Finding the motivation to tackle a project or a challenge can
be a challenge in and of itself, and one I have, at times, found myself
facing. For writers in particular,
finding the motivation to spend hours at the computer typing can be a daunting
task when life and all of its discouragements get in the way. One of the reasons I know I am a writer at
heart is because even at the times that life gets me down my love for writing
never dies. In fact it is at some of the
darkest times when I purposely turn to writing because I find myself in an exhilarating and imaginative world which stimulates my mind and jump-starts my inner passion. 
But even as a writer who loves writing more than almost anything else,
it can be difficult to find my motivation in a world where our industry is
changing every day, a world that often requires us to work two jobs just to pay
our bills and a world in which we’re often pulled in so many different directions
it can be hard to see which end is up. I
find writing to be a GREAT escape from this stressful world of ours. But to those of us who find our peace and joy
in reading and writing we must face other real life challenges too and they can
make it difficult to find the time enjoy our greatest passions. Finding the time to read and write are
challenges I face on a daily basis, among others—trying to thrive as a millennial
in a challenging economy, fighting to make living my passion an important part
of every day, trying to help others in our troubled world and coping with envy
and discouragement when things don’t happen as quickly as I might want them to.
As a Gemini (one who’s birthday falls under the astrological
sign of twins) I often feel as though my personality is split. Some days I am filled with the encouragement
and energy to take on anything and everything and other days, the opposite is
the case. I find that these are the days
when I’m filled with negative thoughts and sometimes all it can take is one
negative thought to temporarily destroy a my confidence. Thankfully I experience many more good days
than bad ones but in a world where tragic news is just a click away it can be
difficult to focus on the positive, even for those of us with large
imaginations who enjoy spending time in the world of fantasy. One way that I’m working to meet this
challenge is by consciously turning a blind eye to these negative thoughts and
I do that by pressing onward even towards something that seems impossible.
When I was a little girl my mother and I used to water the
bushes together in the backyard. My
mother had a big watering can and I had a small one. There was a small bush positioned near the
others, very small and it had no leaves whatsoever. I was about three at the time and I would
water the little bush as we watered the others.
I remember my mother telling me, “Don’t water that one. It’s dead.”
But I insisted that that was exactly why we needed to water it, so that
it would come back to life. I’m not
exactly sure what had caused the bush to stop blooming but my persistence paid
off, and after a time the little bush started producing leaves again, looking
every bit as healthy as the other bushes around it. In my child’s innocence I didn’t know enough
to be discouraged by the impossible and so I kept trying. My persistence paid off!
There is no secret formula when it comes to motivating
yourself. I find I get charged up about
getting to work when I have a list in hand that includes my writing and other
to-do tasks but motivation must come from within. If you’re a writer who loves to write then
you’ve already won half the battle. The
rest comes with turning off the negative thoughts, everything from worrying
about how a story will turn out, feeling as though you don’t have the time to
write it or worrying that no one will buy it when you do. You are your own worst enemy. Get out of your own way and get your butt in
the chair! I can’t wait to read your
next story!
A Passionate Play [The Rabourn Theater Series # 1] Releases October 2016!
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