DEB LUND
Jan. 11, 2014
It’s late. Late at night, and late for turning in this blog entry.
I’m at my desk. My eyes are closed, but I can still see the glow of the computer screen. The old-fashion white page is blank enough without this version blazing through my eyelids. My chin presses into my palm as my elbow pushes into the edge of my desk. I’m supposed to be writing. But instead I’m thinking about …
Curling up on the couch in front of the fire.
Digging for chocolate.
Getting a real job.
Sometimes we need a nudge. Another voice to hear us, to feed back what we say. In our home, that might mean my husband saying energy follows action to me. No, he’s not prone to that sort of thing. He’s just parroting back words he initially heard from me.
And from the caverns of the rest of our house he appears and peers at my screen at the dribble above. That’s so authentic. Great start, Deb. But instead, I’m thinking…
This is not a moment to be so positive.
Whoever said energy follows action was definitely being too positive.
The couch, the chocolate, and the real job still look pretty good.
Okay, Deb. Let’s try a new tactic. When has energy follows action worked for you? (Inner creativity coaches can sometimes be as annoying as inner critics.) I roll my eyes (at least they’re open now) and consider a trip to the refrigerator. But instead I’m thinking about…
Designing and building our house. (OK, with a contractor friend.)
Meeting with teachers and artists to create a school.
Partnering with others to help them follow their dreams.
Energy does follow action for me. It’s just so easy to get stuck on what I’m not doing instead of what gets done.
If you’re resisting, hesitating, anxious about stepping out without a net, listen to your inner creativity coach, too. Recall times when the energy for a project appeared because you took some action. If you’ve done it before, you can do it again. And when the energy and action don’t happen, you get to forgive yourself and start over.
Go ahead and roll your eyes, but leave out the trip to the refrigerator. Unless that’s where you hide the chocolate.
Deb Lund is an author, a teacher, and a creativity coach who doesn’t have it all together. It’s why she’s so effective helping others with their inner critics and inner creativity coaches. Don’t miss her upcoming “Fiction Magic” presentation! Find details here.
Hey, WLM friends. Don’t miss the upcoming Kickstarter project for FICTION MAGIC: CARD TRICKS & TIPS FOR WRITERS. The 54 card prompts and guidebook will help intensify the tension in your stories as they reduce the tension in you!
Thanks, Whidbey Island Writers Association for inviting me to present to your membership. What a great evening! Go forth and write.