Are you in a committed relationship with your writing, or are you in more of a “when I have time” kind of schedule with it? I’m willing to bet that if you are in the latter, you probably are not happy with how much you write, and it probably even causes you some amount of stress to think about how much you are not writing. You have to ask yourself: do I really want to write, or is it just something I’d like to do sometime, when I can get around to it? Once you decide what you want from your relationship with writing, then you should know how to proceed from there.
How to Be Consistent
You and I are busy people. So is everyone else these days. The difference between us and them, however, is that we have an internal desire to be creative. If that desire is not met consistently, we tend to reflect negatively upon ourselves, or take it out on the ones we love. No matter how busy your schedule may be, you should be able to fit at least a little bit of writing into your life consistently.
Does consistency mean that you will write an entire book in a month? No. Your writing needs to work for your schedule. So, if all you get time to write is once a week on a Saturday for an hour, then make that hour sacred! If you can commit to write more than that, then great! But just make sure that you do it in a way that serves you and your busy lifestyle.
Don’t over-do it. If you communicate with your family that you would like to dedicate an hour every day to writing, after all the chores are done and the kids are put to bed, and they agree, then that’s great. If your life itself is less consistent than that and all you can really do is two times a week, then make those times sacred. Keep the same schedule for as long as that schedule serves your needs.
Keep an eye on your goals, work toward them at a pace that you can afford to keep, and you will eventually get there. It isn’t a race, it’s a marathon, and if you don’t keep a steady pace, you’re bound to lose focus on the task at hand. Be happy just being committed and knowing that each time you are consistent, you have momentum. With enough momentum, you can conquer anything!
