Posted by john on October 31st, 2006 — Posted in Cures For Laziness
As a professional writer, I have struggled with and been paralyzed by writer’s block more times than I can count — until I discovered the four solutions I’ll tell you about in a second.
Why four solutions? Because writer’s block doesn’t have just one cause; otherwise there would be a one-size-fits-all cure. It’s a complex problem involving many factors.
It’s also a lonely sort of problem because others just don’t understand. You see people who are less motivated and less capable than you who have no trouble at all with it. On the other hand, you see people at your level or higher – scholars, etc. — who also have no problem with it!
So writer’s block is confusing because it’s hard to not think you’re just weird (and even a bad writer) when you sit there staring at a blank page doing nothing. Maybe you should give up?
No! The good news is that, according to studies I’ve read, the better a writer you are, the more likely you are to get writer’s block. The more you know about your subject, the tougher the time you’ll have on average.
Think about it… because you’re a good writer, you have high standards for your work. It takes an astonishing level of quality until you’re satisfied with your work. Not only that, but there’s also a ton of external pressure to produce high quality. If you’re writing a dissertation for a PhD, your graduate committee will constantly make complex demands that cause you to second-guess yourself. If you’re an author, you’re under massive pressure to produce perfection. And so on.
What I’m getting at is that writer’s block is caused by being focused on the outcome while you’re writing.
Think about when you’re talking to somebody. While you’re talking to them, is it good to over-analyze and think about what it will be like to look back on the conversation? Of course not. Instead it’s best to just allow the conversation to flow.
It should be the same thing with your writing, since writing is just one-on-one communication in print.
With that in mind, hang onto your seat because here is the cure for writer’s block:
1. Stop Fooling Yourself Into Thinking You’re Writing When You’re Really Not.
Most people think about writing as an entire process, where you take a walk and think, you drink a cup of coffee, you read a book to prepare for the writing, etc.
However, in reality you’re not writing when you do those other things. Taking a walk to think and clear your mind is not writing; you’re only writing when your fingers are tapping the keyboard or moving the pen.
You’re not writing when you’re doing research; you’re only writing when you’re actually in the act of producing words and sentences.
2. Figure Out What Your Interruptors Are and Quarantine Them.
Answer this question:
When I stopped writing, what activity did I then do?
Maybe you stopped writing to check email, telephone a friend, or to do yet more research. That is your Writing Interruptor, and you should quarantine it for later. Prevent yourself from checking email (or whatever) until you’re finished.
Try it and see how it works. Because let’s face it: your current system of stopping writing in order to do something else is not working.
By the way, it doesn’t matter how much research you do or how many breaks you take to refresh. Nothing will get your writing project done except putting words on paper.
But, you’re probably thinking, doesn’t doing a ton of research make the writing go easily?
The answer is no… in fact it is the opposite. The more research you do, the higher the standard you set for yourself, making it harder to actually write.
I’ve seen a lot of extremely bright graduate students fall into this trap, making projects like dissertations take literally years longer than they should have, simply because they over-prepared and learned too much before writing.
Never confuse preparation for writing with the writing itself, because the more you prepare to write, the tougher the writing becomes.
3. Stop Calling It “Writer’s Block”
Ever noticed how saying “I feel sad” makes you feel depressed? Or (in the case of this site) “I feel lazy” makes you feel lethargic? It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Plus the label “writer’s block” makes the challenge sound impossible to overcome. After all, how can you do something if you’re blocked by some mysterious outside force?
So, rather than saying “I have writer’s block,” be more accurate and say, “I’m currently being too lazy to put words on paper.” That way it becomes a problem you can get past rather than an external obstacle.
4. Use A Model.
Pablo Picasso is famous for saying, “Bad artists copy. Good artists steal.” What he meant by that is you don’t need to invent the wheel. Instead you should model your work after something that’s already been done well.
