Eliminating Distractions: Bribing Your Way to Writing

Although there have been many fine articles on the art of getting a writing schedule down, my favourite is this current article by Kris Rusch because it plays into my own thoughts of treating my writing like another long-term goal we can build up to.

Kris talks at length about the carrot and the stick method, which is something I’ve found to be incredibly useful. But there are times when I have to take it a bit further. When I’m lapsing back into old patterns or simply have reached a point where I don’t want to write. Sometimes the idea of a reward isn’t enough for me.

At that point, I go into another mode, and I ground myself as if I were a sulky teenager. The key underlying thought is this: If I don’t do the work, then I don’t get the free time.

Basically, I ground myself from any fun distractions I may have until the work is done. And what I mean is this: Facebook is turned off. Twitter is signed out. And I don’t have Youtube up, either. I change the things I take for granted, such as Lolcats, and turn them into a reward for a job well done.

You’d be amazed how quickly a thousand words can come out if you ground yourself from those beloved time suckers and make them treats rather than an excuse.

This is for those hard weeks when I have the time but I am having difficulty motivating myself. So to top it off, I give myself a weekly reward for doing all of my work. That’s where my carrot comes in. A little something for everything I did that week, and a big something after each of my projects is complete.

Now, this can also work for internal distractions, but sometimes the brain requires trickier navigation. Some internal distractions require some time to figure out the root of the problem. Example: If you’re always too tired to write by the time you get to it, then how about getting up a half hour earlier in the morning? Or doing ten minute sprints throughout the day? Not all writing has to be in a solitary block.

Sometimes environment can need a shift. At my house, it’s almost impossible to set up a private work station for writing time, so I take my laptop off to a quiet corner someplace, order coffee, and work for a few hours. I also have the bonus of knowing that this time is work only time, and with no internet access, I can’t possibly get distracted by Facebook.

What struggles have you faced in your writing habits? I’d love to hear from you.

 

This article is part of a two part series on Writing Habits. The other half, “Developing the Habit”, can be found at Cassandra Webb, Writer and Artist.