Welcome to Writer Wednesday. On a Friday.
Let's just call it Belated Writer Wednesday. Shall we?
Raise your hand, please, if you struggle with finding a good writing routine. Let's chat a bit about that.
Habits can be the bane of our existence—or our salvation.
What’s the difference between habit and routine? And, when does a routine turn into a (good or bad) habit?
· habit—doing something with little or no thought.
· routine—a series of repetitive behaviors that may eventually become a habit.
According to the experts, routines must be performed regularly, with intention and effort, to become habits—and that can take at least 21 days, perhaps as long as 90 days, to become automatic.
Simply put, a habit is a higher-level function than a routine.
Some people are extremely habit/routine oriented. Their days are structured, predictable, and they thrive in that type of environment. The fewer decisions they must make about when to do a task, the better. For them, established habits save mental energy, reduce procrastination, and increase productivity.
If that’s you, then by all means, live and work by your habits and routines.
Others are fly-by-the-seat-of-their-pants, free-spirited, live-and-let-live, spur-of-the-moment, YOLO peeps. Whatever happens in their day happens. Strict routines stifle their creativity and incite boredom. Flexibility and change and even frenetic energy keep the prose flowing. They thrive in this type of environment.
If that’s you, then write on like a rock star.
Other writers roll with both, succeeding within an environment of flexibility and routine, and the balance of structure and freedom. (This is me.) While there is evidence of the benefits of habits, research also suggests that individual differences and circumstances play a role in determining the effectiveness of habits and routine for any given person.
When it works for you, great. If you are producing content, writing every day, getting your job done (writing), and moving your career forward, while simultaneously humming “Que Sera, Sera,” have at it.
When it doesn’t work, focus on your routines, and perhaps create (or break) a few habits.
They don’t create (break) themselves.
You have to do it.
****
This piece is excerted from my book, Discover Your Write Path to Publishing Success, available at this bookstore.
Also please check out my video blog, All The Damn Things, where I talk about this a bit, too...
