When I talked about taking a break from social media, I identified one of the triggers that has affected my productivity in the past, but I didn’t mention what puts the words back on the page. Discipline. That’s what gets the words on screen. But what brings that high-level concept back into reality? Ah, that’s the trick. You see, discipline is different for everybody much like the triggers that erode it, otherwise known as “writer’s avoidance behaviors.”

Getting back to what’s important, productivity, means that I have to build the backbone so the words flow. My schedule shifted when I stepped down from my marketing position and then it altered again when I got sick. So the spine eroded because the normal behaviors I did to get the words out weren’t being done; much like what happens when you stop working out and can’t get back on the wagon again.

How I put the “D” back in discipline, to add the “W” back into word count, is to focus very intently on what matters to me. Then, once I’m comfortable with my routine, then I can add back in other distractions.

Still, it doesn’t mean that I can’t have any fun or not have a life. But, in some ways, I feel like being online and plugged is like having a wholly separate existence, an obligation that’s necessary for anyone who wants to have a career that even marginally touches people online. This is simply one of many methods to juggle that alternate identity.

Mood: Calm with side of zen
Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: A “few”
Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Half hour of yoga
In My Ears: Classical playlist
Game Last Played: Tetris
Movie Last Viewed: IQ
Latest Artistic Project: … Been too long … Far too long… but I have a few planned!
Latest Release: “Fangs and Formaldehyde” from the New Hero anthology through Stone Skin Press