How to Use Stories to Inspire Action...When All You Want to Do Is Procrastinate

January 7th, 2016

Another morning…another day where I am just staring blankly at the computer screen.

I need to continue working on the manuscript that I started years ago, that I raised over $13,000 to publish with professional quality, and that I need to edit.

But the bills keep piling up, and this process is longer and more expensive than I expected.

To finish the book, I moved to a new city all by myself. This way I would have more time, more focus, and fewer distractions to help me complete it with excellence.

But even through I’m looking at the manuscript, without any distractions in my environment, I feel like I just can’t handle the work I have to do today. 

I don’t want to face how big the project is.

I don’t want to face the fact that whatever I put out there will be harshly criticized. 

I don’t want to face the possibility that the people who believed in me and backed the project on Kickstarter may be disappointed—and feel like their support of my work wasn’t worth it.

This is all too much to handle for me right now…Maybe I need to take a break from this project for the day. I’ll probably feel better tomorrow anyway…

Finding INSPIRATION When I Needed it most

Wait, what am I saying?

Think about when J.K. Rowling was writing her first Harry Potter book.

Her bills were piling up much worse than mine.

She had to worry about taking care of her infant daughter...I only need to worry about myself.

She had to face cold rainy winters in Edinburgh...meanwhile it’s January and I’m in Florida with weather nice enough to go to beach.

She was in a constant battle with depression...and I'm only battling with procrastination.

And she had no guarantee that anyone would even read her book, let alone get over $13,000 in pre-orders for it.

Yet, despite all of this, somehow she managed to spend 5 years writing with extraordinary consistency. 

She created an amazing new world of magic that would open up our imaginations. And she obsessed over every detail—even writing the name, house, and magic abilities of every student at Hogwarts! 

Then, she reaped the benefits of not giving up, and persevering through every obstacle she face,d by producing the first book in the most successful book series of all time.

If she could do all of that, I can spend a mere 4 hours working on my manuscript like I planned.

The Power of Stories to Inspire Action

This is a passage taken from my daily journal in January of this year (roughly 2 months before the release of The Will of Heroes). But it could have been taken from any of the many days where I was feeling tired, stressed, and demotivated over the last 5 years.

We all have these days. It doesn’t matter if your goal is writing, selling, or making it to the gym, you have had (and will continue to have) days like this from time to time. And on these days, there's nothing we want more than to put our work off until tomorrow. 

To procrastinate is human. A whopping 95% of people admit to procrastinating at least some of the time—and the other 5% are lying. But just because it is natural, doesn't mean it isn't dangerous.

In fact, procrastination is the key reason why roughly 9 out of 10 people will never reach their long-term goals. 9 out of 10!

I don’t know how many days exactly I’ve woken up, stared blankly at the computer screen, and felt the overwhelming urge to procrastinate. But I do know that every day I felt that way, I thought about the story of J.K. Rowling.

I thought about the hardships she faced...

The obstacles she overcame...

And the greatness she proved was possible.

Her story has always been enough to inspire me to ignore procrastination, and take action.

HOW to USE STORIES to INSPIRe Action

If you’ve been following my work for a while, you know that I love to tell stories about how people used their willpower to achieve greatness (you may even be sick of hearing about J.K. Rowling at this point...)

However, I’ve never explained how to actually apply stories to your daily challenges. Nor have I explained the science behind why they can be powerful motivators when you face those inevitable demotivated days on the journey to your goals.

So let's break down the proven reasons why J.K. Rowling's story can inspire me to take action, when all I want to do is procrastinate—and how you can find that same drive for action through your own inspirational stories. 

1.    SHIFTING YOUR PERSPECTIVE

As I mentioned in my journal entry, my situation in January wasn’t nearly as hard as J.K. Rowling’s when she was also writing her first book.

I’m not saying that my situation was better, necessarily. Some of you might find my lifestyle lonely and boring, and would prefer her life as a parent. But, if nothing else, my situation was certainly easier to handle.

Despite this, my initial thoughts were solely focused on feeling sorry for myself.

I’m broke… 

I’m exhausted…

I’m overwhelmed…

I don’t know if I can take it… 

But when I mentally rehearsed the situation that Rowling was in at my age, I shifted my perspective (also referred to as frame of reference). Then I clearly saw that my daily struggle wasn’t nearly as hard as what she was going through.

And if she could find the time to write in addition to being a single mother, then I knew I could find the time to write in an environment that I had intentionally set up to be free of distractions.

After shifting my perspective in this way, the challenge didn’t seem so overwhelming, and my writing goal seemed that much more achievable.

This simple shift gave me just enough willpower to get started writing. Then I became immersed in the task, achieved small wins, and hit my daily goal. 

Your perspective on your situation, your work, or yourself, can have a big impact on your willpower.

If you see your situation as something you can't control, you will drain your willpower to improve it. You will start feeling sorry for yourself. You will be tempted to come up with all of the reasons you shouldn't have to work toward your goal today, and that you deserve to take a break. 

