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What if something you consider totally ludicrous is considered totally normal somewhere else.
And what if something you consider totally normal is considered totally ludicrous somewhere else?
Yes, you're exactly right.
That's the world we live in today.
Sometimes a little perspective helps...
And sometimes the ones who are considered crazy might actually be normal.
And the ones who are considered normal might actually be crazy.
It works both ways.
Always...
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A bestselling book doesn't need a bestselling cover designer or a bestselling editor.
What it really needs is a bestselling writer.
Without a bestselling writer all the other stuff is pretty much useless.
Just like a great company doesn't need great guidelines.
What it really needs are great people and great leaders.
If you need guidelines to control your people, you probably hired the wrong people anyway.
It's easy to get lost in all the fluff out there.
It’s easy to get lost in all the stuff that doesn't really matter that much and forget about the stuff that really matters.
Because the stuff that doesn't matter is easy to do.
And the stuff that really matters is hard to do.
Hiring an editor is relatively easy.
Hiring someone to design a cover is relatively easy.
Writing down a bunch of guidelines is easy.
It's all fake progress...
On the other hand, becoming a bestselling writer is really hard.
Just like hiring the best people out there is really hard.
Just like becoming a good human being is really hard.
But at the end of the day that's what really matters...
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I was terrified of solving math word problems when I was in 6th grade.
As soon as I saw one of them I felt like my IQ immediately dropped by at least 30 points.
I never managed to solve any of them.
I was refusing to think.
Because I wasn't good at it yet.
It was something unusual.
Something my brain wasn't used to.
Something uncomfortable.
Something that forced me to think slowly.
Instead of thinking fast...
So next time instead of thinking that you’re stupid or not smart enough, maybe you’re just refusing to think.
Refusing to think slowly.
Instead of thinking fast…
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The best time to start from scratch is to get started before you have to start from scratch...
I love to wait for things to just happen.
I love putting things off.
I was even putting off writing this for a couple of days.
I even started writing this yesterday and then for whatever reason I just stopped.
So just the other day I was reading on Facebook about someone talking about starting all over again. From scratch.
And of course I thought I could write about it.
Why?
I don't know.
But probably because I don't know a lot about starting from scratch.
So I was wondering what I’d do if I found myself in a situation where I wanted or had to start from scratch again.
What would I do..?
Now over the years I’ve done a little bit of reinvention.
But I never really had to start totally from scratch.
After all, you’re never really starting totally from scratch.
You're still the exact same person you were before.
Just a little different.
But you still have all the skills you've learned.
All the experiences you've made.
The good ones and the bad ones.
All the memories you've made.
The good ones and the bad ones.
So essentially you'll still be the person you are right now.
Maybe you'll do something else.
Maybe you'll learn something new.
Maybe you upgrade your set of values.
Maybe you become a better person.
Maybe you somehow turn the bad experiences into some weird lessons life wanted to teach you.
Or maybe there are no lessons. No one really knows...
But the things that define you are still there.
They will always be there.
No matter what you're doing, where you live or what your goals are.
So I think, at the end of the day we never really have to start totally from scratch again.
Even if we move to a new location.
Or do something totally new.
Of course if you’re just coming out of jail or something like that it's a whole different story.
But essentially we’re still the exact same person
And I think that's whats holding most of us back from reinventing ourselves.
From starting from scratch again.
Because we think that everything will change.
But at the end of the day not a lot will actually change.
You don't have to give up your identity.
Essentially it's still all the same...
So here's what I’d do if I was thinking about or was forced to reinvent myself...
# BEING FORCED
The best time to reinvent yourself is when you don't have to reinvent yourself.
Before you have to reinvent yourself.
Before you're forced to start all over again.
Because it takes time.
Reinvention takes time.
And it doesn't happen overnight.
And whenever you do something because you have to, it's usually already too late.
Or you don't give it all you got.
Or it'll be a lot harder because you have a lot more pressure.
