A Good Day To Create a New Habit
Today, I’m trying something new. Instead of spending a lot of time cruising Facebook while I eat my breakfast, I’m writing . Eating while I work is nothing new for me. I did it a lot when I worked in an office, and still do from time to time now, even though no one cares how long I take for lunch these days. I don’t have to leave the house at an ungodly hour to sit at a desk in someone else’s office either, so breakfast is often a leisurely affair.
It was brought to my attention I spend too much time on my phone, and in other unproductive pursuits first thing in the morning when I could (and probably should) be writing. My brain is fresh, and has yet to become cluttered with they day’s information overload. I’m less scattered first thing in the morning as I have a consistent routine for starting the day. Best of all, my ADD brain has yet to fully wake up and engage in its usual monkey shines.
Always willing to try something new to help me write more and futz less, I figured this was worth a shot. I even considered postponing my daily gratitude post but that counts as writing too. Who knows? Maybe it’ll give me inspiration at least some of the time. Mainly, I’m looking for ways to ease myself into a consistent writing habit again.
Leaping From Sloth to Frenzy
I seem to go through spells when I’m writing like crazy (and lately, missing doctor’s appointments), and getting new inspiration out of the air I breathe. Then I go into a long, dark, downward spiral when I get very little writing done; when it takes a Universal head slap to get my fingers on the keys. I’ve yet to figure out the signs one of those times is looming, or I’d have rerouted them before now, and be knocking out blog posts, stories, and edited chapters of my memoir like crazy.
My life consists of leaps, both large and small from one frenzy to another, punctuated by stretches of sloth when I eat badly, and stuff my brain with hours of mindless TV. Eventually, I reach a point where the mindlessness is more irritating than entertaining, and I find something productive to do again.
Often my productivity starts with cleaning. I get tired of the dark spots on my kitchen floor, or the pile of papers on the table next to my printer, and clear the mess which accumulated while I was a sloth. Somehow, cleaning my environment clears the cobwebs from my brain as well, inspiring me to put fingers to keys and write about whatever comes into my head. Often, the first things to come out are what sent me into slothdom in the first place.
Demons of Sloth
It might be worries and concerns both old and new, or a painful, guilt-ridden journey through the past. Either way, it sucks me down into a whirlpool of sadness, regrets, frustrations, and even anger, chewing through any progress I’d made. Sometimes, it’s fueled by those demons who fight change. My life was moving forward too quickly for their liking, so they filled my head with thoughts guaranteed to halt the nasty changes in their tracks.
Fortunately, I’ve learned to set my internal house back to rights more quickly these days, sometimes on my own, and others with inspiration from the outside. This time, it’s a writing challenge. Next time, it might be a new project, or potential client who inspires me. Whatever it is has to allow me to sneak some changes by my fear-driven brain so they’re a done deal before it wakes up to find the landscape is no longer the same.
Even now, I feel my mind wandering as my brain fights against writing so early in the day. This isn’t the way we do things! It screams as it tries its best to stop my fingers from skipping across the keys. I don’t like this! No, I do not like this one little bit. It’s whines fall on deaf ears as I push it out of the way so I can keep throwing thoughts on the page.
Focus on the Productive Mind
I could take a moment or two to reassure the child within, telling her this is a change for the good. Writing early will make life better, happier, and more interesting. But I refrain as I know it would be another side trip, and slow the path to change again. Like a baby in a playpen, my inner child needs to be left alone to her tantrum for now.
Eventually she’ll grow tired of the lack of response, and either wander off to play with her toys, or fall asleep. Either one works for me, as it means I get a nice stretch of time to write, or implement another change without interference.
At times like this, I’m grateful the more mature part of me is the one who embraces change, sometimes with a purpose, and sometimes simply for the sake of variety. The more mature side of me hates stagnation, and grows restless when the landscape remains the same for too long. She lets me know she’s done when I can’t seem to settle on anything. I know I’ve crossed the line when cleaning sounds good to me. When I’m driven to vacuum and mop floors, or scrub the tub, I know I’ve allowed my change-resistant brain to drive the train for too long, and the natives are getting restless.
The Storm After the Calm
I can’t say it’s a bad thing when I’m inspired to clean. I’ll never win any Good Housekeeping awards, but I don’t like living in filth and clutter either. There’s a point when I can’t stand the things I’ve let slide, and have to start putting things to rights before anything else gets done. I’m happy to say, that point comes a lot sooner than it used to, even with the new habits I’ve created to keep the kitchen ready for action, and the floors relatively debris free, in spite of my litter scattering felines.
The best part of those cleaning frenzies is what follows. Those are the times I’m inspired to write. It may start with a blog post or two, but ultimately, it morphs into a full-blown writing session from which emerges edited chapters, or the beginning of a new story. When the frenzy gets particularly strong, I might even get a few chapters of a new novel.
Let the Muse Run Amok
The one thing I learned early on is to never try to control my muse. She goes where she wants to go, and does what she wants to do. Unfettered, she produces incredible amounts of work. If I try to rein her in, she crosses her arms and refuses to budge until I go away and leave her to her own devices. Yes, she’s fickle, but I’ve learned to respect her ways. Letting her run amok usually yields a nice prize.
The last few years have been a roller coaster ride of change interspersed with stagnation. I’m much happier when things are changing; evolving; growing, than I am when I seem to look at the same bare walls day after day. Given the choice, I choose a life kaleidoscopic with color and changing scenery. In a way, I think my change-phobic brain has gotten used to yielding more often than not because a happier me overall is a darn sight easier to live with than a morose one. Isn’t it a good thing, in the end, I get to choose?
About the Author
Sheri Conaway is a Holistic Ghostwriter, and an advocate for cats and mental health. Sheri 
believes in the Laws of Attraction, but only if you are a participant rather than just an observer. Her mission is to Make Vulnerable Beautiful and help entrepreneurs touch the souls of their readers and clients so they can increase their impact and their income.
If you’d like to have her write for you, please visit her Hire Me page for more information. You can also find her on Facebook Sheri Levenstein-Conaway Author.
Be sure to watch this space for news of the upcoming releases of ” Rebuilding After Suicide” and “Sasha’s Journey”.
