Why is It So Hard to Keep Writing?
Dear Real Academics,
I've often hear and have written about how difficult it is to START writing and ways to overcome that difficulty.
Here, I want to explore why it may be difficult to KEEP writing and solutions to overcoming that specific difficulty.
(1) You know what to do, but you don't want to do it.
Years ago, my mother's good friend (Dr. Barbara Warren) self-published a book titled, Do What You Don't Want To Do: Achieving Excellence as a Procrastinator. Mind you, this book was written by a MULTIPLE time IronMan winner, ultra-marathon runner, and woman who had overcome an incredible amount of obstacles in life through her discipline and commitment to her calling. In fact, she and her twin sister, Angelika, were featured on the documentary, Running on the Sun: The Badwater 135, a documentary about a yearly 135 mile race across Death Valley, California in JULY (Angelica is on the cover). You can watch it for free on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dl3laLhbCsw
All to say, I don't think I can name a single person who had more discipline and resolve than Dr. Barbara Warren. Yet, she wrote this book, which tells me that even the most disciplined need to be reminded to get up every morning and keep going.
(2) You know what you should do, but you are simply not able to do so as fast as you'd like.
Here, I am thinking of a more recent conversation I had with a friend. This friend knew exactly what she had to do to get her writing done, but she just couldn't do it. When I probed a little, I learned of an incredible amount of difficulties that had come her way in a short amount of time. I'm talking BIG things - one after the other and not necessarily related.
We all have life challenges. But sometimes, they just seem to come in a wave. If and when that happens, we absolutely must step back and acknowledge them.
What I admire about this friend, however, is her faith that these things are meant to make her stronger.
She is not blaming these things and being trapped by them as a victim.
Rather, she is acknowledging they have set her back a little, but not forever.
She is resolved to move forward, despite all the life challenges. In our discussion, we concluded that things may move much more slowly. When life is this challenging, our progress may not be as FAST as we want, but we can keep inching forward.
(3) You know what you want to do, but you are paralyzed by fear.
Perhaps you have a dream or a vision of something "big" you want to do. But, the very thought of doing it seems far off or impossible. Or perhaps, the thought of doing it would mean sacrificing some major comfort or convenience. So, then, why do it? Here, all I can say, is that you have to decide.
Often, when the stakes are high, we find a way to push through and overcome that fear.
For example:
If you don't write that dissertation and pass your defense, you won't graduate.
Or, if you don't publish enough and get good external reviews, you won't get tenure.
I am not a fan of negative motivation, but I do think that it is helpful to think of what would happen if you don't at least try to achieve something big, even at the risk of failure.
Why?
Time will pass by regardless.
I don't know about you, Real Academic, but as a learner, I NEED to keep being challenged and growing through those challenges (Mind you, the intensity of the challenge can vary).
If I stop, I slowly die inside. Bigger than my fear of failure is my fear to be stuck somewhere where I am not growing -- where I am too comfortable OR where I am so politicized, controlled, restricted, threatened, or micromanaged that I cannot grow.
What can you do to give momentum to your dream? I hope that the fear of staying stagnant and not growing is greater than the fear of failure.
Application
What about you, Real Academic? What makes it difficult for you to KEEP writing and what do you do to help? Please share with us at inforealacademics@gmail.com. We always love to hear from you!
Until next time, happy writing, productivity, and truth-seeking,
Maggie
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