Financial pressure.
Emotional pressure.
Physical pressure.
And spiritual pressure.
So reinvent yourself before you have to reinvent yourself.
Yes, I’m talking to you.
And to myself.
Mostly to myself...
We usually know when it’s about to happen.
We know when that relationship is about to fall apart.
We know when that job is likely going to disappear.
We know when that run we've been on lately is about to end.
And if we don't know it, we usually feel it.
Or at least I usually know it. Or feel it.
I knew almost every single time when a relationship was about to end.
Sometimes I already knew it years before it actually really ended.
Sometimes even before it really started.
I always knew when a project was most likely going to fail.
But I kept waiting. I kept doing it. For way longer than I should have.
Every single time….
We try to ignore the clues.
As long as we can.
As well as we can…
# IGNORANCE
Ignorance is good.
I’m a very ignorant person.
I ignore almost everybody and everything.
But sometimes ignorance can be a bad thing.
Especially when you're trying to ignore yourself.
When you're trying to ignore what your gut is trying to tell you.
What your body is trying to tell you.
You can ignore a lot of people and a lot of things, but you should never ignore yourself….
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"It's never too late to be who you say you are!" I went from being an entrepreneur to being an employee... Then I went to being an author and blogger. And then back to being an entrepreneur and public speaker. And now I do all of it at the same time. All while living out of a carry-on backpack with just three outfits in it. At one point I've decided to I write a book about what I've learned. And today you can get a free copy of it. Click here to claim your copy now (it's free, for now)... |
# BACKWARDS
So how do you know when you should listen to your gut and when you shouldn't?
I don't know. I really don't know.
But here's what I try to do…
I do the grandpa test .
It's very simple…
Whenever I have difficult decisions to make I imagine my 80 year old self.
I imagine my 80 year old self reflecting about life.
Reflecting about the things I've done and the things I haven't done.
And whenever my 80 year old self tells me that this is something he now regrets not having explored more, I just do it.
No matter the consequences. No matter the risk...
Because the only person I want to please is my 80 year old self. And no one else...
# OVERNIGHT
There's no such thing as overnight reinvention.
Just like there's no such thing as overnight success.
Every single day you reinvent yourself just a tiny little bit.
And then the next day you reinvent a tiny little bit more. And then more. And then more.
Until you've reinvented yourself in a way that you never even thought possible.
But it takes time. A lot of time. It's hard. Really hard. And it doesn't work overnight.
You reinvent yourself one day at a time. One minute at a time.
Facebook wasn't built overnight.
Just like Google wasn't built overnight.
Just like Michael Jackson didn't learn how to sing overnight.
Just like Picasso didn't learn how to paint overnight.
As a matter of fact he painted thousands of pictures before anybody even knew who he was.
And even today there are just a few dozen pictures of him that we now talk about.
One stroke at a time.
One painting at a time.
So maybe on day one you sketch a little drawing for a postcard.
Then on the second day you add some colors to it.
Then you keep repeating the same thing over the next couple of days.
Then you go outside and give those postcards to people walking on the streets.
Then one day you try to figure out how to get those postcards on your computer.
Then on the weekend you try to figure out how to get those postcards onto a website.
And then every single day for the next year or so you create one beautifully handwritten postcard and put them on your website and share them on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.
Every single day for the next 365 days. If that seems too much start with 7 days. And then 30 days.
And before you know it you've done 365 days.
That's what I did.
Two years ago I decided to write one blog post every day for the next 30 days.
And those 30 days have now turned into more than 750 days...
But now back to the initial story...
So once you've figured out how to get your beautifully handwritten postcards onto a website, you put a tiny link below each and every postcard where people can buy those postcards.
Or a link where people can order a customized handmade postcard for birthdays, for weddings, for celebrations or whatever.
You go one day at a time.
One postcard at a time…
# LEARNING
The problem when you're starting totally from scratch is that you basically have to unlearn everything you've learned so far.
