Don’t Get Stopped!
JUST DON’T GET STOPPED
I’ve been deep in a revision of my novel. Finally, chapters that I’ve been struggling with for months are getting resolved. Plotting pain points are coming together. That has been such a relief.
I brew myself a delicious cup of coffee or make a lemon water and force myself to work for at least two hours a day. (They don’t have to be two hours in a row, either.) I just have to get something done.
I think about this the same way I think about my workouts. I have to move in some way “fitness related” every day. Sometimes that means an actual workout. Sometimes it means dancing to my favorite song of the day. Sometimes it is the easiest version of push-ups I can manage—my favorite, kitchen-counter-supported push-ups while loading or unloading the dishwasher, waiting for the microwave, or for whatever awful reason I’ve found myself in the kitchen again.
I’ve learned that momentum doesn’t care very much about scale.
Which brings me to this admission: I’ve been terrible at writing this blog lately!
(Small aside: I’ve heard it is not called a blog anymore. But I’ve yet to learn what it is called, so I will persist in using the so-very-uncool and passé lingo and happily show my age.)
Right. Back to the blog…
Some days I get in my head about it. I think I have nothing to say. Or, at least, nothing anyone would want to read.
And then I have to wonder: Who exactly do I think my audience is? Who am I writing for when I write this?
So today I’m going to tell you who I think you are—and why remembering you might help me stop getting STOPPED.
Who do I think might be interested in reading a thing I have to say?
I’m hoping it’s someone a lot like me.
We root for the underdog. We want to believe people are mostly good. We try to lead with love, even though we don’t always succeed. We screw things up. We get discouraged. We get annoyed and overwhelmed and occasionally want to tell someone to fuck right off. But then we try again.
We appreciate effort. We appreciate bravery. We appreciate the person willing to look a little foolish because they care enough to try.
A reader of my work might finish reading a blog and think, meh. But they would never finish reading one and think, what a dumbass. (At least I’m hoping you don’t!)
And maybe that’s what I keep forgetting.
I’m not writing for the person waiting for me to embarrass myself. I’m writing for the person who knows what it costs to try. When I remember that I’m writing to you, I can stop worrying so much, right? Because we’re trying. And, in my book, that means everything.
We are human beings, and our brains can be wily little imps. They can slam on the brakes of possibility harder than a stick jammed into our spokes. That little voice that says, “Don’t write that. Nobody cares. Don’t try that. You’ll look ridiculous. Don’t start. You probably won’t finish.” (Ummm, no thank you. You can sit down now!)
Lately, when I notice my brain doing that, I’ve stopped trying to argue with it. I treat it a little like I treat my (very moody) kid who wakes up like a bear.
I hug it. I let it grumble. And then I keep going.
Because leading with love feels better than falling in line with resentment—even when the thing I’m trying to love is the scared, resistant part of myself.
Getting stopped sucks!
And sometimes what stops us is very, very real. We don’t get to choose every obstacle that lands in our path. But I’ve started to realize that a blocked path and the end of the road aren’t necessarily the same thing.
One path is completely blocked? Try another way. Still not working? Try a different trail. Still not feeling it? Maybe it’s time to switch mountains altogether. But don’t mistake having to change direction for having to stop.
JUST DON’T GET STOPPED.
I recently read a quote that I think relates to this beautifully:
“Discipline feels heavy for an hour. Regret feels heavy for years. Pick your weight.”
Hey readers, which weight are you picking today?
I’m posting this, so you know which one I chose.
Love you all! Make it an amazing day.
for this journal entry.