a0<a title=\"Wacom Cintiq\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wacom.com\/en-gb\/products\/pen-displays\/wacom-cintiq\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Wacom Cintiq 16<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wacom.com\/en-gb\/products\/pen-tablets\/wacom-intuos-pro\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Wacom<\/a><a title=\"Wacom drawing tablet\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wacom.com\/en-gb\/products\/pen-tablets\/wacom-intuos-pro\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">\u00a0Intuos Pro<\/a>\u00a0to improve and create his designs.\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<a title=\"Zephyer website\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zephyer.co\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Website<\/a>\n\n<a title=\"Zephyer YouTube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCVNaVjaM2ioiJPCLjFNjsuA\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">YouTube<\/a>\n\n<a title=\"Zephyer Tik Tok\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@arczephyer\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">TikTok<\/a>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019re a digital artist, the power to undo a line or brushstroke is alluring, but it may also be causing unintended negative consequences.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":12156,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2318],"tags":[946,1468,1469,148,1470,1471,1472],"class_list":["post-12154","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-creative-inspiration","tag-art-tips","tag-dont-use-undo","tag-how-to-draw-tips","tag-james-joyce","tag-learn-from-mistakes","tag-mistakes","tag-undo-button"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12154","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12154"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12154\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25954777,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12154\/revisions\/25954777"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12156"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12154"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12154"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12154"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}