Five Tips for Keeping Your Writing Alive Over the Holidays

Because getting to your writing can be just a little more - challenging - during the fun and frenzied festivity of the holiday season, I’ve put together five tips to help you keep your creative project alive Listen to audio, or watch the video. Enjoy! And Merry Christmas from me to you.

Sometimes You Have to Play Pig

Perfectionism can shut down creativity faster than monkeys close out a banana party. Only I’m talking about pigs, not monkeys. Wait - I’m not really even talking about pigs. I guess you’ll just have to watch the video. OR you can listen to the podcast version here.

(Creativity Quest is copyrighted by Authors on the Air Global Radio Network)

Get Your Magic BHAWG for 2019

Okay, my writer friends. I’m on a soap box today. It is time for us all to:

• STOP falling short of our writing goals.

• STOP the endless hours procrastinating on Facebook and watching never ending
  re-runs of soulless TV.

• STOP feeling desperate, hopeless and on the brink of giving up altogether.

BHAWG Magic, taking place live on December 6, 2018 at 4 pm PST is here to save your soul. (Well, okay, that might be a little over the top.)

Sign up here: BHAWG MAGIC

Hey, I’ve been in the procrastination trenches right along with you and I know how miserable it feels when you’re not getting to your writing and falling short of your goals. As a bestselling author and a Kaizen-Muse Creativity Coach, I’ve learned some amazing secrets about getting to my writing consistently and with joy.

And I want to share some of my best secrets with you. I can’t wait to walk you through setting a Big Hairy Ass Writing Goal (and share my best secrets for having fun reaching it) on December 6, 2018, at 4 pm PST. (Don’t worry - sign up to watch the replay).

Learn how to pursue a Big Hairy Ass Writer Goal (BHAWG) without succumbing to anxiety, avoidance, procrastination or ugly meltdown moments so that you can get your writing done with joy and ease and HAVE FUN DOING IT.

You've been gifted with the passion to write and it's time to live up to your potential. You'll be a better person for it, and – trust me - your friends, family, and readers will be too.

So be sure to nab a space, stock up on your fave snacks and have a plentiful supply of coffee! It’s going to be epic.

Oh, and the best part?
You don’t have to part with a single penny. Not one cent, absolutely nothing.

So there you have it….one simple click away from changing your writing life forever.

To make that happen, you need to take the first step and sign up for BHAWG Magic at the link below:

Sign up here: BWHAW MAGIC

PS - I can’t GUARANTEE the unicorns will show up. But I can tell you that magic happens when you write at the edge.

Introducing Creative Alchemy Idea Generation Sessions

Hey, creative person! I just had this brilliant idea about - ideas!! I love generating ideas, and now I’m offering this as a brand new service. I can’t wait to work with you on accessing the brilliant, magical ideas that are already in your subconscious, just waiting to be discovered. Learn more here!

About that annoying voice in your head

Quick - without stopping to think - what is your inner critic saying to you RIGHT NOW?

CHALLENGE: Stop what you're doing, grab a pen and a piece of paper and try this. It will take you all of a minute and you might be surprised.

1. Set your timer for one minute, but don't start it yet.

2. At the top of your paper write: "Internal Critic: You have permission to speak freely."

3. Start the timer and let your pen write down everything the critic is saying to you. Keep the pen moving without stopping to think. 

Ready? GO.

(Did you do the thing? No? I understand. If you're at all like me, you're busy. You're saying, "yeah, yeah. Who has time for stupid exercises? I'll get the gist by just reading."

But you won't. You'll get information, but you won't get the information that's hiding in your subconscious, and that is really important shit. If you really can't do the thing now, promise yourself you'll do it later.)

After you've let the Critic have the floor, add something like this at the bottom of your page:

I hear you. Thank you for sharing. Now please go do some yoga and, for the love of all things holy, chill out.

The hearts are important, because the Inner Critic is really part of YOU. War with your self defeats the purpose and wastes energy. If you can't feel love (the kind you might summon up for a fractious toddler) you can act as if. If you really listen, you may find that the Critic wants you to be safe and not get hurt, so it is eternally trying to shut you down and keep you small. So thank it for the feedback, pat it on the head, and send it off to the spa.

Even though it is usually well intentioned, the Inner Critic is seriously misinformed and often behind the times. You know what mine told me this week?

"You're lazy," it said. For a minute I bought in. 

"Yeah, I know. I'm lazy." Heavy, sad sigh.

And then the cognitive dissonance kicked in. Wait. What?

I work a day job, run a coaching business, write books, take classes, and do a reasonable share of the household chores. I'm not exactly sitting around twiddling my thumbs. And yet, harbored in my subconscious, even after years of work on this sort of thing, there was this random, completely inaccurate belief.

I actually laughed out loud, (a real one, not an online LOL). And then I said to my critic, "You're delusional, my friend. Not sure where that one came from, but I'm not buying it. Not any more. Maybe I could be more productive or focused or make better use of my time. Lazy? I don't think so."

The belief has tried to sneak back in a couple of times, but I'm watching for it now and just shoo it away. When it goes, it takes with a bunch of guilt boogey men that have been hanging around. 
 

Complete the Challenge

(I know. I told you this would only take one minute. But you can do this part of the challenge in your head while you drive or do dishes or shower or whatever, so it doesn't count on the clock.)

Pick one of the negative things your critic said to you and explore it a little. Try to look at it in a friendly, detached sort of way.. Is it true? What evidence supports the truth of it? Is there evidence against it? If you were presenting this negative statement to an impartial judge, would there be enough evidence for a conviction?

Can you put a spin on it? Think of it differently? Does it have a positive side?

Laziness, for example, could be spun as an ability to relax, to slow down, to enjoy the luxuries and pleasures of life instead of racing the clock. See how it becomes a virtue instead of a fault?

What purpose does this attribute serve in your life?  If it isn't working for you, can you change one small thing--just a little tweak--that would make it into a quality that helps you?

As always, I'd love to hear how any of this works for you! Comment below, or email me.