Why Am I Here?

When I first started blogging,  my reasons for being here were because the newspaper that I wrote for closed its doors and blogging seemed a good outlet for my creative writing endeavors.

Over the course of years since I began, my readership has grown  to my amazement  and you guys are still reading my rants and random madness!  You my readers, are awesome! You’ve kept me coming back when I was going through a very difficult time.  You were the encouragement I needed to get back on the horse, and keep going when I couldn’t stir myself to get back in the game.

So, why am I here?

Why do I spend the time to write  blog post after blog post? 

First,  I am a writer.  I write.  It’s what I do.

Secondly, it’s exciting to know that someone is reading my stuff!  It’s an absolute thrill when someone buys my book or when they comment on my post.  It validates my efforts when there are so many voices in the world complaining about this and that,  and pointing out  my failings, reminding me of all the things that I am not good at. There are people who when you fail are “it’s ok, I know you meant well” and then there are people who are like “You failed!  If you would pull your head out of your butt long enough for some air,  it isn’t that difficult to do X Y or Z. Get it Together!” Those latter are quick to call you on each and every single time that you fail.

There has to be a medium ground between the two, because the first  will never hold you accountable and the second  accomplish nothing more than  being the catalyst for the next bout of depression and slipping further into the murk. or else pissing you off completely. There are those that will ride you like an old mule, harping on you, belittling you, constantly berating you, and no matter what you do it isn’t enough.

Y’all know what I’m talking about, right? The boss that rides you at work  but lets the jerk that is sleeping on the job get away with it while you are being barked at?  Yeah, there is a huge difference between a boss and a leader.

Anyway, the medium ground –  we need people in our lives that will hold us accountable, extend mercy  in times of difficulty, but call us  when it becomes a habit. We need people that will be adult in a situation and deal as an adult, not revert to the school yard bully because  they  can’t control their own temper.

I’ve mentioned many times that I struggle with  time management and too many irons in the fire, and I had it pointed out to me today that my lack of time management and a couple other items  has resulted in a package being late to arrive to its recipient as well as a couple other  scatterbrain things.  I can hang my head and feel the shame,  but that doesn’t help the next time.  I have to make the changes to make sure it doesn’t happen again.  The electric company certainly wouldn’t be forgiving if my payment was late, now would it?  NO, they wouldn’t.  

Blogging actually helps to keep me on task.  I’ve shared recently some posts about the bullet journal and  blogging is on the top of my daily todo list. Once I have written a post or two, then I can focus on other items.  It may seem ridiculous, but it really does help me to  be able to mark off the item, and move on to the next one on the list.

Thirdly,  blogging is challenging.  It keeps me in the habit of writing.  It challenges me to write  something  of value, something interesting. Some days I accomplish this better than others, but over the long haul it really does help. My  plan is a marathon not a sprint.  Each post is like that days training. The more days I train, the better conditioned I am to compete.

Who am I competing with?

Myself!  The toughtest competitor in the entire world!

This all goes back to  my goals for the year,  simplified and streamlined.  A quick summary- get stuff done. Simple yet profound.  How can I get stuff done if I am distracted, or not organized or wasting time?  I can’t and neither can you.

It all comes back to time management again. *headdesk* UGGGGHHHHHH!

Is there one thing that you need to focus on to improve your productivity?  Is there one area that you strugle with?

Leave a comment and share your struggles, and maybe offer a word or two of encouragement if you can spare it.  Thanks!

Write on my friends, write on!

Ellie