You mostly gotta unlearn that you know what you’re talking about.
That you know what you're doing.
You've gotta be willing to go from expert to beginner.
You've gotta be willing to eat dirt.
You've gotta be willing to get down on your knees and do the really hard work.
But even more importantly you've gotta be willing to learn new things.
A ton of things.
More things than you ever thought possible.
Hundreds of micro skills that you never even knew existed.
Are you ready to do this?
Are you?
# MONEY
I think one of the biggest reasons why reinvention or starting from scratch never really works out in the end is that we underestimate how much time it will take.
And because it will take a lot of time we will almost always reach a point where our bank accounts are sucked totally dry.
And when that happens the only thing to do is to go back to what you've done before to make a living and to make ends meet.
Because that’s what you’re good at. That's what people are willing to pay you for. That’s how you’re able to pay the bills.
That’s why I think that one of the most important things when reinventing yourself or starting from scratch is to have enough money in the bank.
Or else you'd have to go back to the things you've done before. The things you wanted to run away from. Sooner rather than later.
Or maybe it's just me. I don't know...
When I quit my job a couple of years ago I didn't have anything going for me.
I didn't know anything about anything. I was so clueless I didn't even know how to setup my own blog.
All of this FTP stuff, transferring files, domain registration and all of this was just way too complicated for me.
I just wanted to write. And get better at writing. Without all of this other stuff. Without all of these barriers.
So I just went ahead and signed up for a service called Typepad. I didn’t have any clue what I was doing.
So I just signed up for a service that someone used who seemed successful back in the days.
I started using it because I saw Seth Godin was using it and it looked very simple….
That's how clueless I was. The only tangible skill I had when I was getting started was writing. Not a very rare skill. Especially considering the fact that I wasn't particulary good at it...
So the only thing I really had when I was getting started was the willingness to learn new skills and some money in the bank.
Not a hell lot but enough money to cover my expenses for the next one or two years if I lived a very minimalist lifestyle. Which I did. Which I still try do by the way.
So where did all that money even come from?
I had saved up for times like these. I never really knew what I saved all of my income for.
I basically saved that money so I didn't have to save money when I didn't have money to save…
You know, for times where I wanted, no where I needed to buy myself some freedom to figure out how I could reinvent myself. Money to buy myself some freedom to learn new things and skills.
And I really needed that money. Because life is expensive. And it took way longer than I ever thought possible until I made about enough to cover my monthly expenses with money I made out there on my own..
But it’s not just money in the bank you need when you want to or have to reinvent yourself. It's also emotional stability. You need enough good emotions in the bank...
Reinvention or starting anything totally from scratch needs emotional stability and strength. And physical strength. And spiritual strength.
Simply because change is hard. Really, really hard. And going for change when you're weak is never a good idea.
Whatever you do, try to only go for change when you’re strong.
And not when you're weak.
Try to go for change before you have to go for a change.
Try to look for a new job before you need a new job.
Try to save money before you need money.
Try to reinvent yourself before you're forced to reinvent yourself…
Go for change when you’re strong.
Financially, emotionally, spiritually and physically…
# INSIDE OUT
Change never happens from the outside.
Changing your job, your location, finding new friends or a new boyfriend will only work for a while.
Until that feeling of excitement wears off and you get back to reality.
Change happens from within. It goes inside out. It rarely goes outside in.
So if you keep all your bad habits, if you keep eating crappy food, if you keep getting not enough sleep, if you keep hanging out with people who don't lift you up, if you keep doing what you've been doing before, nothing will ever change.
It'll turn into the exact same thing it was before.
Just a different background.
That's why you've gotta work on the foundation first.
Because without that foundation your house will just crash and burn.
Sooner or later.
If all you're doing is just painting the walls of a run down house without paying attention to the inside of your house, without renovating and dedicating time to the inside of your house, then you're still going to have the exact same run down house.
Just with a different color on the outside...
