Writing a acim like a daunting project – worthy of procrastination. We all know that procrastination is the act of putting off something until a later time. Like writing this article. I started last night – and wished I’d finished then – but I didn’t. So here I am bogged down with it. As William James said,
“Nothing is so fatiguing as the eternal hanging on of an uncompleted task.”
Procrastination is considered a coping mechanism for dealing with the anxiety or fear. If anxiety or fear didn’t exist, we wouldn’t put things off. We would go for it! So procrastination is self-sabotaging-keeping us from realizing our dreams.
In regard to writing your book, you may have put it off for any number of reasons. Perhaps it’s fear of failure – or success. Or you think you’re not a good enough writer; you don’t know enough to write anything; you’ll never get your book published; no one will like your book or what you have to say; you don’t have time to write, you just plain HATE TO WRITE.
Nonetheless, you really want to write that book. You have an expertise you want to share that helps others; you know a book will help boost your career. You just finished a book that you could have written better. You’ve got a story that’s been bouncing around in your head for years. Still – you haven’t started writing your book. Why? Maybe your anxieties are overwhelming your desire-and you need to change that.
Visualize your dream as a published author. You are the expert. See yourself holding your book, talking to others about it. Perhaps you’re at a book signing or giving a talk about it, or being interviewed by the media. The result? Your status is bolstered and you enjoy success because of the book.
How badly do you want to attain this dream of publishing book? Write a number 1 to 10 (highest). If it’s 7 or above, what’s stopping your from pursuing your dream? Ask yourself: What’s the worse thing that could happen? Even if your book was a failure, you would learn from the process and move on. The literature is replete with the failed stories of successful authors. Remember, the worst regrets are on the chances you never took!