If you see your situation through the eyes of someone who inspires you, even if that is simply the person you're working to become, you will get a boost of willpower to improve your situation. And a story is one of the best ways to shift how you view these things.

There’s a reason why religious books are told in stories. Reading about the generosity and kindness of a spiritual leader will shift your perspective to see the bigger picture and give you more willpower to be selfless as well.

This same principle can be applied to a story about someone in your life that you admire, reading a rags-to-riches story, or even watching an inspirational movie. As the story plays out, your brain will visualize yourself in their shoes and shift your perspective.

2. BECOMING GRATEFUL

Another benefit to thinking about J.K. Rowling’s story, is that it also helped me become grateful for all the good things in my life.

I have proven interest in my book!

I have an amazing audience that supports me!

I can even play beach volleyball in January!  

These are all things I knew intellectually, but it wasn’t until I thought of Rowling’s story that I truly appreciated them. And that gratitude also increased my willpower.

As my friend Ben Austin wrote about in this guest post, simply being grateful benefits your willpower in big ways.

BENEFIT 1: GRATITUDE FOCUSES YOUR RAS

The RAS (reticular activating system) is a bundle of nerves that is attached to your brainstem and acts as a filter for everything going in and out of your brain.

When you focus your attention on the good things in your life, your brain will filter out the bad and prevent your subconscious from overreacting to harmless “threats”. This allows you to create more willpower, retain your existing willpower stores, and focus on the tasks that matter. [3]

BENEFIT 2: PREFRONTAL CORTEX ACTIVITY INCREASES

The Prefrontal Cortex (PFC) is the part of your brain associated with willpower and problem solving. In other words, gratitude makes you tougher and more resilient.

Resilient people activate their PFC and dominate. Resistant people activate their fight-or-flight nervous system and get pushed around by life. [1]

BENEFIT 3: EXPAND YOUR SELF CONCEPT

According to psychologist Carl Rogers, gratitude expands your Self-Concept, which consists of 3 things:

1.    Self-image, or how you see yourself.

2.   Self-esteem, or how much you value yourself.

3.   Ideal self, or how you wish you could be.

When your self-concept expands, all areas of your life benefit. A gratitude practice allows you to have more confidence, value your achievements, and work towards your goals. [7]

Expanding your self-concept allows you to see the true value you bring in this world. It’s a powerful feeling and allows you to increase your impact and do the work that actually matters.

If you read an inspiring story about someone with fewer resources than you, yet was still able to achieve and admirable goal, it will make you grateful for the resources you have. And it will give you more confidence that you can reach your goals too.

3. PROVING WHAT IS POSSIBLE

This is the part of J.K. Rowling's story that truly inspires me. 

Not only did she face a daily struggle to write Harry Potter, but she endured that struggle for roughly 1,825 days!  From the initial idea of a boy going to a school for Witchcraft and Wizardry, to the ultimate publication–she wrote, she created, she edited, and she never gave up.

Think about how many days she must have woken up with the same feelings of exhaustion and demotivation that I wrote about–and she had the additional responsibility of being a single mother!

Without any promises of publication, without any outside validation that the book would be a success, and with the huge responsibility to provide a good life for her daughter, Rowling must have thought about giving up hundreds of times. 

And imagine if she did?

Not only did her books bring happiness and imagination to people all over the world, but they also got children like me to learn the wonder that could be found in books, at a time when many kids were shifting to video games.

I cannot image what the world would look like today if she made the rational, reasonable decision to quit. If that happened, I doubt I would be writing these or any words to you right now.

But the truly profound question is...

How many others have faced similar struggles to Rowling, but actually did quit before they created the great work they were truly capable of?

We will never know for sure, but the number must be far more than those who never gave up. 

In my own journey, sharing the science of willpower with the world has not been easy. It's been a bumpy road, but I am making progress every day. And Rowling’s story has given me endless inspiration to make sure of that.

I doubt you or I will ever captivate the world like she did. But her story proves that if we can avoid procrastination, avoid the temptation to quit, and persevere through our own struggles along the path, it will be worth the effort.

CONCLUSION

Greatness doesn’t come from innate gifts, a brilliant idea, or even from a story by itself. It comes from choosing to embark on the journey and making progress every single day until you reach the destination.

Unfortunately, our nature is to ignore this truth and procrastinate when we hit the inevitable days of exhaustion and demotivation along the way. Taken alone, it won't do much harm, but procrastinating one day sets the precedent to procrastinate again...then again. 

When I face these challenges in my work, I turn to the story of J.K. Rowling. Thinking about her 5 years of struggle, and her will to persevere through them, shifts my perspective to see my work as achievable. It helps me become grateful for what I have, and it reminds me to never give up.

The world is a better place because J.K. Rowling believed Harry Potter’s story was too important to give up on. And it will be a better place if you find something to work on that is just as important to you—as long as you have the will to never give up on it.