One of my new year’s resolutions when 2014 began was to follow the “Don’t Break the Chain” productivity method to get more writing done. I’ve had this calendar pinned up next to my desk all year. There have been some missed days, naturally. Here and there I have evenings where I am uninspired, or simply too tired to get any writing done. But this past month has been an all-time high in terms of missed days. So far, I’ve failed to write a single word on 11 days out of July. Every week this month there has been at least one day missed. That’s a bit disappointing, if I’m being honest. But this post is not going to ramp you up to write every single day. Instead, this post is going to talk about forgiving yourself when you fail to write.
I enjoy the “Don’t Break the Chain” method and I’ve read many quotes from authors who encourage us to “write every day.” But sometimes that’s simply not possible. Sure, in the past, I’ve said that if you don’t have time to write then you’re just not making time. But for the past few weeks I’ve been working on moving, and let me tell you that it can easily eat up every second you have in your day.
You don’t even have to be moving or doing something else huge in your life. You might just have a long, exhausting day at work. When those days come around, I think we owe it to ourselves to sit down and watch some television when we get home.
And, of course, there are others days when the words simply won’t come. There may be nights when you end up sitting in front of your computer thinking about how much you aren’t getting done. That’s okay! Sometimes you can’t force the words to come. Sometimes you shouldn’t even try to force them because the writing that results from it will be so bad.
So, today’s advice is to forgive yourself when you find the need to take a little break. We all need to give our brains a rest, and sometimes you need to fill the creative tank when it has been depleted. Writing every day is all well and good, but if it’s not possible for you at times, don’t beat yourself up about it.
– Jet Fuel Blog Editor, Mary Egan