You've gotta get rid of all the dirt, all that garbage and all of that baggage that's deep down inside of you first before you paint those walls...
# FAILURE
Reinvention and starting from scratch has nothing to do with failure.
As a matter of fact, failing to reinvent yourself every once in a while that’s what’s most likely going to lead to failure.
Reinvention isn't failure.
It's a necessity.
Even more so today than ever before.
So maybe one day when I’m forced to reinvent myself because I didn't listen to my own advice and didn't reinvent myself before I had to reinvent myself, I'll hopefully come back to this piece, read it and will hopefully get something out of it.
I hope you did...
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There's not a lot of good things about failure.
Other than the fact that you've failed.
So what's good about that?
Well, now you can basically do whatever you want.
Because once you've failed, all that pressure is gone.
The pressure of always having to succeed.
The pressure of having to be perfect.
The pressure of never failing.
All of a sudden it's all gone.
And none of it matters anymore.
Tomorrow is going to be a great day.
Why?
Because tomorrow is a new day...
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… beat yourself up.
For not having done the things you wanted to do.
For having done the things you didn't want to do.
Because it's the beating yourself up part that will ultimately hold you back from doing.
It's not the doing that does most of the harm.
Or the not doing.
It's usually the beating yourself up part that follows afterwards that does most of the harm…
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The only way to be a writer is to write.
The only way to be a singer is to sing.
The only way to be an artist is to create art.
The only way to be a musician is to make music.
The only way to be a comedian is to make people laugh.
Merely reading about it, talking about it or knowing a lot about it doesn't make you anything.
All it does is that it makes you someone who read about it, talked about it and knows about it.
But that's already about it.
And a lot of people can read about it, talk about it and know a lot about it.
But not a lot of people are able to go from reading about it, talking about it and knowing a lot about it to actually doing it.
And that makes all the difference.
And that's how to be...
By doing.
And only by doing.
So get going...
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Where there's no slack, no wasting time, no play, no laughter, no fun and no joy, there's no creativity...
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The only reason I write is because I’m selfish.
I feel like writing helps me to deal with a lot of the things going on in my head and the world around me.
So even though I publish almost all of my stuff online, I’m probably the one it helps the most. I don’t even know where I’d be at if I didn’t write.
I’d probably be feeling stuck somewhere in a cubicle...
Writing in public has helped me to deal with a ton of stuff.
Did it make me a better person?
I don't know. Maybe.
Do I make a lot of money with my blog?
No, not at all.
As a matter of fact I don’t make any money with my blog at all.
Not even with all of the books I’ve published over the past couple of years.
I probably make less than $100 with all of my books on Amazon combined.
I stopped trying to make money with my writing and my books a long time ago...
So why do I keep writing?
Good question…
And I’ve thought about it a lot recently.
Especially because I didn't put in the time and energy I wish I could have put in.
And consequently a lot of my stuff wasn’t really that great.
So why do I even keep writing then?
Because if I stopped it would be like a part deep down inside of me would die. But there are a ton of other reasons why I keep writing. And why I will (hopefully) keep writing for as long as I can.
I made this list mostly for myself. As some sort of reminder. Just like I write most of my stuff for myself. But you’re more than welcome to keep reading...
# FAILURE
I’ve now written and published one blog post every day for more than two years. I’m not saying this to brag about it. Because there’s nothing to brag about. Most of the 730+ articles I wrote weren’t really that great.
Most of them were mediocre at best. And some of them don’t even deserve to be called articles or blog posts. Some of them consisted of less than ten words. While others consisted of more than 4000 words.
But it doesn't matter. And I don’t really care about it anymore. Because writing and publishing one piece every single day helped me to deal with a disease that a lot of us have…
Perfectionism… and the fear of failure...
Writing and publishing one piece a day is incredibly hard. It really is. I struggle with it almost every single day.
And there were many days where I just didn’t have the time and energy to put out great stuff. But because I made this deal with myself to put out one piece a day, no matter what it takes, I had to ship it.
