Are you procrastinating on your biggest dreams, like that of writing a book, making excuses for yourself that you’re too busy… too tired… have too much ‘stuff’ to do?
“There is never going to be a good enough time or a ‘some day’ where you have ‘enough time’”, says Andy Monks. Someday starts now.
In any month, you may give 90 hours to your family and keeping the house, 795 hours or so to your work (clients/boss), and a few hours for school, church or community. But if you spend from just four (4) hours a week, or 17 hours a month, then within six months you could write a book and leave a coherent legacy. This beats a drawer full of notebooks with scribbles. That’s the bottom line.
Another perspective is from a Brisbane coaching professional, Eduardo Gomes. He believes:
“Many go through their adult/work lives without ever getting unstuck. Instead of facing the issue and asking for help, they choose to stay STUCK and eventually lose the drive to pursue their dreams. Furthermore, many who have decided to follow their passion often have the illusion they can make it on their own.”
Eduardo Gomes
Procrastinating on our biggest goals – how to move forward?
In my own writing, I have found that, for a short time, putting 100% focus into the research, gathering and sorting ideas is crucial to moving forward with a writing project. As well, a walking break can help us get ‘unstuck’ from the project. This gives your subconscious space and time to find a solution and it renews your creative energy.
Even so, it’s still no easy feat to pull ideas into a book, create something meaningful, and then find innovative ways to get your message/book out to many, many people. Yet, you don’t have to do it on your own. A book writing coach can help with the tricky bits like editing, feedback, launching, and publishing to a budget.
Here are some other problems, with my brainstormed solutions next to them.
| Creation Problem | Solution |
|---|---|
| You start but don’t know what to do to get self-published anyway | Research ways others have published (See Jane Friedman’s blog) or do a short course, e.g. Book Creation Success. |
| Fear of failing if putting one’s writing in public | We all start somewhere. If you can’t get past this fear, then hire an empathetic writing coach. |
| Perfectionism – draft 15 and you’re still not sure | Nothing happens until others read it. Get a paid beta reader or editor to provide feedback. If they are full of positive comments, then just get it out there! If there is stuff to work on, work on it. |
| You expected to write your book quickly or succeed online quickly but are disappointed. | Most of us take anywhere from six months to two or three years to write a book, as it needs to percolate. My blog has been going since 2013 and has not yet brought me fame and fortune. Did I give up? No. I know people need help, so I provide it. Also, Google love. |
| You thought that revelations were all going to come from your head straight onto the page | Some of the revelations will come, after a time, but first, you must deep dive into research. Talk walks, listen to relaxing music, and come back to your work. Your subconscious will connect the dots. |
| Lack of motivation to continue | This may be because you don’t think the work is good enough. With creation, we cannot just wish it to be better. With an editor, you can improve the construction and grammar. With practice, you can improve how you write and add your personality. This will give you immense enjoyment, surpassing anything you ever imagined. |
| Lack of new ideas | Look at other fields, find out how Newtown came across his ideas, or Ali Baba, etc. Then on reading it over, try to apply it to your topic. e.g. Julia Baird came up with the research on ‘forest bathing’ when writing about awe (Phosperence). |
| Waiting for a big block of time, e.g. retirement | Sure, many happy writers are in their 60s and 70s. But if you want to capitalise on having a business and a book, then writing a book in your 40s or 50s is wise. Reason being, if you have at least 10 years to drill down on your topic, be a thought leader, and create courses, you’ll be more likely to succeed. You also won’t be so overwhelmed by the tech… |
I hope you enjoyed ‘Make Someday Goals Part of Now’ and will put your goals and dreams into action. Jennifer Lancaster is a book writing coach, editor and author of books like ‘Creative Ways with Money’, ‘Power Marketing’, and ‘How to Start a Freelance Business’.
2 Comments. Leave new
Hi Jennifer,
Great article, thanks for the quote! Good to see you following your passions and sharing it with others!
Thanks,
Andy
Hi Jennifer,
Thanks for the reference to my blog post. Really liked you post. I’ve heard a friend of mine who is a published author saying that writing a book, starting a business, working on a major life project, etc… it is similar to retiring with a couple of millions dollars in your bank account. “It’s the power of compound interest”, he said. By focusing on putting a little bit of work a each day on something that truly matters, you eventually get what you want. Just like you say, “4 hours a week equals to …”
Hope you are well.
Kind regards,
Eduardo