So if you’re writing an article on on organic gardening tips, find similar articles and use them as a model. If you’re writing a dissertation, find other successful dissertations to use as ideal examples for you to follow. And so on.
Finally, was this post helpful to you? Please post a comment to let me know.
-John
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Posted by john on October 27th, 2006 — Posted in How To Be More Motivated And Productive
Laziness can creep up even when you don’t mean for it to. Recently an anonymous reader sent me this question:
my biggest problem is that when I’m waiting for my PC to do something (e.g. load a new web page - my work requires the use of the web), I’m tempted to visit a news page or a web forum, and then I can easily get involved in that (or leads that follow from that) for a long time (sometimes the “quick look” genuinely is quick if there’s nothing interesting there). So - when one is working quickly and enthusiastically, but a delay arises, how to avoid the temptation to “quickly” take a look at a web site? What to do instead?
You sound like me about a year ago. 
News sites and forums are deadly to your productivity. Here’s the 5-part solution…
1. Realize the potential consequences of your behavior.
Have a look here at this from the Canadian government’s Adult Literacy Database:
Top 12 Reasons For Getting Fired
1. Little interest in getting work done. (Bad Attitude)
2. Too many days off work and late starts. (Bad Attitude)
3. Lack of loyalty. (Bad Attitude)
4. Being impolite to workmates. (Bad Attitude)
5. Lack of speed.
6. Not paying attention to detail. (Bad Attitude)
7. Not sticking with things until they are done. (Bad Attitude)
8. No interest or excitement. (Bad Attitude)
9. No pride in speech or appearance. (Bad Attitude)
10. Lack of responsibility. (Bad Attitude)
11. Lack of respect for authority. (Bad Attitude)
12. Lack of respect for the property of others.
Notice how #1, #5, #6, #7, and #8 are all related to laziness? If it sounds like you, your odds of success at work aren’t good.
If you can’t stay motivated about your job, you’re in trouble. I’ve met many successful people — self-made millionaires, winning athletes, and CEOs – and they all share a passion for what they do.
Like you, I also work with computers, and part of the benefits is that you can be relaxed in a comfy office (unlike people like auto mechanics and roofers who do “real” work for a living) — though the drawback is the temptation to goof off.
2. Think about the big picture.
Getting distracted happens when you think about the little picture instead. You get bogged down in the task you’re doing, and then you become bored… and then those message boards and news sites look awfully interesting.
The solution is to constantly take a step back and look at your overall goals. Your current task is just a small step on your way toward a million dollar portfolio, a career promotion, etc.
So remember to keep focused. The downtime when you’re waiting for your slow computer is the perfect moment to reflect on your goals.
3. Give Yourself More To Do.
A lot of times we get distracted because there simply isn’t enough for us to do. For example, think about what it’s like to be a college student. The semester starts, and there’s not that much work. You can hang out with friends and watch South Park on TV.
And then all of a sudden you’ve got 5 tests and 3 papers due the same week. It’s literally impossible to get distracted, because you’re frantically trying to catch up. Going to news sites and forums would be the last thing on your mind.
You get the work done because there’s no other choice. What that means is this: don’t be happy with doing the minimum. Accomplish your goals, then see what more you do. Don’t limit yourself.
4. Limit Yourself To Once Per Day.
One of the best things I ever did was to limit myself to checking news sites and message boards no more than once per day. News sites and forums are likely to have valuable new content once a day, but rarely 10 times a day. You can usually set aside 20-30 minutes a day and pick up everything you need from those sites. Checking them more than once a day adds little additional value, but subtracts significant value because it sucks up so much of your time.
When you place a strict limit like that, those sites aren’t as addictive any more.
5. Take A Productive Break.
I learned a breathing exercise from parenting expert Pam Van Zwoll that both soothes your stress and energizes you. It goes like this:
1. Breathe into your abdomen as much as you can. (You’ll know you’re doing it right when you see your belly rise; your chest should not inflate.)