And even though the results were sometimes not as I would have loved them to be, I had to ship it. And that's what it all boils down to at the end of the day...
It all boils down to showing up, even when you don't feel like showing up. Even when you feel like hiding.
Here's the thing…
Everybody can show up on their good days. But almost no one shows up on their bad days.
And to me, that's what makes all the difference.
Because it's never your good days that will either make or break you, it's almost always your bad days that will either make or break you…
# GIVING UP
I’ve given up so many times, I can't even remember. Dozens of relationships, ideas, businesses, careers and on and on and on.
Whenever I break the chain, whenever I stop doing something just once, it’s almost guaranteed that I’ll stop it all together over the next couple of weeks. Sometimes months.
That’s why I keep writing, even though I sometimes feel like it doesn’t get me anywhere, that I don’t really improve that much and that I’m wasting my time.
Because if I stopped, I don’t even know what else I’d have that keeps me sane in a world that’s seemingly getting more and more insane every single day...
# EXPERIMENTS
Every single thing I write is a micro experiment. To see what works and what doesn't. To challenge myself. Every single day. To see whether or not I can still pull it off. To wrestle with my demons that want me to do what’s safe. That want to keep me small. And hidden under the blanket of anonymity where no one can see me…
# COMPLEXITY
The world we live in seems to be getting more and more complex every single day. Technology gets more and more complex. Life gets more and more complex. People get more and more complex. Situations get more and more complex.
But at the end of the day it’s all simple. Most of the things in life are simple. But because of the millions of layers of complexity and B.S. presented to us every single day it seems to be getting more and more complex. When the truth is that it’s not…
Writing helps me to cut through all the B.S. To get to the core of things. It helps me to take away all the complexity from things that aren’t really that complex after all. Writing helps me to better understand the way the world works, to come up with theories that make my life easier instead of more complicated.
Whether these theories are valid doesn't really matter. At least not to me. What matters to me is to make my life easier and to take away all of the complexity so I can spend more time on the things that give me and hopefully also other people some joy, hope and maybe even happiness...
# HABIT
I’m not a big habit guy. As a matter of fact I’m really bad with habits. And I don’t believe in all of this get up before 6am in the morning to become more successful stuff. I think this is all B.S. What works for one person doesn’t necessarily work for another.
What works for me doesn't necessarily work for you. As a matter of fact many of the things I do might even harm you instead of helping you. Just like my habit of only taking a shower after I went for a run might not be a good idea for anybody else except me. And yes, I don’t go for a run every single day. Now go figure...
# STUPID
It’s a fine line between stupidity and genius. They are essentially the same thing. The only difference is that most of the time it’s too early for an idea to be considered good.
So it’ll be considered stupid. Because most people still believe in the old way. But stupid paves the road to good. Sometimes even to genius...
Not getting it right is part of the process of getting it right.
Now what does that have to do with writing?
Nothing.
And everything...
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# IDENTITY
Whenever we meet someone new we usually introduce ourselves by telling people what our business cards say. We tell people what we do. Most of the time our job is our identity. Even though our jobs never really say what we really do, what we really stand for or who we really are. They’re just masks hiding our true identity. Who we really are deep down inside.
Whenever I meet someone new, I don't really understand what they're doing. Because what does an account manager really do? What does a project manager really do? What does a risk manager really do? What does a community manager really do? How does a day of someone like that even look like?
Do you just call people all day long to check in or what do you REALLY do? Do you go to meetings all day coordinating things or what do you do? I don’t get it. But that’s ok. Maybe I’m just stupid. Or curious. Or both…
I don't have a job. I didn't have a job for almost five years now. So I can't really tell people what my job is. Because I have none…
So every time I meet new people it gets weird. because I do so many different things. And sometimes I even tell people that I just don't have a job.
