How do you get everything done? Writing, art making, coaching, teaching – just a few of the roles I juggle. I’m sure you’ve got as many or more roles you play. We’re all trying to squeeze more into every day. How do I get things done?
It’s a constant adjustment process of my work flow. In fact, it’s the problem we seek to solve at Original Impulse: how do we get our best creative work done despite everything that conspires against us?
I’m always looking for the right combination to fend off distraction, OPA and decision swirl. I want to focus on things that matter to me, that challenge me, and that serve to inspire others’ creative dynamism.
So, rather than set big goals for 2015, I’m trying a new schedule. My hope is that new structure makes it easier to do what I love. Here’s what I’m experimenting with:
On alternate weeks, I either work in the Original Impulse office with my clients and students or I am in my art studio making art. I’m only a few weeks into the experiment, but I’m already learning a lot about the practices that work and those that don’t.
I notice that I need to blend more. There’s too stark a contrast between my coaching weeks (lots of interaction with others) and my art weeks (lots of interaction with my art in the studio). I’m finding my way, slowly but with dedication.
This is how my clients and I figure out what works best for us. We commit to a practice and then test it. We observe, we make micro changes. We notice the impact on ourselves and others. Slowly, we build awareness and actions that serve our happiness, vitality and productivity.
There’s one steady practice that’s a vital piece in my process no matter what I am experimenting with.
a 20-year practice powers everything
One of the practices that powers every week is my writing practice. Every morning after meditation, I sit with my coffee to write. I write about my dreams. I jot ideas, lists, fears. I clear my mind and by the time I’m finished with my coffee, I am ready to move into my work day, centered and clear.
I write everything with this free-writing method: the memoir I drafted in November, all my Original Impulse writing, my articles and personal rants.
I began free-writing in February, 1994, and loved it immediately. Since 1996, I’ve taught thousands of people how to free up their writing. If there’s one thing that makes the most positive difference not only for writers but for all creative people, it’s this free-writing practice.
What’s the big deal? I call free-writing a power practice. I notice over and over that a steady commitment to free-writing brings more clarity, more enjoyment and more confidence. People in my Free-Write Fling class report that they know themselves better. That it becomes easier to express their authentic voice. Instead of being something to dread, writing actually feels good.
Wow! That much power just from sitting down to write for 15 minutes a day? Hard to believe, but easy to experience.
In all my work helping creative people focus, follow through and finish projects that matter, it’s not goal setting that brings their success. It’s practices. Practicing their craft. Living daily practices that bring both short and long-term satisfaction.
I want everyone to have access to this power tool. One of the ways to bring a new practice on board is by, well, practicing. And writing together is one of the most effective ways to get a new habit going. That’s why I teach the Free-Write Fling, an online writing workshop where we write together daily for one month.
We begin February 1st and end on February 28th. By then, you’ll have a stack of writing to smile about. But better yet, you’ll have a writing practice that up levels your whole life. Join us to put your power practice into place.
Snag your spot in the Free-Write Fling here.
Leave a Reply