Why is it so hard to sit down and write?
I say I want to do it. And I really do mean that when I say it.
But I often find myself doing everything else on my to-do list first.
In some ways I think it’s because those other things are easier tasks to do and complete – to check them off versus writing, which is something that really is never done.
I think we all do this. We say we want to do something and then never start or rarely do it.
Life takes over and those desires get put on the back burner.
This has to stop! We are all so unhappy!
I saw a social media post that talked about how we “lose the habit of reading because we’re afraid of wasting our time. We think we need to be productive and on the go all the time.”
But as the post continued “we are not machines, and we are nourished by naps and fiction and basking in sunlight, no less than by food and drink.”
Amen!
I couldn’t agree with this more and commented that I am taking my time, my life back, and not following this rat race anymore. I had just spent a good 20 minutes reading with coffee shortly after getting up in the morning on our screened in porch before getting my day going.
This little bit of time, little bit of quiet, listening to the birds chirp, sipping on my coffee while reading an enjoyable book makes a huge difference in my day, in how I feel. And, it’s really not that much time – 20 minutes is just 1.4% of the day! I’d say that’s a good investment for what benefits it gives me.
But back to my original question, why is it so hard to sit down and write?
Oftentimes I find once I start, things start to flow and I do enjoy it. It just seems to be that initial spark that’s needed. Just making myself do it. Or, I find I am not as inspired with an idea when I go to sit and write.
It’s like my mind goes blank.
I can be out walking, running, in the shower (of course!) and have all these ideas and thoughts but once I sit down- poof! gone!
I also think I want to have some brilliantly articulated, curated idea written out but really the idea is to at least get a coherent thought out that someone finds helpful.
The more you do something the better or easier it becomes right?
So I’m getting back into the habit of having one blog post a week. I’d like to be writing more than that. I’d really like to schedule time several days a week where I just write, maybe not even a blog post necessarily, or maybe not even sentences but just getting ideas down on paper!
Yes! That sounds so amazing to me.
But again, why is it so hard to do? To sit down and write?
It is a constant work in progress on all fronts – writing more, posting 1/week or more, not worrying about it all being perfect. As we all know the saying, “Perfect is the enemy of good.”
I also often feel like I need this huge block of time to write. When in reality, in even just 20 or 30 minutes, I can get a lot done! And that goes for a lot of other things too! Just as I mentioned above with taking 20 minutes to read while enjoying coffee in the morning.
The other thing may also be that there are so many distractions in this life! Our phones are mini-computers there with us all the time. I know my mind is often “all over the place” and it can be hard to focus which is why I have lists for everything – to get all that stuff out and down on paper or in a note in my phone.
Crazy! We are driving ourselves crazy! It’s crazy how much we are expected and expect of ourselves day in and day out. As that post said “we are not machines.”
So I will fight. I will fight, not for my right to party 😂, but I will fight to write.
I will fight the urges to check my phone, scroll social media, be constantly doing, checking off to-do lists, and instead be present, doing the things, like writing, that bring me joy and make me happy.