Source: CANVA
Yesterday I admitted to the fact that I was not as ready...not as prepared as I should have been for the new week.
Today I want to mention something that can either make matters worse (at the lack of it) or in many cases, it can help solve the problem. The emphasis is on "help" solve the problem.
The reason why I say "help" solve the problem is that especially when it comes to the activity of writing, or creating content in general, we often think how creative we should be to come up with new content consistently.
And that is true indeed. To create content you need to be creative. But it's exactly here where we often walk into the trap. Personally, I feel it's actually more of an excuse than a trap.
We hide behind this idea that "we must wait for that creative inspiration to come" before we can start creating anything.
And while it is awesome when that inspiration does come, the problem is that by sitting around waiting for that inspiration, we are often going to wait for a very long time...and go very hungry if you rely on your content to generate income...lol.
I was reminded of this very fact when I listened to an interview with a local writer here in South Africa, Deon Meyer, who has made name for himself recently.
During this interview, he made the statement that I have heard many times before and there is so much truth to it.
When asked where he gets his inspiration from to do his writing, his reply was, "inspiration is needed indeed. But I believe in perspiration instead of inspiration. If I have to wait for the inspiration to come before I start writing every day, I'll never get any work done".
That brings me to the importance of creating habits.
Creating Habits
Creating habits is one of the most productive things you can do.
Source: CANVA
To make this more relevant to the workplace or to achieve any of your goals, it's actually more about developing routines.
But in order to create a routine, it has to become a habit first...
Well, that should be easy, isn't it? I mean, they say that we as humans are creatures of habit.
Well...yes, they might say that. But personally, I for sure don't like having the same routines every day...so, I don't know what that makes me...lol.
I'm getting better at it though, but it's still a challenge for me.
It might be due to the training I had as a member of the Reaction Unit in the South African Police Force many years ago. We were trained not to fall into any routine.
Don't always take the same route to and from work. Don't do the same thing every day at the same time at the same place. It makes you an easy target.
So guess what? I've raised my kids the same way. You'll never catch one of my daughters sitting with their back towards an open door or a window. They will never get caught in a space where they can get cornered.
After visiting us (they both are married now), they will tell us which route they will take to get home because it's not always the same route.
Is it safe? Yes, it is. Is that living in fear? No, by no means are we living in fear. It's about taking control of your environment, being alert about what's happening around you. That in itself becomes a habit and we are totally comfortable with it.
But it might have become a bit of an "excuse" for me too. I like the idea of every day being different. I love the idea of every day not being the same as the day before. It gives me a feeling of freedom.
But...and here's the big but, it can also take its toll when you need to come up with something new every day such as creating content.
You can't really develop a rhythm. Every day you have to consciously think to plan when you will sit down to create content. You have to consciously pay attention to every detail of what you want to do, by when you need to do it and how you will do it.
And this is where the advantage of developing routines comes in.
When you have a specific routine, it becomes a habit. And when it becomes a habit, it mentally becomes less challenging. You start doing certain activities instinctively.
Think about it this way. If you travel the same route on a regular basis, have you ever caught yourself arriving at your destination...thinking to yourself..."how the heck did I get here"?
Source: CANVA
It's not that you didn't pay attention to the rules of the road. You weren't reckless. You didn't miss a single turn-off. You signaled every time before making a lane change or taking a turn-off. You've stopped at every stop sign and traffic light. But you can't remember it.
How did you do that? It has become a habit and you were doing everything subconsciously. You did all the right things without consciously thinking about it. If an emergency occurred, your conscious mind would have taken over within a split second and you would have responded. But as long as everything was safe and normal, you were kind of on "auto-pilot"...
The same principle applies in the workplace.
If you create a routine for yourself, where you sit down at the same time (even at the same place) and that is your writing time, guess what will happen. Your brain starts getting programmed to go into "writing-mode" at that time of the day.
It becomes easier to become creative in that specific time slot. The same goes for any other activity.
Another advantage of creating routines is due to the fact that you are actually building habits, and you don't have to physically think about what you have to do next, you will end up with more energy as well. You literally save mental energy (and that has been scientifically proven).
Conclusion
So, how am I doing as an individual so far? Am I following specific routines every day?
Well, I won't say I'm there 100% yet...but I am improving.
I'm still taking a different route every time I go out (it can actually be fun when you catch other people off-guard as well...lol), and I think with many of these things it's hard "to teach an old dog new tricks"...?
But in general, especially as far as my work is concerned (and in particular when it comes to creating content), I think I am making good progress.
And as someone who never liked falling into routines, I can assure you that it does have benefits to create routines...especially in the workplace.
It saves energy and it saves time. And while perspiration is still needed, it definitely helps the inspiration to come too...
I hope you find this post helpful and thank you for reading my post.