This morning, I was feeling overwhelmed, underachieving, and frustrated with the usual things on my plate and I was wondering why and how I was going to add NaNoWriMo to my life. I decided to get outside for a crisp, fall walk. I needed to give myself a pep talk.
As always, stepping away and stepping outside worked. I regained some clarity and focus. Here’s the pep talk I gave myself.
Gratitude and perspective. I’m thankful I have the ability and support from my family to try this project. For perspective, check out Chef Fatima Ali. She’s living with terminal cancer and is sharing the experience.
I’m remembering WHY I wanted to do this. I have an itch to scratch with this other story, and I’m hoping to establish some new habits. And I love a leap of faith.
Do a Brain Dump and play Worst Case Scenario. The Brain Dump gets it all of my swirling thoughts out of my head and on paper instead. In the case of walking, I brain dump on to the voice recorder on my phone. Yes, there’s lots on the list, but in the Worst Case Scenario, everything won’t get done. And, that’s ok. The upside -even if it all gets even partially done, it’s a win.
Make a calendar (I’m using my white board). I’m going to TRY and be realistic when planning the days ahead, with room for my gross underestimation of how much time everything takes.
I’m trying to use the Eisenhower grid for anything that goes on the calendar, and anything that comes up. The concept is for every obligation that comes up is to ask whether it’s urgent and/or important and schedule it according to the answer.
Enjoy my new discovery: Voice typing on google docs. Obsessed. I’ve only tried this a few times, but I’m hoping to use it during NaNoWriMo.
My pep talk/walk worked for now. I have a feeling I’ll be taking more of these walks in the coming weeks.
Friends – What helps you get back on track?
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