Smart Start

“It is our attitude at the beginning of a difficult task, which, more than anything else, affects its successful outcome.”   William James

 “Take every chance. Drop every fear.”   Note to myself, from somewhere

 A smart start – what a wonderful gift to ourselves! Whether we want to launch a major new writing project or simply need to embark on a fresh day’s work with vigor and joie de vivre, a bright beginning can be so energizing.

And yet. And yet. So often fear — feelings of self-doubt or worry or concern about what others will think – beclouds our beginnings. How can we keep these nagging, unwelcome mental visitors from sabotaging our starts?

In his book, I Can’t Accept Not Trying, legendary sports-star Michael Jordan offers some practical advice on how to banish fear :

“I never looked at the consequences of missing a big shot. Why? Because when you think about the consequences, you always think of a negative result.

“If I’m going to jump into a pool of water, eventhough I can’t swim, I’m thinking about being able to swim at least enough to survive. I’m not jumping in thinking to myself, ‘I think I can swim, but maybe I’ll drown.’ If I’m jumping into any situation, I’m thinking I’m going to be successful. I’m not thinking about what happens if I fail.

“But I can see how some people get frozen by fear of failure. They get it from peers or from just thinking about the possibility of a negative result. They might be afraid of looking bad or being embarrassed. That’s not good enough for me.

“I realized that if I was gong to achieve anything in life, I had to be aggressive. I had to get out there and go for it. I don’t believe you can achieve anything by being passive. I know fear is an obstacle for some people, but it’s an illusion to me.”

“Fear is an illusion” – it isn’t real. Negative results that spring up when we dwell on consequences aren’t real either – they are just possible outcomes our brains manufacture out of air, so why let them rent any space in our heads?

What a simple, yet powerful technique: Don’t think about the consequences of what you’re doing – just get started and do it, confident that you’ll succeed and get it done.

I love this and I’m going to apply it: No consequences, no inventing negative results.Only success scenarios, only action!

How about you? Can applying this approach give your latest writing project and your writing sessions a lift? If it works for you, I’d love to hear about it as we all write on!

 

About karinwritesdangerously

I am a writer and this is a motivational blog designed to help both writers and aspiring writers to push to the next level. Key themes are peak performance, passion, overcoming writing roadblocks, juicing up your creativity, and the joys of writing.
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