Despite the apparent vacuum of activity on this blog, I’ve been putting in “chair time” working on my projects and keeping my commitment to treat my writing like a business. A big step in that direction was a worthwhile hour or so with my colleague Karen Gilb, exploring our dissatisfaction with the lack of organization and drive we see in other writers and ourselves. Oh yeah, we are so guilty, but that’s going to change!
We made commitments to each other that we would 1) support each other in our efforts to professionalize our writing careers; 2) research and exchange information about how to market, sell and make money as writers in the 21st Century (traditional publishing isn’t the only way to do this!); and 3) we would chronicle our findings in this blog.
Even if you aren’t an aspiring wordsmith, much of what we learn should be useful to you if you have aspirations to improve your productivity, break through your self-imposed assumptions about how the world works, learn new things and rediscover the power of the beginner’s mind in overcoming life’s challenges. In addition to this theme of “getting’ down to business,” I will be posting other tools, thoughts and resources that are of general interest to contortionists who are giving themselves a good kick in the pants on the way to success and happiness.
Just Think Differently.
Showing posts with label success. Show all posts
Showing posts with label success. Show all posts
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Monday, July 13, 2009
Resistance is Fertile...
Last week I raised the subject of dreams – daydreams vs. dreams born of passion. The realization of a dream is the hardest thing in the world, and the easiest. Put one foot in front of the other. That’s it. Achievement comes down to one thing, action.
I used to think that there was something mysterious or dramatic about making my “Big Dreams” into reality. So, I kept busy using all the marvelous tools of procrastination to keep myself from ever taking the necessary and fundamentally mundane steps that lead to success. I did laundry, ran errands, worked hard at everything that didn’t support my dream, and I was remarkably good at it all. I would carve out slivers of time to devote to my dream, looking around expectantly for the lightning bolt to strike and inspire me to greatness. Strangely, that miraculous sign never appeared in the sky (with accompanying orchestral score by John Williams), nobody parted any seas (Red or any other hue), and not a damn thing happened.
Along the way, I excelled at various jobs, built a happy personal life, enjoyed some hobbies, traveled and had some good times. But I couldn’t seem to get things rolling with my dream projects, except in fits and starts that fizzled as life got in the way. I wondered why others could do what I seemed unable to achieve. What was wrong with me? Was it fear? Lack of talent? Laziness?
Then I ran across a book that was written just for me. It changed my life because it shattered my illusions about making dreams come true.
“Most of us have two lives. The life we live, and the unlived life within us. Between the two stands Resistance.”
Steven Pressfield wrote this in “The War of Art,” along with many other utterly brilliant, insightful things about the single greatest threat to creative endeavor, Resistance. You may also recognize it in its sister form, Inertia who keeps your ass cradled in your miserably familiar pond. And there’s their little brother, Self-Doubt, who chips away at your confidence, while cousin Fear paints terrifying visions to keep you from taking the risk to try at all. Great family, and they all live right there, between the ears of every person with a dream, idea, inspiration, or hope.
Pressfield posits that Art is war, an apt metaphor because war is ugly, difficult, and will only be won through perseverance against a plan created and directed by a purposeful leader. There will most certainly be setbacks, losses, and excruciating pain. Some days, just moving forward one step at a time will feel like the hardest thing you’ve ever done. Other days, you will triumph and take territory you never thought to win. Ultimately, the agony of the struggle will lead to victory.
And the next day, you get up and start the next campaign, with a new goal, a new vision, and no end in sight. The difference between a life of frustration and stress and a life filled with wonder is the willingness to embrace the challenge posed by your own dreams and do something about them. That’s right, put in the time day in and day out and you win. You may never be rich or famous, but you will live with more passion, joy and lust for the life you have.
You don’t have to quit your day job to fulfill your dreams, just kick Resistance and her dysfunctional family out of your head and take action. Build your campaign, line up the troops (you on the front line), and start marching toward your goal. Carve out time every day to work on it.
No excuses. No fear. Forward march! Just Think Differently.
I used to think that there was something mysterious or dramatic about making my “Big Dreams” into reality. So, I kept busy using all the marvelous tools of procrastination to keep myself from ever taking the necessary and fundamentally mundane steps that lead to success. I did laundry, ran errands, worked hard at everything that didn’t support my dream, and I was remarkably good at it all. I would carve out slivers of time to devote to my dream, looking around expectantly for the lightning bolt to strike and inspire me to greatness. Strangely, that miraculous sign never appeared in the sky (with accompanying orchestral score by John Williams), nobody parted any seas (Red or any other hue), and not a damn thing happened.
Along the way, I excelled at various jobs, built a happy personal life, enjoyed some hobbies, traveled and had some good times. But I couldn’t seem to get things rolling with my dream projects, except in fits and starts that fizzled as life got in the way. I wondered why others could do what I seemed unable to achieve. What was wrong with me? Was it fear? Lack of talent? Laziness?
Then I ran across a book that was written just for me. It changed my life because it shattered my illusions about making dreams come true.
“Most of us have two lives. The life we live, and the unlived life within us. Between the two stands Resistance.”
Steven Pressfield wrote this in “The War of Art,” along with many other utterly brilliant, insightful things about the single greatest threat to creative endeavor, Resistance. You may also recognize it in its sister form, Inertia who keeps your ass cradled in your miserably familiar pond. And there’s their little brother, Self-Doubt, who chips away at your confidence, while cousin Fear paints terrifying visions to keep you from taking the risk to try at all. Great family, and they all live right there, between the ears of every person with a dream, idea, inspiration, or hope.
Pressfield posits that Art is war, an apt metaphor because war is ugly, difficult, and will only be won through perseverance against a plan created and directed by a purposeful leader. There will most certainly be setbacks, losses, and excruciating pain. Some days, just moving forward one step at a time will feel like the hardest thing you’ve ever done. Other days, you will triumph and take territory you never thought to win. Ultimately, the agony of the struggle will lead to victory.
And the next day, you get up and start the next campaign, with a new goal, a new vision, and no end in sight. The difference between a life of frustration and stress and a life filled with wonder is the willingness to embrace the challenge posed by your own dreams and do something about them. That’s right, put in the time day in and day out and you win. You may never be rich or famous, but you will live with more passion, joy and lust for the life you have.
You don’t have to quit your day job to fulfill your dreams, just kick Resistance and her dysfunctional family out of your head and take action. Build your campaign, line up the troops (you on the front line), and start marching toward your goal. Carve out time every day to work on it.
No excuses. No fear. Forward march! Just Think Differently.
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