But deep down I feel like I’m a writer. Whatever a writer really is. Or does. Even though I sometimes feel like it doesn't get me anywhere…
# LEARNING
Writing helps me to learn a lot. Mostly about myself. It helps me to uncover the hidden truth that’s hidden deep down inside of me. The truth we all carry deep down inside of us.
That truth that’s so hard to uncover. That truth that's hidden under hundreds of masks.
And sometimes, but only sometimes when I write I feel like I can touch that truth that’s hidden deep down inside of me. Even if it's just for a tiny moment. Because that moment is what this is all about.
You know, that rare moment when you hear someone sing a song with all of their heart, with all of their pain, all of their joy and all of their emotions that are usually hidden deep down inside of them.
Those are the moments that truly make me feel alive...
# HONESTY
Writing helps me to be more honest. First and foremost with myself. And being honest with myself helps me to also be honest with other people. I think. I hope. But I don’t really know. I’m just trying to be honest here...
# REALITY
It’s easy to ignore reality. To ignore the things that are going on around us. It’s easy to just turn on your phone, scroll your brains out and keep yourself busy doing useless things that don’t add any value to anything. Things that help you to ignore the truth. The truth that’s out there. The truth about the way things are going. And the way things are going to be. And how you can do your part to make this world just a tiny little bit better...
# CREATION
One of the things that I always felt was missing in my life was to create something tangible. I didn't learn any craft or craftsmanship and I never really learned how to produce anything tangible.
So everything I ever did was totally intangible. I could never really see what I was creating. That's why I always felt like something was missing in my life. I wanted to create stuff. Something that lasts. Even if it's just for a few seconds. Maybe a smile. Maybe a tear. Maybe a few nice words.
And writing seems to fill that void. It satisfies my desire to create something tangible. Something that might be useful. Something that people might be able to use. Something that changes people’s lives. No matter how big or small.
I can see it. Feel it. Touch it. Smell it. Breathe it. Live it...
# PURPOSE
Writing gives my life purpose. Even if no one reads my stuff I’ll still feel good about myself because I created something. Something that might or might not make this world a better place. And just the thought that something that I’ve created could spark a thought, an idea, a change, a smile or whatever is just phenomenal and something that I don’t want to miss in my life ever again….
# BREAK
Writing is like meditation for me. It helps me to sit still and take a few moments in a busy or hectic day. It’s a break from all the noise out there. So I can grab that moment, hold it tight and turn it into a signal. For whom? Mostly for myself… and everybody else who needs a signal… or just a break from a hectic day...
# JOY
Writing makes me happy. It’s something I look forward to every single day. But it’s also painful. Very, very painful…
# PAIN
The more I procrastinate, the less I look forward to writing.
Just like everything in life. Just like life itself…
The more you deprive yourself of the things that make you happy, the more miserable you’ll feel deep down inside….
The only reason I write is because I’m selfish.
I feel like writing helps me to deal with a lot of the things going on in my head and the world around me.
So even though I publish almost all of my stuff online, I’m probably the one it helps the most. I don’t even know where I’d be at if I didn’t write.
I’d probably be feeling stuck somewhere in a cubicle...
Writing in public has helped me to deal with a ton of stuff.
Did it make me a better person?
I don't know. Maybe.
Do I make a lot of money with my blog?
No, not at all.
As a matter of fact I don’t make any money with my blog at all.
Not even with all of the books I’ve published over the past couple of years.
I probably make less than $100 with all of my books on Amazon combined.
I stopped trying to make money with my writing and my books a long time ago...
So why do I keep writing?
Good question…
And I’ve thought about it a lot recently.
Especially because I didn't put in the time and energy I wish I could have put in.
And consequently a lot of my stuff wasn’t really that great.
So why do I even keep writing then?
Because if I stopped it would be like a part deep down inside of me would die. But there are a ton of other reasons why I keep writing. And why I will (hopefully) keep writing for as long as I can.
