This week, I am honored to share a guest post from Carolyn Bennett-Sullivan, an expert on the subject of fear and author of Get the “F” Out.
Since my first book has been published, I’ve had countless people tell me that they’d like to write a book or start blogging. I ask them, “What’s stopping you?” Invariably I hear, “I don’t have time.” “Who would want to read it?” or “I’ll get around to it someday.” Really?
To be completely honest, I used to tell myself the same thing until a coach gave me a kick in the pants and told me to stop making excuses and just do it. What was holding me back? Fear, of course. Because when you don’t do something you keep telling yourself you want to do, you’re experiencing fear on some level.
Maybe you feel it’d be too overwhelming to write your novel, or people won’t like it and you’ll be criticized or you just don’t have anything valuable to say. Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! If there’s a story within you then you owe it to yourself to put it down on paper. The act of writing whether it’s a book, blog or journaling is a creative expression that allows you to release thoughts within your mind and heart into a solid format. It’s freeing, really. When you have a story (and we all do) to tell whether it’s from personal experience or a plot with characters spending time writing provides a release and sense of accomplishment for what you’ve completed.
So, how do you go from staring at a blank page or screen to getting into the flow of writing? How do you stop making excuses and commit to getting it done? Here are 5 tips to free your fear of writing.
Honor your calling to write. When you have a story or idea within you that you feel compelled to share, it’s a sure sign that your inner wisdom is guiding you to take the next step. Let go of your excuses of why you can’t and follow your dream to do it. As Wayne Dyer says, don’t die with your music inside of you.
Let go of other people’s opinions of you. Write for the sheer pleasure of your own creative expression. Whatever you feel inspired to write give yourself permission to do it without concern of people’s reaction to it. Do it for yourself.
Schedule time to write. Whether its 15 minutes daily, weekly or more make an appointment with yourself to write. Find a spot in your home, coffee shop or outdoors that’s comfortable and commit to writing at your scheduled time. You’ll find that your ideas and words will begin to flow easily and naturally when you make the commitment to write at a specific time routinely.
Let go of making it perfect. When you’re writing just let it flow from you. Don’t worry about mistakes. You can take time when you’ve completed your chapter, article, or post to edit and check for errors and make corrections then. Constantly correcting while writing can block the flow of your expression because you’re changing your thought process to correct. Sometimes you end up losing your train of thought and it slows down your process.
Celebrate your success! When my book, Get the “F” Out! was first published friends and family congratulated me and told me how proud they were of me. Initially, I down played it. Yet, I was reminded that I followed my dream and did what many say they’re going to do yet never do. How often do you minimize your accomplishments? Making the commitment to write and following through with it is worthy of celebrating. It could mean doing something special for yourself or just taking a few minutes to acknowledge your achievement, it’s important to recognize that you’ve taken a step towards your goal. Coco Chanel was known for celebrating everything including her “failures” because she acknowledged that each completed step was a victory towards her goals. No matter how much time you spent writing, the mere fact that you did it is worthy of recognition.
Now get the “F” out and go write!
I hope you find these tips useful in your journey as an author. For more tools on how to free your fear, you can connect with Carolyn at:
Carolyn@carolynbsullivan.com
Get the “F” Out! Book and Workbook
Carolyn Bennett-Sullivan has studied psychology, human behavior and spirituality for more than 30 years through formal education and practical experience. Despite 25 successful years in sales experience, she chose her calling over the beaten path to become a Certified Passion Test facilitator to help guide others to discover their top passions and priorities as she has done. Carolyn holds that by un-caging the chatter, re-claiming control over our thoughts and re-connecting to our internal guidance system that we can gain the confidence and clarity to take back our life with purpose and passion. This is what she teaches through one on one sessions and writing.