2. Hold for a 3-count.
3. Exhale through your nose. (That ensures you’ll be slow when you breathe out.)
Bingo!–Now you feel both relaxed and energized.
Think about the time you spend throughout the day. When you’re certain that you’ve spent more productive time than surfing time, you’re on your way to success.
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Posted by john on October 4th, 2006 — Posted in Stop Procrastinating
As I said in this recent post, when you’re procrastinating on something that’s important enough, if you think about the repercussions of not doing it, that will push you into action.
However, sometimes we have a mental block and still don’t do the thing we need to be doing.
To illustrate, let’s use cleaning your house. You know when you’ve got guests coming over and you want to make your place spotless for them? It’s a pretty universal example.
Rather than get your vacuum out and get moving, you watch TV, paint your nails if you’re a girl, or play video games if you’re a guy, and so on.
So at this point you need to ask yourself:
What feeling is making me stall? And what thoughts am I having that are making me feel that way?
Take 2 minutes right now and write down your answer.
Ninety-nine percent of the time, your answer will be some version of this:
“I’m not starting the task yet because I feel like I’ll go through pain if I do it now. I feel like that because I’m thinking about the drudgery of the task. And if I delay… maybe there will be some magical time in the future when I won’t go through that.”
And of course you know (since you’ve been reading this blog) that this is ridiculous. In the long run, doing the task will make you happy, and putting it off will make you depressed.
Remember what I said about laziness being a short circuit in your brain?
The answer then is to change your short-term wrong emotion (pain avoidance) to match your long-term correct emotion (satisfaction of working toward your goal).
Here is the five-part formula for doing this:
1. Identify and quarantine your Procrastination Tools.
There are two kinds of Procrastination Tools (as I call them):
1. Silly activities like watching TV or playing computer games.
2. Useful activities that are less important.
If the Procrastination Tool you use is a silly activity, then set aside a specific time to do that thing. Plan it, and give yourself a limit. For example, say: “At noon, I will surf the Internet for only 20 minutes.”
This also reconfigures your mind to link task completion with getting a reward at the end of it.
If you procrastinate by doing a useful activity that is less important, then triage it. Put it lower on your priority list.
I’m a huge believer in to-do lists, but the items on your list must be ordered based on how soon you need to get to them.
If you’re having guests to your house and need to prepare for it, you don’t want to feel rushed. So other things, like paying your bills that aren’t due for another three weeks, can wait.
2. Vividly imagine the pain you’ll have if you don’t complete the task.
If your house isn’t ready for the guests, you’ll feel embarrassed because you asked them to come to your place for a special occasion, and if your house is a complete wreck, then it makes it seem like you didn’t want them to come over and don’t care about them.
Feel this pain right now.
3. Now visualize the task as if you’ve already finished it.
When you’ve got a house that’s clean for your guests, you feel happy, because it shows the people that you care about them enough to give them a great experience at your house. Allow yourself to feel that way right now, before you’ve even begun.
4. Change the way you talk to yourself.
Tony Robbins and a lot of other self-help gurus talk about this, because it works like magic.
Change the current things you say to yourself — such as “I wish I had the energy to get started cleaning my house” and “I wish I wasn’t procrastinating on getting it ready for the guests” to this…
“What kinds of things do I ENJOY about cleaning the house?” and “How can I get this done?”
You see how these new thoughts will change the way you feel about the task?
Finally…
5. Take the next small action.
In Getting Things Done, David Allen says the simple solution is to always ask the question, What’s the next physical action I need to take? So, rather than have “get tires changed” on your to-do list, you should have “get out the phone book and look up tire shops.”
You see how focusing on the next action is way easier than focusing on the overall task?
Rather than have “clean my house to get it ready for guests,” you should have “pick up trash on the living room floor.”
The first is a vague goal that sounds overwhelming. The second is clear and easily doable. Get that small thing done, and now you’ve got momentum and have accomplished something tangible. Your feelings have changed for the better, and you’re no longer procrastinating.
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