Ideas Are Like Rabbits

Ideas are like rabbits.  You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon, you have a dozen ~ John Steinbeck

Once I get some inspiration or get an idea for a scene or story arc, my writing is very productive.  It's when I run out of steam and am empty of ideas that my progress stalls.  And, I'm almost embarrassed to admit this, employed brainstorming with paper and pen to get my plot moving forward.

What helped me with my latest brainstorm was a vast array of different works of fiction that I'd recently read.  And to be a fiction reader has a been a big shift for me since I started on my journey.  Up until about four years ago, my main reading material was non-fiction:  self-help and business books.  Of course, I was into Harry Potter and read all those books and every once in a while I read the book that became a movie.

But when I started my novel, I started reading fiction.  I now read a wide variety of fiction that has helped shape my writing and armed me with a plethora of ideas for my own stories.  I read mysteries, thrillers, sci-fi, even chick-lit and YA titles.  I just finished reading The Hunger Games trilogy.  Not only was that some of the best reading I ever done, it taught me a lot about story structure and plot development. 

If you're a writer, you know exactly what I'm talking about.  If you're on another dream journey, you'll have to seek out the resources needed for you to generate the ideas you need to achieve your goal.  I remember selling Tupperware and attending every training session I could.  I gleaned at least one new idea to grow my business from each meeting.

What new ideas have your run across recently that gave some vigor to your dream journey?  I'd love to hear about them!

Vary the Routine Every Now and Then

Here's to varying the routine every now and then to keep life fresh, the spirit spontaneous, and the mind awake ~ Jill Badonsky

Routines are essential to achieving most of life's tasks, professional or personal.  The idea of creating person routines was introduced to me nearly fifteen years ago when I worked in cash services for a large commercial bank.  We always coached the employees to develop personal routines to help them achieve their accuracy when handling large amounts of currency (upwards of one million dollars per day!). 

I took this idea of developing a routine and applied to my job at the time and have employed it every position ever since.  As a corporate trainer, I had certain administrative duties that had to be completed after each class and usually only had Mondays to complete them.  As a call center supervisor and manager, I created routines to ensure all my tasks are completed in a timely manner.

Routines are important when you're working on a dream journey.  Since many of us on a dream journey are also juggling other responsibilities like a full time job and family responsibilities, routines help ensure our dream journeys continue amidst our everyday lives.  Routines also help our family, friends, and supporters understand how important the time is to you and understand that their time is coming soon, and in your plan.

At the same time, sometimes it's just fun to mix things up every now and then.  For example, instead of setting a goal to just sit down and write, I am breaking up my writing time into bits and pieces.  This morning, I went ahead and did my workout, sat down and completed half my writing goal on A Place to Call Their Own, took a break to play on Twitter, wrote out this blog, and then I will return to the novel to complete my writing for the day. 

For me, sometimes it is just easiest to get the writing done and out of the way.  Sometimes it's nice to break it up, either because I'm struggling with a section or because during the breaks I might be doing something else I don't like, such as chores around the house.

I hope your routines are helping you achieve your dreams and goals this year.  Vary them every once and a while and I'm sure you'll get a new spring in your steps towards your dream journey.

What are your thoughts?

You Learn Courage by Couraging

Courage is like-it's a habitus, a habit, a virtue; you get it by courageous acts.  It's like you learn to swim by swimming.  You learn courage by couraging ~ Mary Daly

You learn courage by couraging and you learn to follow your dreams by following your dreams.  I read recently that it takes 10,000 hours at a task to become an expert.  If one could be successfully in just forty hours per week, that's still 4.8 years of hard work!  If you don't have forty hours a week to commit to your dream journey, it takes longer to achieve that 10,000 hours.

Whatever dream journey you're on, get started on your 10,000 hours so that you become an expert in your field.  Even if you can only spend fifteen minutes a day, that is chipping away at achieving your goal.  It is, after all, March 1.  Can you believe we've already had sixty days of the new year?  I am happy to report, personally, that A Place to Call Their Own is moving along.  (Note to self:  keep a word count journal so I know where my word count is each month so I can track my progress.)  I also simplified my routines so that I could find balance between the writing, reading, and being "social" it takes for new authors to be successful.

