It was Saturday afternoon. I had taken care of everything on my to-do list. It was too hot and humid to go outside, and I had just brewed a fresh cup of my favorite tea. I was wearing cozy sweatpants and a hoodie, and I had seated myself at my desk, prepared to write. There was absolutely nothing in my way.
Then I thought, “Oh! I haven’t journaled yet today! I should probably take care of that before I dive into my project.”
And I thought, “Ooooh! I forgot, I have all of those courses I purchased that I could dive into!”
And then I realized what I was doing — placing fresh roadblocks between myself and my creative writing.
I had worked hard all week to get everything else done — client proposals, Podcast Now course launch preparation, administrative and financial stuff for my business, Write Now podcast interviews and episode recording, and helping my partner Tim prepare for the launch of his new audio drama, Omen. And now that I had room to work on my own creative project, I was desperately casting about for more busy work to put in the way.
I was procrastinating.
Even though the proposals and course prep and financial filings are all important for my business, and even though journaling and course-taking helps me grow and improve and become a better creator… at some point, I actually need to do some creative writing.
A lot of us talk about how much we love creating and how much we are in love with our current WIPs (works in progress), but… when we get the chance, how often do we avoid them? And justify it because we haven’t prioritized our creative work?
We may love creating, but as the insightful David duChemin puts it, creating something new is “hard soul work”. We put our entire hearts and minds and spirits into our creative work, and it’s hard. And it’s scary. And it’s so much easier and safer to journal for a while, or to file those quarterly taxes, or to take a guided class where everything is neatly laid out for you.
So I have to remember what’s important. I have to remember that one day, on my deathbed (not to be overly dramatic), I’m not going to regret not having sent out more proposals, or not having reached inbox 0 during those couple of weeks in 2021.
I’m going to regret not having produced all the creative work that I was capable of.
So I took a deep breath and opened up the script for the current episode of Girl In Space. It was tough, but it was so incredibly worth it.
And this week, I’d like to encourage you to realize when you’re procrastinating, and to remember why you’re so excited to jump in and create that “hard soul work” in the first place.
Words & warmth,
Sarah
P.S. The Podcast Now course for new and veteran podcasters launches tomorrow, June 1! If you’re interested in starting or improving your podcast, and you haven’t signed up for the waitlist, you can learn more about the program (and podcasting success in general!) when you sign up for this free webinar. 🙂