Just realized I've been holding my paintbrush wrong for 8 years

Went to a workshop in Portland last Tuesday and the instructor walked past me, stopped, and said 'who taught you to grip a brush like a hammer?' I was so confused. Turns out I've been wrapping my whole fist around the ferrule this whole time, which was killing my wrist and making my strokes super stiff. He showed me the pencil grip with just two fingers and all of a sudden my lines got looser and way more natural. I checked online after and there's like a million videos about this, I just never bothered to look. Anyone else have a basic technique they did wrong for ages until someone called it out on the spot?

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coleman.gray21d ago

Back in 2013 my buddy Mike spent two years at an art school in Chicago. He failed every painting class twice. The teachers kept saying his work looked stiff and forced. One night at a bar a visiting professor watched him sketching and lost it. Asked why he was holding his charcoal like a screwdriver. Showed him the light grip in ten seconds. Mike said his whole style changed overnight and he finally passed that class the next semester.