Are you a consistent writer? How do you define consistency?
You’ll hear a lot of advice on writing habits, often enunciated as things you “must” do. You must write every day. You must have a schedule. I don’t find that very helpful, and in fact, those kinds of dictates can be discouraging for anyone who enjoys writing but hasn’t the time.
Habits are helpful. Our brains respond to routine, and can be trained to respond to external signals – time of day, a specific chair. Some writers say that aroma – incense or tea, for example – triggers their creative shift.
But sometimes writers use habits less as a tool and more like a bludgeon. They become so committed to the habit, that they lose sight of other necessities. They become rigid, sometimes a little angry looking. Worse, missing a writing session or failing to hit a project goal can completely derail a creative person, and rather than jumping back into our habit the next day, we beat ourselves up for breaking it. For me, this defeats the purpose of embracing your creativity. If it ain’t fun, why are you doing it?
I consider myself a regular writer. My goal is to write 500 words every day, including weekends. At the beginning of the week, I aim for that 3,500-word weekly goal, and if I reach it early, I can take my foot off the gas.
However, reality doesn’t always line up to plan. Sometimes, I will write for 45 – 50 days in a row, and well exceed my 500-word goal. Some weeks I struggle to have even two writing sessions and barely squeak out a few hundred words. And sometimes, there are zeroes across the board. It happens.
But it doesn’t phase me. I view the good weeks as a word bank, and even when I need to skip a few days or even a few weeks, I can stay in line with my annual word count and project goals. If I fall a little bit behind, one or two good weeks is usually enough to get me back on track. And if I totally tank, I start a new spreadsheet and pretend the old one doesn’t exist. A fresh slate is a thing of beauty.
In one of his recent email newsletters, James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, offered another angle on consistency, which I like enough to share.
Want to be more consistent in your habits? Stop focusing on being disciplined and unwavering, and instead focus on being adaptable.
“Don’t have much time? Scale it down. Don’t have much energy? Do the easy version. Find different ways to show up depending on the circumstances. Let your habits change shape to meet the demands of the day.”
In other words, be the water, not the rock.