I hope your dream journey is going as well for you as it for me this year.  I hope everyone is having a good week and here's to a fantastic March!

Early Out and Leap Day...Bingo!

I got to leave two hours early from work today...and tomorrow is an extra day of the year that we only get once every four years.  For a person who struggles with balance between a professional job, pursuing a dream journey, and not exhausting myself in the process, this is a bonus for me this week. 

I had never thought about February 29th being a bonus day until it was mentioned on Facebook earlier this week.  One of the people I followed had a status update that it was a slow day in the store, and another follower suggested he blog about the extra day that we get on Wednesday.

For most of the world, February 29 with just be another day in the history books.  Oh, there are many people trying to mark this day as a special day, planning weddings and other special events and those are among some taking full advantage of this special day that only comes around once a year.

So make the most it, if at all possible.  Even if you did just one extra task to help you meet your goal, that's making something of the extra day.  If the have the opportunity to go all out and really make a dent in your dream journey, I won't hold you back either.  This is one of those times when going outside of any boundaries you might have set might be a good idea.

Do you have anything special planned for Leap Day?  I'd love to hear about it!

You Can't Wait for Inspiration

You can't wait for inspiration, you have go after it with a club ~ Jack London

No matter what project you're working on, you have to attack it head on and with vigor. If you're working on a business project, there are usually procedures, however loose, that prescribe how one completes a task. But it's different for entrepreneurs, especially us creative types.

I've written about this before. In some of my most uncreative stretches, I've found that just jumping in and started writing has helped the muse return and inspire my writing. This week, I even did some old-fashioned brainstorming to get beyond a stumbling block and get my novel moving again. Can you believe it, brainstorming with pen and paper still works?

So whatever dream journey you're working on, don't wait for success or inspiration to come to you, go out and attack it with a club, like Jack London says.

It's OK to Say No

It comes from saying 'no' to 1000 things to make sure we don't get on the wrong track or try to do too much ~ Steve Jobs

I hope your dream journey is going well.  I have been off the work-job all week, so I've made some real strides on my novel, A Place to Call Their Own.  For those of you who might me new to my blog, I have set a goal to be finished writing the first draft by August 30, so I can start editing and start looking at publishing options before the end of the year.  Things are moving along very well, I hit 50,000 words this week, which feels great to be this far so close to the first milestone, completing the first draft.

Along the way, I've had to say no to some different opportunities that have come up along the way.  Most of what I say no to is myself.  I have to keep telling myself, focus on my writing, on my novel and nothing else.  Earning a living from writing is my goal and I have to stay focused.

Sometimes I have to say no to other writing projects.  In addition to A Place to Call Their Own, I have notes and ideas for eight other novels and two non-fiction books.  Sometimes, I just have to have get my inspiration typed out, just to get it out of my head.  I take a brief, one or two day break, type up my notes and the scenes that I'm inspired to write and then put them aside.  Sometime these breaks help me brainstorm some more story lines for the primary work in progress.

Sometimes you only have to say no temporarily or you can postpone the opportunity that is calling.  If you can spend some time on your dream journey now to be rewarded with more time later, readjust your priorities to help say 'yes' sometime in the future.

Whatever your dream journey, you will have to make sacrifices to reach your goal.  Some of those sacrifices will be permanent and some may be temporary.  Stick to your priorities and you'll reach your dream goal.

What are some things you've been happy to give up to reach your dream goal?  I'd love to hear from you!

Keep It Simple Stupid!

KISS it!!

My chore for the day was to go get the tags on the car renewed today. What should have been a quick trip to the DMV to get this done turned into a two hour ordeal and I still don't have that chore completed.

Keep it simple, stupid is an acronym I've heard most of my professional career. In my frustration with the Missouri DMV, it occurred to me that the whole process could be much simpler. And that's what I needed earlier today.

It also occurred to me to take my own advice for the DVM and make sure my dream journey of getting published simple. As a modern day novelist, all I need to do is write every day, read every day, and be social every day. That's it until A Place to Call Their Own is done and ready for publication.

Any dream journey should be whittled down to three to five different steps. What is your dream journey and how can you KISS it today?