How to give in
View this email in your browser (|ARCHIVE|)
You’d be amazed by how easy it is, |NAME|.
For me, all I have to do is start making excuses for myself about why I should stop whatever it is that I’m working on. Sound familiar?
These negative forces are at their worst for any of us when it comes to creative pursuits, but it can apply to anything, really.
We just need to listen to the reasons why the work is too hard, and instead consider–just for a moment–the very convincing arguments that surface in that internal monologue that each of us get caught up in. We tell ourselves maybe we’re not smart enough, that we don’t know enough about a subject, that more research is required, that it’s been done before. That people will laugh.
Or worse, that they won’t notice or care.
What I do next: I ignore all of this.
No matter how sensible the reasons are to quit or to procrastinate, I go on. And it usually goes against all good sense and reason to continue doing what I am doing–the act of making stuff up out of my head and committing it to words. I go on.
I give in to what seems to make the least sense. And somehow, things work out.
This is how it is to be someone who creates things for a living.
It might look like the ideas come easily and quickly. But they never do. Not really. Not ever.
The only truth in the act of creating is that you are doing the work. The arguments that push us back from doing or finishing: these are falsehoods.
To do anything other than to get the work done would be be to give in to what Steven Pressfield calls Resistance. That’s with a capital R for added formality, because he recognizes it as I do as a looming villain that our inner superhero has to fight against every day. There’s no vanquishing it. You do your best when you have kept Resistance at bay for another day. And then another.
You give in to the work.
How about you, |NAME|? How often do you struggle with taking your ideas and turning them into actions? Do you fight against the things you dream about doing?
One more thing: here are some tips on what to do when you’re really stuck on that writing project (http://thinkitcreative.com/blog/writing-advice-stuck/) .
That’s it for now. As always, don’t be shy with that reply button.
Patrick Gant thinkit creative (613) 825-3233
============================================================ |IFNOT:ARCHIVE_PAGE| |LIST:DESCRIPTION|
Our mailing address is: |LIST_ADDRESS| |END:IF|
unsubscribe from this list (|UNSUB|) update subscription preferences (|UPDATE_PROFILE|)
|IF:REWARDS| |REWARDS_TEXT| |END:IF|