What would Maya Angelou do? What would SARK do?
They would write. That’s what they do. (Well that’s what Maya DID) SARK still writes.
Is it lucky that SARK is a best-selling author and artist, with over 17 titles in print and over 2 million books sold?
Is it lucky that Maya Angelou has written several works that are equivalent to millions of books sold?
I do not think so. What I know to be true is this; Accomplishing anything takes time, commitment, effort, and discipline.
What choice are you making?
When you make the decision to do one thing, conversely, you make the decision not to do something else.
When I am writing a book, I am willing to give up a couple of hours of night’s sleep to complete a book. Often times, my natural sleep patterns change and I wake up at one or two in the morning.
When I wake up, I can choose to stay in bed or I can choose to get up, turn on my laptop, and download whatever information is trying to get through to me.
What I know to be true for me is this; I am very happy when I write. Especially if I am writing something that will eventually become a book.
For years, I have talked about writing memoirs. And for years talking was all I did. Periodically, I would make a feeble attempt to start my memories.
A light bulb moment
When I finally took the book seriously, there was no room for excuses. It happened at a recent conference that I attended.
It was for Platinum members of EWomenNetwork. Founder, Sandra yancey, shared his personal insights on the strategies he implements to accomplish more in one day than most people in a month.
A lightbulb went on. My memoirs weren’t going to write themselves. It was up to me to get off my ass and make it happen.
I got engaged right there to get my first draft done in 66 days. That would put the first draft finished on May 1, 2017. A couple of weeks before my 63rd birthday.
It did not take more than a calculation to know that if I write 500 – 1,000 words per day, seven days a week I can easily have between 35,000 and 70,000 words in the first draft. Not bad!
What motivates you?
Some main motivators drive me. One is that my word is important to me. Equally important is my word to others. Hence, the reason I posted my writing goal to a Facebook group that I manage.
I invited members to make their own writing commitment. Whether it’s a manuscript, 30 days of blogging, an information product that requires writing, or writing letters to loved ones for 30 days, each person can choose for themselves.
Since I started, I haven’t missed a single day. I have written a minimum of 500 words and have had a few occasions to write more than 1,000 words in one sitting.
Of course, this is not the only writing that I write in my day. I still blog, post on social media, and other things that I write while running my business.
In a perfect world, I would have hours and hours to write every day, but the fact is, I don’t have hours in a row. I have fragments of time. 30, 45, 60 minutes.
The temptation for many people is to say that 30 minutes is not enough to write a lot.
“Shoot, it takes me 30 minutes to get the mindset to write,” can be heard from many potential writers as they procrastinate to fulfill their dream.
Truth be told, you can accomplish more in 30 minutes of extremely focused effort than most people with hours of unfocused effort.
Try the following four steps to allow your writing to flow.
1. Get out into nature. Go for a walk, walk, go to a body of water. This tends to open up creative channels.
2. Whatever your writing, keyboard, or pen and paper preference, set your intention to write your 500 words. The mere act of “intention” tends to open up creative channels.
3. Avoid stating, “I just can’t think of what to write.” This will block you. Rather, affirm, “Ideas, words, and thoughts flow through me.”
4. Commit to writing a minimum of 500 words per day for a minimum of 30 days, no matter what.
When we overthink the task of writing, we get writer’s block. When we just do it, we do it.
