Today is day 33 of 100 writing days. This is what I learned being consistent:
Reviving #The100DayWritingProject
Well, I could start this text talking about how hard it is to write.
But maybe not.
What if I say that writing is actually easy?
Well, the writing part is easy. The hard one is getting started.
I’m at 1/3 of #The100DayWritingProject. Here are 3 Lessons I learned in 33 days of writing:
1. Just start writing non-sense phrases:
Once I sit down to write, a lot of things suddenly emerge on my mind.
Problems, ideas, difficulties, beliefs.
What is most hard is to filter it all to actually get started. It’s like a shutdown of a blank page. Call it a block, but I prefer to see it as a natural part of the process.
Any object will remain at rest unless an external force is applied for it start moving. Once the object starts, then it’s just a matter of continue moving.
This above is Newton’s first law of motion. You’re welcome.
Writing the first 100 words is very complicated, but if I manage to pass this mark, words start flowing without resistance, and a good quality piece is created. This is just me... Or maybe everyone…
If I learn to work with this characteristics, then I can use it to help me instead of harming me. That’s why it is so important to write non-sense when starting a new text.
Don’t worry about it, the valuable content is at the end, not at the start.
I’ve realized that there is no problem in erasing things after the text is finished. I have to structure the content anyway.
In the draft review, I can leave or remove things as I may.
2. Find an external source of motivation.
About a month ago I was reading one article here on medium. In the end, there was this hashtag saying Day 67 of #The100daysWritingProject.
I found it a nice way to challenge my behaviors, and thus I gave myself the freedom to start writing one text per day for 100 days.
On the same day, I posted my Number One article. It felt amazing.
I also enrolled in an online course a few days after. Which was even more amazing.
“Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes and having fun”
— Mary Lou Cook
Being consistent helps me in many different ways. I now have a reason to write. It’s about challenging myself to watch what I can accomplish in the end.
There is no right or wrong here. There are just lessons.
I can either succeed or learn from my mistakes…
A good way to form a habit is to have a big goal. For me is reaching Day 99.
Shout out to Tom Kuegler on teaching me his secrets about Medium. His online course “The Medium Mastery Course” Is really being an external source of motivation and wisdom.
I wouldn’t be able to grow so fast without Tom’s experiences. He shares valuable lessons with us, and the community of the course is helping me to know that I’m not alone in this journey.
I’m learning not only the secrets about Medium’s system in this course. The truth is that I’m also learning how to be a better writer for others.
The pace of posting one text per day is definitely challenging, but having a feedback at the end of the week is really worth it.
I realized the importance of great headlines, content structure and how to pack my message while being myself.
It is important to have this 1-on-1 connection with the audience.
3. Have a Plan to Keep Growing:
The way to sustain the artist mindset is easy.
Create — ▶ Share — ▶ Get Feedback — ▶ Repeat
And this is my plan to keep myself growing. Maybe you can be inspired too:
- Be Genuine;
- Offer Value;
- Be original, show your difference;
- Have something I am passionate about and talk about it;
- Write about many different topics;
- Bonus: Keep consistency;
When we have goals, we have a map to act upon. You can choose to have many small goals or have a big one.
The important thing is to keep moving after actually accomplishing a goal.
Keep the motion, don’t stop believing.
My experience shows me that if I forget to update the map after reaching a destination, I easily loose focus. This is why I find it better to have a big goal because then I don’t have to remember every little goal I have.
Life starts to go on without resistance. This is the Mushin state of mind.
#Day 33
#The100DayWritingProject
