What can we learn from men?

“Compared with men, women don’t consider themselves as ready for promotions, they predict they’ll do worse on tests, and they generally underestimate their abilities."

― Katty Kay and Claire Shipman, The Atlantic

Last week Tracey Emin sold a painting. Normally that wouldn't be cause for news, but this painting broke a record - it was Tracey's most expensive painting ever.

When I heard that she had sold a painting for a whopping £2.3M, I was thrilled. I've loved her work for a long time and I'm delighted she's being recognised.

But then I had this thought .... "I wonder what Damien Hirst's most expensive painting was?"

After all, Tracey and Damien made it big around the same time. They are around the same age. They are both working class kids who broke into the art world. They are both household names. Surely their prices would be comparable? And yet of course I knew what I would find.

And I was right ... Hirst's most expensive painting sold for almost £6M - more than 2.5x the amount that Tracey made.

Not only that, but his most expensive artwork ever was Lullaby Spring which sold for over $19M where Emin's most expensive artwork ever was her iconic bed, which sold for around $3M.

That bed is unarguably more well-known than his pill cabinet, and yet it was deemed to be worth so much less.

Makes you wonder why that might be....

It's easy to blame this on sexism. That's a straightforward answer to the conundrum.

Art buyers prefer works by people who have a penis. End of story.

But I don't think it's as simple as that. I think it's less about genitalia and more about attitude.

Damien Hirst has the confidence and chutzpah to convince the world he's worth what he says he is. And I think he has that because he is a man. But is that his fault? Should he cut himself down to size just so women can compete?

Or maybe he could stay as he is, and we could change?

This week, I visited the Jackson Foundation - an art gallery in St. Just, Cornwall. Artist Kurt Jackson set up the gallery after turning a huge old industrial building into a beautiful white-walled gallery with high ceilings, skylights, polished concrete floors, and a square footage any of us would give an arm and a leg for.

That takes real confidence. It takes chutzpah.

And that's where I think the disconnect lies. You see, art collectors don't know any more than anyone else. There are all sorts of concerns when people buy art; at the highest levels, the main concern is 'will it appreciate in value?' At the lower levels it's often about 'will my friends think this is a good painting?'

Well, if the artist is an amazing entrepreneur and self-promoter, there's a good chance their work will increase in value. Hence, Damien Hirst's supreme self-confidence rubbed off on the wealthy people who invested in his work.

And this same principle works at the level of we lesser mortals ... if I can tell you that I bought my painting from the Kurt Jackson Foundation, and that Kurt Jackson has a whole gallery dedicated to him and his work, we are both likely to agree that Kurt is 'somebody.' Therefore his work must be good - it must be worth the money we paid for it.

Do you see? The self-belief becomes reality.

I don't think it's any coincidence that Tracey scored her biggest ever painting sale just after she bought multiple buildings to create her own studios, museum and art school. She believes in herself, and therefore we do too.

So, what does all this have to do with us?

Well, I sell my one-meter-square paintings for £1,200. Kurt Jackson sells his for £8,500. I know amazing artists who sell theirs for £300. Maybe value is all in the eye of the artist herself?

It's easy to rail against men - it's easy to rant and moan and make jokes. But I think it's better to learn from them.

Are they wrong to believe in themselves? Are they wrong to promote their stuff? Are they wrong to ask a high price for their creative work? Or are we wrong for not doing the same?

I can't tell you how much I've learned about self-belief over the last few years. My own life changed when I understood the power of my beliefs. And I am now watching other people drop their limiting beliefs and step into themselves - in fact, that's how I now see my mission in life. I want to help artists to understand their own value. I want to help them find their own power.

Sometimes men need that help - but mostly, the people who need that are women. And when they realise that the only thing holding them back is themselves, watch out! Amazing things happen.

There's a reason that powerful men have held women back over the centuries. They have always understood what we didn't. They have always understood just what we could do (and how much of a threat that makes us).

How about we stop accepting those limitations?