I made this list mostly for myself. As some sort of reminder. Just like I write most of my stuff for myself. But you’re more than welcome to keep reading...
[Related: 121 Unusual Tips To Being A Better Writer]
# FAILURE
I’ve now written and published one blog post every day for more than two years. I’m not saying this to brag about it. Because there’s nothing to brag about. Most of the 730+ articles I wrote weren’t really that great.
Most of them were mediocre at best. And some of them don’t even deserve to be called articles or blog posts. Some of them consisted of less than ten words. While others consisted of more than 4000 words.
But it doesn't matter. And I don’t really care about it anymore. Because writing and publishing one piece every single day helped me to deal with a disease that a lot of us have…
Perfectionism… and the fear of failure...
Writing and publishing one piece a day is incredibly hard. It really is. I struggle with it almost every single day.
And there were many days where I just didn’t have the time and energy to put out great stuff. But because I made this deal with myself to put out one piece a day, no matter what it takes, I had to ship it.
And even though the results were sometimes not as I would have loved them to be, I had to ship it. And that's what it all boils down to at the end of the day...
It all boils down to showing up, even when you don't feel like showing up. Even when you feel like hiding.
Here's the thing…
Everybody can show up on their good days. But almost no one shows up on their bad days.
And to me, that's what makes all the difference.
Because it's never your good days that will either make or break you, it's almost always your bad days that will either make or break you…
# GIVING UP
I’ve given up so many times, I can't even remember. Dozens of relationships, ideas, businesses, careers and on and on and on.
Whenever I break the chain, whenever I stop doing something just once, it’s almost guaranteed that I’ll stop it all together over the next couple of weeks. Sometimes months.
That’s why I keep writing, even though I sometimes feel like it doesn’t get me anywhere, that I don’t really improve that much and that I’m wasting my time.
Because if I stopped, I don’t even know what else I’d have that keeps me sane in a world that’s seemingly getting more and more insane every single day...
# EXPERIMENTS
Every single thing I write is a micro experiment. To see what works and what doesn't. To challenge myself. Every single day. To see whether or not I can still pull it off. To wrestle with my demons that want me to do what’s safe. That want to keep me small. And hidden under the blanket of anonymity where no one can see me…
# COMPLEXITY
The world we live in seems to be getting more and more complex every single day. Technology gets more and more complex. Life gets more and more complex. People get more and more complex. Situations get more and more complex.
But at the end of the day it’s all simple. Most of the things in life are simple. But because of the millions of layers of complexity and B.S. presented to us every single day it seems to be getting more and more complex. When the truth is that it’s not…
Writing helps me to cut through all the B.S. To get to the core of things. It helps me to take away all the complexity from things that aren’t really that complex after all. Writing helps me to better understand the way the world works, to come up with theories that make my life easier instead of more complicated.
Whether these theories are valid doesn't really matter. At least not to me. What matters to me is to make my life easier and to take away all of the complexity so I can spend more time on the things that give me and hopefully also other people some joy, hope and maybe even happiness...
# HABIT
I’m not a big habit guy. As a matter of fact I’m really bad with habits. And I don’t believe in all of this get up before 6am in the morning to become more successful stuff. I think this is all B.S. What works for one person doesn’t necessarily work for another.
What works for me doesn't necessarily work for you. As a matter of fact many of the things I do might even harm you instead of helping you. Just like my habit of only taking a shower after I went for a run might not be a good idea for anybody else except me. And yes, I don’t go for a run every single day. Now go figure...
# STUPID
It’s a fine line between stupidity and genius. They are essentially the same thing. The only difference is that most of the time it’s too early for an idea to be considered good.
So it’ll be considered stupid. Because most people still believe in the old way. But stupid paves the road to good. Sometimes even to genius...
Not getting it right is part of the process of getting it right.
Now what does that have to do with writing?
Nothing.
And everything...
