Kate Moss: Writer

Image courtesy of twon at flickr

Good evening, writers.

I just started a new job and today I had training. Lots and lots and lots of training. Software training, protocol training, legal training, and more. It has been a frustrating, draining, hectic day. So when I arrived home, all I wanted to do with the next five hours before bed was zone out to some Law & Order and eat junk for dinner. 

But that wouldn’t make me a writer; it would make me an accountant (ahem, the new job).

Don’t get me wrong, I’m going to enjoy my job. And being an accountant 8-14 hours a day (depending on the time of year) is just fine with me.

But that’s not all that I am. And every day of my life should reflect that.

“Men acquire a particular quality by constantly acting a particular way… you become just by performing just actions, temperate by performing temperate actions, brave by performing brave actions.” – Aristotle

So instead of sitting on the couch, I sat down and wrote down a few of the things I am. Newbie accountant. Passionate writer. Healthy, gorgeous woman. Loyal friend. Growing Christian. 

Then I wrote down different ways a person who was all of those things would spend five hours. 

This is what I came up with: 

• Accountant: This one I skipped because I’d clearly fulfilled that activity for the day with my 8 hours of training. 
• Writer: Write a blog post. Work on my WIP. Read some motivating writing blogs. Read a book; I’m currently in the middle of Harry Potter 3.
• Healthy, gorgeous woman: Cook a healthy dinner. Go rollerblading. Do some yoga. Clean my bathroom and kitchen; yes, cleaning burns calories. 
• Loyal friend: Write a letter to my friend who is getting married in a week. Call and check on my friend who is having health issues. 
• Growing Christian: Read my Bible; I’m currently reading my way through in chronological order. Spend some time in prayer. Take a minute to be grateful for the opportunities I have had today to live such a blessed life. 

These are NOT the things on my ‘to do’ list. They’re not obligations or things I have to accomplish before I can ‘relax.’ They are things I can do to make my insides match my outsides. By becoming more conscious of how what I do affects who I am, I give myself the opportunity to become less of a hypocrite and more like the person I aspire to be. These are the things I should enjoy doing with my time because they’re things the person I want to be would enjoy. 

So what does all of this have to do with writing? Everything. 

To be a writer, you have to write. Not just sometimes or every once in a while, but most of the time. Would I call myself an accountant if I just occasionally picked up a book on accounting or did one page of someone’s tax return? No. 

I’m not going to tell you that you have to write an hour a day or five days a week. Those are arbitrary goals, which are hard to motivate yourself to achieve. I want to give you goals that mean something to you.

Instead of time or page limits, I’d challenge you to go through the process I demonstrated above: 

1. Write down the 3-6 main things you want to truly BE. (Published writer, olympic gymnast, President of the United States, etc.)
2. Consider how you’re planning to spend your day. For each relatively large block of time, ask yourself how the activity you’re doing during that time relates to who you ARE because of that activity. Working as a mechanic? You’re a mechanic. Making your kids breakfast? You’re a parent. 
3. Are at last 2, but preferably 3 or 4 of the top things you identified in #1 on your list for today? If not, why? What is taking up your time but not contributing to your goals for yourself? Could those activities be streamlined, delegated, or eliminated all together? (My big ones are TV, TV, and TV…)
4. Now pretend you have no obligations except for work (if you’re employed) and rewrite your schedule for the day. Be conscious of adding activities specifically geared to correspond to your #1 goals. How is this different?
5. Now re-plan your day and use this information to make yourself the person you want to be. Or, in our case, the writer!