This post comes from a 2500 words stint I did this morning. I’m not going to edit it [but don’t worry, this one isn’t 2500 words long!] because I like most of it the way it is. Also, I tend to let my inner editor stop me from getting stuff out there when it’s less than perfect. Like the past week-plus since my last post. It got such a positive response that I froze a little. The fear was, “How am I gonna I top that?” I had nothing. But I spent the time well: reading, learning, and pondering why I have this problem of being afraid to write. Here’s what I wrote about it this morning:
The trouble with writing like this [#2500wds], for speed and stream of consciousness, is that I can’t get any ‘business’ writing done because I need to look things up, verify, fact check. But I was thinking that if I approach it the way I did at ABC News, I could get a LOT of work done during these sessions.
What would I need to do to make that happen?
Well, using the “bright spot” strategy described in Switch, I should look at what worked at ABC, what supported my being able to write a newscast an hour for six hours, about 1200 words a day? Not 2500, but still.
What worked was that I was RE-writing, not writing. And I had stacks of newswire copy in front of me, all sifted through and carefully arranged in the order I wanted to write — planning, what a concept!
Well, that makes sense, LaVonne. Have information to write FROM in front of you, all planned out, and THEN start your 2500 words for the day. Dither around like this if you need to, to get warmed up and then Go. To. Work. Just like any other job. Just like you did at ABC. No need to wait for inspiration. Just plan what you’re going to write, and then gather your source material, arrange it the way you want it, and work through it.
Love. It. Hope it works.
I was just reading Mindset’s chapter on sports, and it was talking about how Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods and other greats learned from their failures and used them to spur themselves on, practicing harder and longer. Frankly, I was going to skip the sports chapter because I thought it didn’t apply to me, but I’m glad I didn’t. Here are the findings of sports researchers mentioned in the book:
- What is success? “Those with the growth mindset found success in doing their best, in learning and improving.”
- What is failure? “Those with the growth mindset found setbacks motivating. They’re informative. They’re a wake-up call.”
- Taking charge of success: “People with the growth mindset in sports took charge of the processes that bring success — and that maintain it.”
I had the first one at ABC, and sometimes the second one, but never even thought of #3. And of course, completely dropped the ball on the first two when I gave up trying to write in 2001.
So now, instead of beating myself up about not understanding HOW to achieve my goal of becoming a writer, and instead of giving up at the first sign of failure [or having to struggle instead of effortlessness], I’m going to change my mindset. I’m going to stop seeing struggle as failure. I’ll be motivated by it instead to study what went wrong and learn from it. And I will set processes in place that support me in my goal.
As far as the goal itself goes, I don’t know whether it’s necessary to be specific. I don’t really have one. Still thinking about whether or not to write a book. I’d like to do that, but it scares me. Oh hell, we’re supposed to face our fears, aren’t we? So just say it:
I want to write a book. That’s my goal.
What exactly it will be ABOUT is another matter. I don’t want to dredge up my own past any more; that urge is long gone. The obvious choice would be to write about flakiness, and all the reading & research I’m doing for the blog would feed right into that. So I guess that would be a vaguely good goal.
Okay, not the best post ever written. I should re-do it, but I feel like I’m taking a baby step toward where I want to be. Hope you understand.
Are you taking a look at your process and figuring out how it can support you? Is it working for you? If not, what will you try next? I’d love to know, so tell me in the comments below.
Image credit: Dan Patterson
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Fear and struggle are signs of growth, no? If you were stagnating, you wouldn't feel either of those emotions. Growth = good. Ergo, fear + struggle = good. 🙂
Your rewriting strategy at ABC would work for turning a bunch of blog posts into a book, I'd think.
My strategy right now is just to do anything at all, not ask for feedback (because I want all judgment outta here right now), keep on going until it feels like a natural pausing place, and then reflecting on what I did after stepping back a bit. Too soon to tell if this process will work for me, but I'm accomplishing more…even if it's crap. 🙂
I figure if you produce enough raw material, somewhere among the crap something good is bound to turn up!
Fear and struggle are signs of growth, no? If you were stagnating, you wouldn't feel either of those emotions. Growth = good. Ergo, fear + struggle = good. 🙂
Your rewriting strategy at ABC would work for turning a bunch of blog posts into a book, I'd think.
My strategy right now is just to do anything at all, not ask for feedback (because I want all judgment outta here right now), keep on going until it feels like a natural pausing place, and then reflecting on what I did after stepping back a bit. Too soon to tell if this process will work for me, but I'm accomplishing more…even if it's crap. 🙂
I figure if you produce enough raw material, somewhere among the crap something good is bound to turn up!
I never thought of fear and struggle as signs of growth — thank you! It will be good to remind myself of that when I'm in the depths of it.
As for the rewriting strategy, I didn't explain that I plan to write more about what I'm learning from books like Switch and Mindset. I need to trick myself to relieve the anxiety by calling it rewriting. Silly, but it works for me. 🙂
I like your strategy of doing anything at all and not asking for feedback. I think that's what threw me on my last post. I loved the positive feedback but it also freaked me out a little.
I think you're absolutely right — just keep going. Another great motto to tape on my monitor. 🙂
I liked reading how you are working through the process.
May I suggest that you cross out the line that reads: “Okay, not the best post ever written.”
May I also suggest that you stop worrying about what “they” think.
Put it out there. Lots of people will learn from your message, and more importantly, so will you.
Keep at it.
p.s. I'm not sure if I wrote this comment for you or for me. 😉
Excellent advice. Crossing out that line right now. And thank you. 🙂
LaVonne, great processing. I think any of us who want to continue to evolve as writers must look at ourselves with some lens of evaluation. We, like all artists, can be so brutal. Here are two posts that I found really insightful recently, one from today, Cris Buckley on The No Clone Zone, http://www.crisbuckley.com/703/i-have-a-confess… and another from Lisa Petrilli's C-Level Stategies & Awakenings, http://www.lisapetrilli.com/2010/06/10/the-lead…. Just thought I would share them with you.
It's so exciting when you get great feedback but it's amazing how, rather than motivating us to do more, it makes us freeze in fear that we won't be able to replicate it! You are a wonderful writer. It sucks that it's a difficult process for you. But it sounds like you're on the right track with working on the process and trying to rid yourself of the blocks that make it more difficult for you. I need to do that too I think . . .
I know, right? Why on earth does good feedback scare us so much? I was
actually contemplating asking people not to leave such wonderful
comments because they freak me out! Yes, I think examining and using
the process will help me work through this. Plus the BIG block, the
voice coaching sales page, is pretty much done and that was what has
had me so hung up the past few weeks. Now I can relax and enjoy
writing for The Complete Flake again. 🙂
It's so exciting when you get great feedback but it's amazing how, rather than motivating us to do more, it makes us freeze in fear that we won't be able to replicate it! You are a wonderful writer. It sucks that it's a difficult process for you. But it sounds like you're on the right track with working on the process and trying to rid yourself of the blocks that make it more difficult for you. I need to do that too I think . . .
I know, right? Why on earth does good feedback scare us so much? I was
actually contemplating asking people not to leave such wonderful
comments because they freak me out! Yes, I think examining and using
the process will help me work through this. Plus the BIG block, the
voice coaching sales page, is pretty much done and that was what has
had me so hung up the past few weeks. Now I can relax and enjoy
writing for The Complete Flake again. 🙂