“It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up.”   Babe Ruth

“There is no mistake so great as not going on.”   William Blake

Wow! William Blake and Babe Ruth, the Great Bambino, not only quoted on the same page, but they are are on the same page when it comes to quitting: Don’t do it!

“Don’t quit, can’t fail” – this is a mantra well worth memorizing. Right now, you may be facing something tough on the creative front or perhaps in your personal life, which is affecting your creative work. Right now, you may feel like folding your tent, throwing in the towel, having a pity party, giving up. Don’t do it! Hang on ‘til you catch on.

Here’s a simple antidote to that “I quit” feeling: “Fight through it!”

Fighting through that urge to quit isn’t as hard as it sounds. It just takes intention and a bit of grit. Instead of quitting, take one more step: Do something, anything, to make a little progress. Doing this will signal to yourself that you’re pushing forward. A few small steps on the way:

You can take one word on a page and find all the synonyms for it and pick one of them that’s more colorful – a better choice.

You can reorganize the sentences in a paragraph so that it flows more smoothly. Right away, you’ve made an improvement, and hope may return to uplift you.

You can reread a paragraph or even a story you’ve written that you really like and take a little time to think through why it works. Then see if you can take the same approach with a piece of writing that’s not working.

You can pick three random words from the dictionary, then take 15 minutes and weave them into a story. This may get your juices flowing.

Fighting through it isn’t all that hard: It’s a choice. Let’s make it and write on!