Uncertainty is the best and worst part about freelancing. I love that I don’t know what will happen from one day to the next. I feel like a child discovering a little wonder under every stone. I’m not too fond of the uncertainty surrounding my finances, but if all goes according to my master plan, I will soon be rich and this problem will be eliminated altogether.
Bittersweet uncertainty is proving to be a challenge in the day-to-day operation of Wordsmyth. Unlike my brief tango with the corporate monster I don’t have a rough idea of what will happen that day. At the office, I would have made a cup of coffee around ten. At Wordsmyth HQ, I could have finished all my work for the day by ten, I could still be in bed or I could happily be doing my nails/washing/hair.
I tend to want to do everything I need to do, my work, story ideas, pitches, social media, blogs, research and studies all at once. The minute I sink my teeth into one, I start wondering about the other.
I read a really cool article about becoming very good at something and a lot of what the writer says about our need to be constantly stimulated made my Calvinistic guilt gland swell. Since I started doing yoga (and subsequently quit but plan to start again, I swear) I’ve been fascinated by the idea of being one-pointed (that was my yogi’s official term). In yoga it refers to focusing on a single point or thought in order to keep your balance long enough to benefit from the pose.
To achieve this elusive state of single-mindedness or one-pointedness or just focus (for those who aren’t into all that esoteric stuff) I have decided on the following strategy:
1. Turn off cell phone, email, Facebook, put away all wily magazines and books that threaten to distract me from my purpose.
2. Make a list. (I love lists)
3. Indulge in distractions for short periods after each item on the list is completed.
4. Don’t eat in front of the computer. It’s such a bad habit and so unnecessary. Why I do it is beyond me.
Whether or not this plan will work remains to be seen. I’ll keep you posted, though.
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