11 Comments

This is a great article and wise advice. I’ve struggled with perfectionism most of my life. This has held me back more than pushed me forward as I often found that the fear of failure was greater than actually putting content out there and seeing what happens. It takes resilience to continue writing, especially after a setback or rejection. In fact, the writing course I’m on right now says that rejection actually makes you feel less intelligent, so you end up undermining yourself - a point I found very interesting. For that reason, it suggests taking a break from the rejected project (a day or two at least) and getting on with something else. In fact, professional writers should be working on multiple projects at any one point in time.

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When I've lost motivation on an article - I keep writing but move onto something else. The key is to keep the habit of taking action going

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Indeed! I couldn’t agree more. Also, a spreadsheet of all the projects you are working on can be helpful.

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Great tip - thanks for sharing

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Interesting advice. It seems risky, though.

If you've not managed to be consistent for a long time, yet, breaks often expand indefinitely. And having multiple projects dilutes your efforts.

I feel it's safer to live the rejected article alone for a couple of days and start another article (or video, or podcast).

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I am not the same person that would leave something unfinished for an extended period of time though

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True about golden hour and starting small. I thought you had to write several hours a day to be able to do something. Now I write in the morning, probably about 45min, and it's really working for me. I've written more than ever before. The golden hour really is a thing apparently!

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Great to hear this Sophie. Consistency beats intensity. Keep it up

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Good points 👌. Can I translate part of this article into spanish with links to you and a descripción of your newsletter?

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DM Derek for this.

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ok, I will do it... Thanks, Alberto.

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