Something many people don't fully understand is just how deep an emotional impact there can be in moving a pen, pencil, or brush across a piece of paper, spreading ink or paint as you go.

I'm not talking about the emotional impact of whatever art might come out of this process at the other end. I mean the process itself. Moving a pen over paper, feeling the subtle vibration of the paper's grain in your hand, seeing how the ink interacts with the surface, watching the endless perfection of a blank sheet slowly turn into something else.

It's therapeutic. And I think it's one of the easiest ways to experience a feeling of self-efficacy.