The No Excuses Project: Writing for profit

Maybe because it can be done basically anywhere, for any length of time, makes writing even more prone to excuses.  There’s really no good reason why anyone that’s said that they want to write a book hasn’t done so already. Getting published is something different; actually writing the thing is completely under your control. I know this and yet untold projects sit in an outline or first chapter state waiting for me to simply focus and finish.

Writing is something I very much want to be part of my overall career mix – from blogging to writing novels, photography books and so on. But somehow getting those projects completed is lagging, to say the least.

There aren’t really any new or special excuses at play for this one – the old stand-by’s do the job just fine:

• I’m too tired/ not in the mood (meaning I don’t feel creative)
• It’s too big
• It will take too long
• I don’t know where to start
• I’m not good enough (a couple more books on the subject will help, right?)
• I have too many other projects
• I’ll lose interest before it’s finished

Next week: How I’m going to turn this around and fit it in with everything else

Holding myself accountable:

The garden – needs weeding but is otherwise doing ok

Jewelry – is on track for now and the priority for this coming week

Photography – continues to take a back seat, not a good thing

Travel – the fund is growing, plans are being made

Romance  – possibilities are emerging

Treasure hunting – not on the current agenda

Chores – holding their own

Family and friends – doing ok

Losing weight – somewhere in the middle on this one

Medical health – off to the dentist next week

Technorati Tags: common excuses, creativity, getting things done, writing

A week of new ideas

Sunshine and some playtime began the week with a whole new photographic style for me – it’s becoming more abstract and I think even stronger.  Now I’m looking for new venues for this aspect – maybe those modern galleries downtown aren’t so far out of reach after all…;-)

Beyond that it’s  been a long week with ‘progress’ meaning I got the basics done – and sometimes that is progress.  I think it’s human nature to think that mountain climbing means summiting a peak on a daily basis. The reality is that mountain climbing is really about putting one foot in front of the other when it’s most challenging.  My challenge this week has been keeping my emotional distance -something I’m really bad at, so bad that I occasionally even consider it a positive trait! But getting dragged into drama with family and work where my input doesn’t de-escalate the situation and doesn’t move me forward (or anyone else for that matter.)  I like to get things that are unsettled settled so I can forget about them – which is where patience comes in.  Sometimes you just have to let things go and be prepared to deal with them when they come back at you.

I’ve been working on my travel essay instead. And deciding that a simple feng shui solutions book will be my first e-book.  It’s a popular topic, I have several illustrations ready and I won’t get hung up in editing the text forever because it’s going to be simple lists.  I’m looking forward to getting started but it will have to wait another week, I think. The U.S. government is claiming my attention this weekend with the looming tax date – might as well just get it done.

Technorati Tags: baby steps, creativity, letting go

How to get in the creative groove

In general I would say I lead a pretty creative life, even on a day to day basis. Yet that’s a very different feeling from when innovations are happening left and right with no effort. I had a day where that happened last week and as I thought about how that all came about it came down to play.

I think the big mystique out there is that if you are doing what you love then you are playing. For some that may be consistently true but for those of us that are inherently goal oriented there is a to-do list to check off, a product to create and release, a novel to write – it’s all fun, but it’s not play.  Playing means having fun with no goal or preconceived end result.  Drawing with your eyes closed, or putting your camera on the timer switch and then swinging it (carefully) by the strap just to see what happens. Surprising that was what I was doing after reading about the concept in a book. Then I came in to throw dinner together out of leftovers which turned into a creative, spicy masterpiece that I will never be able to replicate.  Somehow the camera swinging loosened up all my rules (and I don’t have that many) and the creative juices began to flow – cinnamon combined effortlessly with hot pepper, squash and tomatoes. A critical part of the art of happiness to to step out of your routine, even a super rewarding fun routine, and live without expectations.

Your groove doesn’t have to come via a camera and the kitchen, it might be oil paints and rollerskating.  Just give yourself an hour to play, really play, and then see what happens.  I’ll bet you won’t be disappointed.

Technorati Tags: creativity, The Art of Happiness