# IDENTITY
Whenever we meet someone new we usually introduce ourselves by telling people what our business cards say. We tell people what we do. Most of the time our job is our identity. Even though our jobs never really say what we really do, what we really stand for or who we really are. They’re just masks hiding our true identity. Who we really are deep down inside.
Whenever I meet someone new, I don't really understand what they're doing. Because what does an account manager really do? What does a project manager really do? What does a risk manager really do? What does a community manager really do? How does a day of someone like that even look like?
Do you just call people all day long to check in or what do you REALLY do? Do you go to meetings all day coordinating things or what do you do? I don’t get it. But that’s ok. Maybe I’m just stupid. Or curious. Or both…
I don't have a job. I didn't have a job for almost five years now. So I can't really tell people what my job is. Because I have none…
So every time I meet new people it gets weird. because I do so many different things. And sometimes I even tell people that I just don't have a job.
But deep down I feel like I’m a writer. Whatever a writer really is. Or does. Even though I sometimes feel like it doesn't get me anywhere…
# LEARNING
Writing helps me to learn a lot. Mostly about myself. It helps me to uncover the hidden truth that’s hidden deep down inside of me. The truth we all carry deep down inside of us.
That truth that’s so hard to uncover. That truth that's hidden under hundreds of masks.
And sometimes, but only sometimes when I write I feel like I can touch that truth that’s hidden deep down inside of me. Even if it's just for a tiny moment. Because that moment is what this is all about.
You know, that rare moment when you hear someone sing a song with all of their heart, with all of their pain, all of their joy and all of their emotions that are usually hidden deep down inside of them.
Those are the moments that truly make me feel alive...
# HONESTY
Writing helps me to be more honest. First and foremost with myself. And being honest with myself helps me to also be honest with other people. I think. I hope. But I don’t really know. I’m just trying to be honest here...
# REALITY
It’s easy to ignore reality. To ignore the things that are going on around us. It’s easy to just turn on your phone, scroll your brains out and keep yourself busy doing useless things that don’t add any value to anything. Things that help you to ignore the truth. The truth that’s out there. The truth about the way things are going. And the way things are going to be. And how you can do your part to make this world just a tiny little bit better...
# CREATION
One of the things that I always felt was missing in my life was to create something tangible. I didn't learn any craft or craftsmanship and I never really learned how to produce anything tangible.
So everything I ever did was totally intangible. I could never really see what I was creating. That's why I always felt like something was missing in my life. I wanted to create stuff. Something that lasts. Even if it's just for a few seconds. Maybe a smile. Maybe a tear. Maybe a few nice words.
And writing seems to fill that void. It satisfies my desire to create something tangible. Something that might be useful. Something that people might be able to use. Something that changes people’s lives. No matter how big or small.
I can see it. Feel it. Touch it. Smell it. Breathe it. Live it...
# PURPOSE
Writing gives my life purpose. Even if no one reads my stuff I’ll still feel good about myself because I created something. Something that might or might not make this world a better place. And just the thought that something that I’ve created could spark a thought, an idea, a change, a smile or whatever is just phenomenal and something that I don’t want to miss in my life ever again….
# BREAK
Writing is like meditation for me. It helps me to sit still and take a few moments in a busy or hectic day. It’s a break from all the noise out there. So I can grab that moment, hold it tight and turn it into a signal. For whom? Mostly for myself… and everybody else who needs a signal… or just a break from a hectic day...
# JOY
Writing makes me happy. It’s something I look forward to every single day. But it’s also painful. Very, very painful…
# PAIN
The more I procrastinate, the less I look forward to writing.
Just like everything in life. Just like life itself…
The more you deprive yourself of the things that make you happy, the more miserable you’ll feel deep down inside….
[Related: 121 Unusual Tips To Being A Better Writer]
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There are basically three types of writers out there.
The ones who have an amazing imagination and can tell amazing stories.
The ones who experience fascinating stories and then write about these fascinating stories.
And then there’s the rest of us trying to achieve either one or both of the above and never really quite getting there…
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