Myth No. 1: You lack discipline and willpower
Hello, writer!
Living a creative life takes practice. Most days, there are about 5 good reasons why your limited energy might be spent on something other than writing — especially if you’re between projects or your work hasn’t been thriving.
For me, a great day = time with my children, time with my person, meaningful work, moving my body, and writing.
But if you’re anything like me, most days can only include two or three of the above.
I’m never going to tell you that making space to write is easy or painless. But what I don’t think we talk about enough is how good it feels to live a creative life.
Getting around to writing isn’t a matter of discipline or willpower. These are muscles that can push us to finish a chapter, maybe, or a work assignment that’s due by the end of the week.
Living a creative life is about showing up for yourself over and over again, and if you’re depending on discipline and willpower for that — well, those muscles get tired. They’re meant for short-term goals, not long-term ones.
Writing is a practice, not an assignment.
With Mindset + Mechanics, my method for working successfully on long-term creative goals, the question isn’t whether you have the discipline to write a novel or memoir — it’s whether you value your creative life and are honest with yourself about the unique challenges you’re working against.
You might or might not have a surplus of time or energy to devote to writing a novel or any other creative pursuit. But once you start to understand your creative life as a practice, not an assignment, and look closely at preserving the energy and space you need to write, you’ll be amazed at how much you can accomplish in just one or two writing sessions a week.
Scenario A: You mean to write every day, but for any number of reasons, you only get to it once every two or three weeks.
Scenario B: You set aside two hours every Sunday morning to sit at your keyboard. Monday through Saturday, you feel secure in the knowledge that your creative time is coming.
Which scenario gives a greater sense of peace, purpose, and meaning?
Because if you can put a boundary around those sessions mentally and logistically, joy and meaning will take the place of discipline and willpower, and you’ll find yourself greeting the keyboard with a sense of fulfillment, not dread.
I don’t do yoga because I happen to want to do it in the time I have available. I do it because it improves my mental clarity and physical strength. My life is more fulfilling when I’m showing up for my practice, and less meaningful when I’m not.
If you’re still shoe-horning writing into your life using discipline and willpower, answer these questions honestly:
Do I want to live a creative life now, or do I want to wait until the universe grants me more mental space and time?
How does it feel when I get around to writing? Am I sitting down with a sense of joy or dread?
Have I clarified the importance of living a creative life for myself? Or for the other people who influence my schedule?
Am I waiting for the stars to align before I write, or am I giving myself the gift of writing time, even if it’s only twice a month?
Mindset + Mechanics is all about pursuing creative fulfillment, but I don’t promise 100% peace and happiness. Creative work is worthwhile, but it’s not easy. What I do promise is greater ease between yourself and your creative goals, because when you’re working toward a goal, no matter how fast you’re progressing, your creative soul will find peace.
My next post will address Myth No. 2: You lack the time to write.
Don’t worry, I’m not going to tell you to write every day, give up watching television, or get up with the sun. Like discipline and willpower, these are not the path to living a fulfilling creative life (unless you hate TV and sleep — then go for it).
Keep trucking,
PS. Write Your Novel launches Oct 21, 2024. If you’re considering the program but aren’t sure if it’s a good fit for you, feel free to be in touch.
PPS. WYN is a new thing for me and there will be kinks to work out with the Write Your Novel community, so I’m offering 15% off to the first 25 writers who sign up. You can register now with the code MEFIRST to take advantage of this promotion, and start right away when it opens on Oct 21.
