opportunities in my life, including the opportunity to accomplish my goals. Then, once my head is clear and I’m focused, I think of a goal and try to visualize accomplishing it, along with at least one way that I can make a small improvement in the next 24 hours in order to get one step closer to my goal.
And there you have it! This is the most effective way to reach any goal you can imagine.
What you should have realized by now is that your goals must be specific. Here is an example of what your goals could look like:
-I am writing a book about “Insert what your book is about” (Note this can change as you will find out in Chapter 2)
-I will write at least a 120 page book
-I will find an accountability partner or coach to help me by “specific date”
-I will write/finish writing my book by “specific date here” (ex. September 15th 20**)
-I will write 10 pages a day or I will write one chapter a week/month
-I will study/research for 30 minutes a day
-I will work on building up the main character of my story by “specific date”
-I will study my daily regimen and carve out the necessary time to write my book and will make my significant other and family aware of my goals by “specific date”
Obviously this is just a simple idea of what your goals and plan should look like. The more detailed you are, the more successful you will be, guaranteed. Make sure you read Chapter 3, where I share with you the exact goals and specific dates I created for writing this book.
Now you have a plan and have set specific goals. What’s next?
To me this next item is the most important thing you will ever do in any aspect of your life. You and I must commit. My verb is “I Commit”. What is your verb?
Every single time I have committed myself to something, I mean truly and honestly committed myself, I have succeeded 100% of the time. Every time that I haven’t fully dedicated even if it was 98%, I have failed. Maybe you can relate.
Before you take any action you have to fully commit yourself to your plan and goals, 100%. If you waiver even a little on your commitment, you are setting yourself up for failure. Along with commitment comes conviction and dedication. Know that you can and will fulfill your goal. You must be a finisher, not only a starter.
At the heart of the issue of finishing your book is time management. Even if the issue that is causing you problems is the dreaded writer's block. You must dedicate time to writing in order to eventually work your way through the block. In many regards, writing is no different than many other endeavors in that it requires a significant amount of personal investment.
No one can expect to become a great piano player, painter, major league baseball player or a great "anything else" without a consistent investment of time. Even those who are gifted in a given area need to invest time in order to truly become great!
Thus time management is critical for your success as a writer, and time management is largely a product of your mindset. It’s so important that I have carved out a whole chapter (Chapter 3) of this book, specifically focusing on this subject of organizing your time. So before you start writing make sure that you are aware of any environment and time constraints that you personally have. You may have to change your mindset regarding how you spend your time and your day.
At first, such a task may seem very foreign to you, especially if you do not like to structure your time. You might feel that such an activity is limiting and unnaturally ‘robotic.’
However, reorganizing the time in your life is ironically liberating, not limiting, and is a key step in acquiring the mindset necessary to write your book!
The second key step is to believe that you can indeed finish! If you feel that finishing is impossible, no matter how hard you try, then you've instantly shifted your reality in that direction. After all, do you know anyone who has finished any major project when they believed all the while in his or her heart that it was impossible?
By reorganizing your time and believing that you can and will finish your book or novel, your chances for success will blossom. You will also discover that as you write more, your writing will become better, more polished and more of what you've always wanted it to be. Many people are intimidated by the act of writing, but if you want to be a writer, you have to overcome your fears!
Writers ‘in embryo’ say to themselves often, "I have written a book. I am an author. I have a voice in the world!" Vision, along with will-power, faith, determination and organization are all key aspects of "making it happen."
Remember that writing is usually a solitary act. While that means that you are the one in control, it also means that you have to motivate yourself. Part of this motivation is, of course, believing in yourself and realizing that with the right mindset, time and dedication you will in fact accomplish your goals! Your attitude truly is the deciding factor of your success. With this in mind, also know that you don’t have to do it alone. In fact, you shouldn’t do it alone. People that succeed have what others and I call an accountability partner. You may think of this accountability partner as a coach, mentor or teacher. The best person for this job is somebody that has finished what you are trying to accomplish.
Let’s go back to the example I gave earlier of someone trying to lose weight. Having someone there who has lost weight cheering you on is going to significantly increase your chances of succeeding. My advice is to find someone who has written a book and then ask him or her to help you. Once you have found someone, make sure that they are committed and consistent in helping you to accomplish your goal. Picking the wrong person could backfire.
Breaking down your book into numerous smaller chunks, such as chapters and sections within chapters, you will start off in the right direction. If you see your book as being a task rather than an opportunity, then you won’t have much fun doing it. Change your thoughts from “I have so many pages to write,” to “I want to write more today, but I hit my goal and I need to do other things.”
By breaking down your book idea into a series of small steps, you will find that not only is the job no longer daunting, but it may even seem quite manageable. Once again, your entire challenge is one of perspective and mindset. With the right mindset, you will be able to welcome the opportunity of writing your book and accomplish the results that might just surprise you and others as well! Now that is something to get excited about!
Take a deep breath and relax! This book contains all of the secret ingredients you will need to succeed. Slow down and focus on your mind and not the book at this point. In fact, you could be in for a surprise when you learn that you shouldn’t actually start writing for a while yet. We have some work to do on your brain first.
Here is what I need you to do: Stop thinking about writing the book and start thinking about finishing the book. That may sound strange, but stay with me here.
You need to trick your brain. It should come as no surprise that most people are more comfortable with talking as opposed to writing. Your brain is wired to allow you to speak in an easy and free flowing way. After all, you have been speaking and expressing your thoughts verbally since you were just a baby. However, when you try to put words on paper, sometimes the brain stutters. As a result, the writing process tends to be nowhere
