I can’t be the only person around feeling unfulfilled with life? I’ve written about this previously, yet the feeling remains. Hopefully this won’t be seen as another whiny ‘woe is me’ post – as always, I aim to write these posts with honesty and openness, and this is something which has been bothering me for a while now.

To be perfectly clear, this isn’t disappointment with life in general. I’m perfectly happy with much of my life (marriage, family life, family, friends, day job etc). This relates solely to what I want to achieve in life; to how I cross off those big-ticket items on my to-do list; to how productive I am; largely relating to writing.

It pains me to say it, but many of the old excuses remain. I frequently appear to be busy (sometimes doing little of actual importance, but busy all the same…); I find it difficult prioritising my huge to-do list (5 pages of A4 and counting…); and the more significant tasks seem difficult to start, so procrastinating creeps in, rather than cracking on with the meaningful stuff. All incredibly weak excuses, yet I continue to wheel them out.

But, recently, I had a lightbulb moment. I have no idea why it took so long to materialise, but it came. And it’s simple. Painfully simple, in fact. Quite frankly, something must change. Something must fundamentally change, on a day-to-day basis, to actually mean something. The lightbulb moment was this quote popping randomly into my head – it summarises my situation perfectly:

That quote swirled around in my head for days. It’s been the same old issue, for the past couple of years or so. I snatch at writing. I don’t devote anywhere near enough time to writing. I tend to work on it toward the weekend (when I tend to share blog posts etc). I sometimes squeeze in 10 minutes or so during the odd weekday. Friday is a non-working day for me, and has been for a couple of years or so now. I originally intended using that whole time for writing. I still have that same intention. Though, far too frequently, I haven’t. I did other things which I told myself were urgent (most of them weren’t). I haven’t used Fridays to write anything of note, really, which is appalling and shambolic on my part.

So, I took a long, hard look at exactly what I want to write and, to do that to a significant extent, something has to change. And that change, which I started earlier this week, is a ridiculously simple one. I get up 20 minutes earlier than normal each day and, once I’m showered and dressed, prior to starting the day job, I write. There are several instant benefits in doing this. Primarily, I feel I’ve accomplished something before I start work. That little dopamine hit carries forward into the working day and means I’m ready to hit the day full on, rather than logging on bleary eyed and tired. Writing early in the day means I no longer beat myself up if it gets into the evening and I haven’t produced anything of note. Plus, it keeps me disciplined in getting up at a similar time every single day – something which many health experts claim is highly beneficial for our body, particularly our sleep patterns. There are many who claim that having a defined early morning routine is also beneficial, both for mental and physical health.

Another recent slice of inspiration behind doing this every day came from an unexpected source – Jerry Seinfeld. The story comes from an aspiring comedian, who met Seinfeld in a comedy club in the late-80s, before he achieved superstardom in his self-titled TV show. Pre-show, he was back stage, eating raw veg, drinking sparkling water, and writing. When the aspiring comedian asked Seinfeld how he could become a better comedian, the reply was:

“The way you can become a better comedian is to write better jokes, and the only way to create better jokes is to write every day”.

Seinfeld suggested getting a big wall calendar, that has the whole year on a single page, and hanging it on a prominent wall. The next step is to take a red marker and, for each day that has included some writing, put a big red X over that day. After a few consecutive days, there’ll be a chain. Just keep at it and the chain will grow longer every day. The only job is not to break the chain. Seinfeld apparently used to yell at people (in a typically Seinfeld way) “NEVER BREAK THE CHAIN!”

Clearly, Seinfeld is not the first person to devise such a method. However, it’s still hugely effective, and it is working really well for me. Whether I write for 10 minutes or 2 or 3 hours, the red crosses on my calendar are already taking shape, and certainly provide additional daily motivation. What I also like about this tale are the smaller details, which emphasise how important this was/is to Seinfeld. He was using time pre-show to write (i.e. clearly grasping every opportunity available to him). Plus, he was eating and drinking healthy options, rather than feeding his body with junk – clearly understanding the importance of a healthy body and mind. No doubt important factors in him achieving the huge success he did soon after.

I hope that this approach has something of a domino rally effect for me. If I have found a consistent slot that works well for writing, getting into that habit could lead to discipline in other areas of my life. Devoting consistent time blocks to specific tasks each day, whether that’s during my lunch break, or immediately upon finishing work, or immediately following our evening meal, should certainly be feasible. Yes, early morning is certainly the best time for me to get things done, largely as there’s little chance of being disturbed then, or having conflicting demands on my time, though establishing that discipline elsewhere during the day is definitely possible.

It’s very early days but, one week in, I feel much more upbeat and positive about the time I’m able to devote to writing. Plus, the chain has started, and I don’t intend breaking it any time soon…

Best wishes.

Mick