Clutter is a merciless killer.
More often than not, writers, like other creatives, tend to be disorganized. We’re surrounded by too much clutter.
Are you writing or do you want to? Do a 360 and take a look around. See what I mean?
“Three Rules of Work: Out of clutter find simplicity; From discord find harmony; In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.” – Albert Einstein
Our mistake is that we accept it: “It’s my inner artist that makes me this way.”
It really is a form of the “RESISTANCE” that Steven Pressfield has dealt with. It’s self-sabotage. Good writing is resisted. But if we’re authentic, we’ll acknowledge that most of our resistance is self-activated.
Mess is a stress-inducer. And stress is a creativity killer.
This issue is so common with writers, a number of good voices have dealt with it. Here’s helpful perspective from Jeff Goins.
- Bringing your message or story to others does not begin on the page or on the platform. It begins at home! The room. The study. The desk. The kitchen. The computer. Be ruthless with horizontal surfaces! Goins says the “relationship between clutter and creativity is inverse, the more you have of the former, the less you have of the latter.”
- We even need to work on de-cluttering our writing! Work within boundaries. Do more with less. Establish deadlines and stick with them. In writing, say more with less words. Attention is at a premium. Those with “the fewest, most important words win.”
- Actionable ideas from Jeff Goins:
Limit your distractions. Turn off email, phone, and social media tools. Force yourself to focus on one thing at a time.
Regain control of your inbox. Clean up your email, getting it down to a manageable amount (zero, if you can).
Clean up your desk. Throw away stuff you haven’t used in months.
Throw away magazines and newspapers you have no intention of reading.
Find a relatively clean space to create. This is different for everyone, but it needs to not stress you out.
Start creating clutter-free messages.
Ignite your momentum. Find any horizontal surface. Hit it hard for 10 or 15 minutes. Clear it, keep it clear, and then move out from that space into your personal environment.
Resolve that the “ground” you take you will not give up.
Kill your mess. Before it kills your art. We can do this!
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See How to Tackle Your Clutter
photo credit: Douten (Creative Commons)