Happy New Year! Odds are that many of you have spent the beginning of the year doing some sort of planning and intention-setting. We all hope that 2023 is happier, more rewarding, and more productive. We hope you make progress on that memoir, mystery novel, academic paper, one-act play, dissertation, existential meditation, or whatever draws you to writing!
Of course, hoping is only the beginning. The gap between hope and achievement looms large for all writers. So this week we’ll reflect on how to close the gap. This material is drawn from years of failing to live up to it. You need to have three ideas in your back pocket to write sustainably: SMART goals, dedicated time, and kindness.
SMART Goals
We have already discussed smart goals elsewhere in this blog. As a reminder, they are goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound. SMART goals fill the gap between aspirational hopes and day-to-day effort.
We get to SMART goals by breaking down large goals into small ones. We drill down from the shiny, compelling, and vague goal—write a novel, publish an article, and so on—to the SMART goal—rough out the chapters, write three paragraphs, and so on.
How we drill down is, of course, specific to each person, but if you’re looking for some tips and tricks, here are three that have worked for us. We could talk about this endlessly, but we don’t want this post to be endless.
First, if you’re stuck with a set of difficult tasks, try rating them. We’d recommend a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is a trivially easy task and 10 is a task that induces overwhelming dread. Feel free to tweak the system to suit your needs and actual experience. If a task is too hard—7 or higher, say—use that as a cue to break it down into smaller tasks. Then rate the smaller tasks. Assess whether you’ve made progress in decreasing the difficulty rating. Chances are that you have.
Second, remember that even with large tasks, sometimes the dread of the task is deceptive. With some tasks, knowing the first thing you’re going to do is all you need. This is an old trick we learned from actor friends of ours. For them, the way to handle stage fright is to have a super-clear idea of what they’re doing first when they get on stage. What’s the first line, or the first gesture, or the first action? If we’re prepared, that initial burst sets up everything that follows.
Third, remember that sometimes to get unstuck, you have to eat the frog, i.e., do the hardest thing first. Sometimes, if you can get the hardest bit done you’ll have a nice boost of energy for finishing the other tasks.
Use these tips with discernment. Rating tasks helps train discernment. If you can make rating your tasks second nature, then even being paralyzed with indecision can become a cue that keeps you engaged. It’s a deeply empowering experience to navigate through indecision.
Dedicated Writing Time
Most writing is deep work, taking most of our attention. Deep work is not the kind of work you can start and finish at a moment’s notice. Slipping into writing mode and slipping out of it takes some time because attention takes time to mobilize.
Most writing is deep work, taking most of our attention. Deep work is not the kind of work you can start and finish at a moment’s notice. Slipping into writing mode and slipping out of it takes some time because attention takes time to mobilize.
Kindness
Tips and tricks can only go so far. In the end, the inner game of writing is as important as the products of writing. We must remember to be kind to ourselves. This is the most important thing to remember, and often the hardest. Bullying ourselves into writing will not work in the long run. Our brains and bodies are smarter than that, and sooner or later they will rebel.
There are many ways to nudge ourselves into being a bit kinder to ourselves. Taking time to celebrate writing accomplishments is important. Taking time off when things seem out of balance is also important. Letting your standards slip on some difficult writing days can be a profound act of kindness to yourself. The ways to be kinder are endless. Don’t neglect kindness, even though deadlines might pull you away from it.
So, happy New Year! May you break down your hopes and aspirations into goals that you can do day-by-day. May you look back on this year and see the progress you have made! May you produce, refine, and develop your work. May you be surprised by what you discover. And most of all, may you realize what you want out of writing and get it.