Habits

Habits

Today I am reminded of Stephen Covey’s national bestseller “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.”  Here is my take on it for writers.

1. Be Proactive
2. Begin with the End in Mind
3. Put First Things First
4. Think Win/Win
5. Seed First to Understand...Then to be Understood
6. Synergize
7.  Sharpen the Saw

And the 8th Habit is about seeing, shifting and harnessing a new dimension.

• Find Your voice and Inspire Others to Find Theirs

It is about moving from being an effective writer to a great writer.

For those of us who write because we simply cannot not write, writing is an expression of our deeper selves, that which we care deeply about, our wisdom and our journey through life.

All writers have a trajectory.  When I’ve found authors that I love, I almost always go back in time and read all they’ve written in order.  It helps me to see that they grew into greatness over time.  It also reminds me to be patient with myself as I evolve, not only in my writing but in my overall life.

Being Proactive puts me in a position of choice about my writing.  I often use a seven column planning sheet to carve out an idea.  It allows me to be proactive in planning and detailing the important components of a story or article.  I take responsibility for my moods which affect whether I write or don’t.  I don’t blame others or circumstances.  Usually I fall off my schedule of writing because my life gets too hectic.  At those times I seek to create order in my life, prioritize the important and urgent things to get them off my plate and understand that I can’t always accomplish as much as I would like to because I live in a physical world, unlike the mental world of my mind.

Beginning with the End in Mind keeps me focused on the bigger accomplishments I want to manifest before I reach the end of my life.  Since the end could come tomorrow I stay fairly conscious of what is most important to me from day to day.  As a writer, I have larger, overarching goals having to do with establishing myself as an author and leader.  But I also have more immediate objectives when writing.  What do I want to write about?  How long is my message or story?  What are the major conflicts or tenets of the piece?  What genre am I writing?  Do I have a starting conflict and a conclusion in mind?  This habit is always going on in the background and only takes shape when I take action but it is the first step toward action.

Putting First Things First allows me to stay on track day by day.  When my son was younger I prioritized parenting first above all else.  As a single parent this didn’t mean I didn’t prioritize work or other tasks because they contributed to the number one priority.  As a writer, I focus on the discipline of writing every week but I do the research required, set up a schedule for myself and attend to the other details that support my goal.  I remain conscious of the things that are unrelated to writing or take me away from my discipline of writing.  If I find myself drawn to another area of life I take the time to explore why it is important and usually find out I have neglected some aspect of myself.  In those cases I readjust to bring more balance into my life but I maintain as much of my schedule for writing as possible.  I don’t renege on my weekly commitment to go to my critique circle or meet with my writing partner.

Thinking Win-Win is a general philosophy that infuses my life.  It involves both heart and mind seeking mutual benefit and mutual respect.  It is the ‘we’ more than the ‘me’.  As a writer this win-win attitude has been incredibly fulfilling.  When I think of my audience and write for them I tap deeper parts of my creativity.  I write to them as intelligent people on their own journey and strive to stretch my own expression in words that convey thoughtful, meaningful ideas.  I recognize the reader’s need to be drawn into the story, put the pieces of conflict together for themselves and figure out where the story is going before I reveal too much.  I make the writing emotionally rewarding for the reader so that they find fulfillment and satisfaction.

Seeking First to Understand, Then to Be Understood puts me in direct relationship with each of my characters.  When I listen to who they are I create more realistic characters.  Using critique circles also helps me to understand what about my writing isn’t working for my readers so that I can adjust the words to blend the message and the meaning. Seeking to understand takes courage.  In a critique circle we must not be so thin-skinned as to defend our position.  It requires openness to criticism and consideration of another’s experience in order to effectively blend and balance the two sides of the equation - the message and my meaning.

Synergizing often leads to a unique and new twist in my stories.  When I am able to bring in the feedback from my critique circles and find ways to infuse the meaning I am trying to convey a unique alchemy often occurs.  I end up with an even better outcome and often a surprising direction for my own story, one that I could have never achieved without the blending of the feedback and my own creative direction.  It is a way that often turns out better than either my original thought or the feedback I receive because it is a higher synthesis of the ideas that emerges as a result of respecting, valuing and even celebrating the differences.

Sharpening the Saw is the way I am constantly renewing my creative self.  In Effective Living is involves four basic areas of life: physical, social/emotional, mental and spiritual.  As a writer these four aspects of living renew my creative ability to write.  Especially important to remember is that adding something to these aspects does not always have a positive effect.  Sometimes removing something from these areas has a more effective outcome.  When I take something out of my life, whether it is the business of my schedule, the clutter in my home or office, the routine of my spiritual practice or the drama of my life, I find a peaceful rest that underlies all business.  A rest that renews and refreshes my soul and me creative expression.

These are the basic building blocks of effectiveness for writers.  Moving from Effectiveness to Greatness, The 8th Habit, is a paradigm shift.  It catapults us into a new landscape where we find true fulfillment, relevance and contribution.  It leads us to our authentic self, a self-actualized self, as described by Abraham Maslow in his hierarchy of motivational needs.  And in doing so, we find our authentic voice.  As readers voice becomes recognizable when we follow an established writer.  For ourselves as writers, finding our voice launches us into a greater expansion of influence.  Our readership can find us and our fans will continue to follow us.  It is as much an internal choice to be true to ourselves as it is to default to the influences around us, the cultural norms, the family expectations, or the religious dogmas that formed our life foundations.  Once we are truly effectively independent and interdependent we become leaders.  We break with old ways of thinking and become pathfinders, scouts and change agents.  And our writing is the avenue with which we do it.