Ah, November.  The time when we celebrate what’s arguably the best monthly tradition on the calendar?  It’s hard to believe that as it closes, we once again wrap up another National Novel Writing Month.  (What?  You thought I was going to talk about Thanksgiving?)

For the second year in a row I managed to complete a 50,000 word book.  And yes, I did that in a month.  This is both impossibly harder, and wonderfully easier than it sounds.  Make no doubt about it, 50,000 words is a lot.  But at the same time, writing 1,667 words per day is actually pretty manageable if you’re willing to put in the work.  Which, of course, is like most things.

As I close up NaNoWriMo for the year, I realize that I’ve never really had writer’s block.  At least not since I became a blogger.  And as I thought about it, I think there are reasons for this lack of writer’s block.

1.  Practice Effect.  When you need to come up with content day in, or in the case of Meaning to Work, week-in, you have to keep at it whether you feel like it, or whether you are inspired.  So you write, write, and write some more.  Which means you end up practicing the things that make your writing better (i.e., writing.)  This practice effect is probably the single biggest reason I’ve been able to avoid writer’s block. 

2.  Jump to What Inspires.  If there’s one lesson that NaNoWriMo and Meaning to Work have taught me it’s that you should follow what inspires you.  The same goes for your writing.  When you begin to feel the first signs of true writer’s block, shift gears.  Write a different segment of your story.  Start a new chapter.  Go back to an old section.  Whatever you do, don’t just sit there staring at the same text.

3.  Have Goals.  Goals provide the structure for your inspiration.  If you just jump to what inspires, then all you do is have a bunch of spastic activity, and not progress.  Goals help you structure what inspires you into something meaningful.  Goals get you to where you need to be.

4.  Sticking With It.  It’s easy to do the first three steps, and then not follow through.  I used to do this in college.  I’d work my tail off for the first 90% of the semester, then come finals time I would be too tired to finish strong.  And I’d slack off.  As a result I never turned in my best work.  The older I get the more I understand pacing (and therefore avoiding procrastination).  But I also understand the need to finish strong.

While I use these techniques to write.  The truth is they also apply to other work.  You can use these four ideas to become a better chemist, a better project manager, or even as a way to brainstorm new ideas for your business.

So where can you apply these ideas in your life?

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