I’ve always loved reading and writing, so when I discovered blogging I thought it was an obvious perfect fit for me.
I started my first blog when I was overseas and there was no shortage of inspiration as I was literally living in another world, so my writing style was long & winding posts filled with my personal observations. Then I took off my training wheels (if you’ve seen my first blog you’ll know what I mean!) and started this one, planning to endlessly write about my journey into a new industry and lifestyle back in Australia. It was going to be totally fascinating!;)
However, for some reason my childhood passion for writing has recently diminished and the well of post ideas has all but run dry. The more I try and force it the worse it gets, and that’s strange considering I’m actually reading online more than ever and interacting with many interesting and diverse people around the world.
So why have I developed this severe case of “perfectus procrastinatus“?
I think it’s the fact that everyday I come across many great articles by bloggers who seem to have a lot to say in a much more interesting and articulate way than I do. And now I’ve lost my own voice. So, what to do?
Firstly, let go of unrealistic expectations. I can only write about what I’ve experienced and what I know at any particular time, and as long as it’s my 100%, then it should be good enough.
Secondly, learn to value what I know and can do. I look at this blog now and it’s just the way I wanted it to be. I meticulously planned it out and created the content on my own so that’s an achievement in itself. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea, have umpteen thousand subscribers or comments, but it still has it’s place in the blogosphere and is important – to me.
Thirdly, it’s simply a case of the more you do something the more confident you become and joyous that something becomes. I’m no longer interested in “practice makes perfect” as I realise there really is no such thing. Everyone’s idea of what perfect is, differs.
And lastly, usually it’s far easier to walk the talk. I look at my personal and professional achievements and I know if I had sat down and tried to plot that exact path beforehand, I definitely would not have done a lot of the things for fear that they were “too hard“, “risky“ etc. Yet now I wouldn’t change a thing!
So rather than continuously tweak this post over the next week with the aim of making it “perfect”, I am going to do something wreckless and just publish it as is! AND, promise myself that I will put aside my unrealistic ideals and get back to doing what I love again – writing.
When was the last time you were less than perfect and pleasantly surprised yourself?
Alex
