Blogging Truths Be Told: Blogging Momentum Comes from Within

I’m back from my end-of-2021 goal challenge and ready to take on another 12 months of blogging adventures. However, I have to admit that I’ve been a little sluggish the last couple of weeks or so. Winter break in my household didn’t help with the whole productivity outlook. And this first quarter of 2022 has resulted in some changes to daily/weekly priorities, which has created an abrupt redirection of the regular routine to establish the brand-spanking-new one.

So, GETTING THINGS DONE has been somewhat disjointed as of late. And I’m working to put pieces back together, so I can get an efficient workflow once again. (Well, have I ever really had a smooth workflow? . . . I’m just sayin’.)

Anyway, today’s discussion was inspired by my lag in response time as far as the good old to-do list goes. I’ve found myself trailing behind in my work-life duties (blogging, most definitely, included), and I’m seeking a boost in momentum to get me going again. Sure, I’m completing tasks, but not in an optimal performance type of way. And so, I had to stop for a moment and really look at what I was doing with my time.

What I came to realize is that time was a-wastin’. Time was passing by, and I wasn’t making the most of the time I was given. And since I couldn’t get that wasted time back, I had to write it off as a loss.

But who can withstand functioning at a loss for an extended period of time? Well, I would venture to say not even the best of us . . . actually, no one at all.

So, I came to that point in waking myself up out of my stupor to see the reality of what was happening to me. I wasn’t feeling good about my activity level. And at first, I could justify it by saying I was on “winter break”; but when winter break was over, what excuse could I use then? Well, with some forced self-reflection, I soon identified that I was in an unproductive rut (happens occasionally), and I would stay there indefinitely if I didn’t do something about it.

And here was the epiphany that came to me during my time of rutting — the only way to counter inactivity was to get active. I absolutely HAD to GET TO WORK. Even if that looked a little lackluster at first. And, it did. But, I’m almost a full two weeks into the back-to-work routine with a new schedule situation that I’m currently hammering out. And things are definitely dialed down a notch or two more than when I’m at peak performance. But, I’m getting some things done, including this first “Blogging Truths Be Told” post after the hiatus.

As a matter of fact, let me just go right ahead and be transparent with you here. I actually went through a series of reiterations of what would happen in this post. First, I went through the whole “I don’t feel like blogging phase” to the “but I have to blog something.” Then, I ventured into the “but what do I even blog about for Friday’s post because I’m not feelin’ it.” Next, I moved into the “since I can’t think of anything, maybe I’ll just do a reblog — recycle an old post from the archives and be done with it.” And finally, I settled with the best option out of them all — “let me just blog about what’s really going on in my blogging life right now.”

And there you have it. Today’s blog post was born.

Did my awoke state stem from someone or something (from without) shaking me until I came to this self-discovery of what was happening to me? No, it did not. And, I’m not saying that external influences can’t help wake us up out of our sleep zones, at times. What I am saying is that they may not necessarily be available when you need an impetus to get you going. And what are you going to do in those times?

Well, I’ll tell you what I relied on this go-around. My blogging momentum had to come from within . . . from a little self-reflection that led me to being real with myself. I mean you know when you’re not feeling up to par in some respect. And I was there and was feeling not quite right. I looked in the blogging mirror and I didn’t like what I was seeing. I was staring straight into the eyes of a blogger who was losing blogging gusto.

And what did I do about it? Well . . .

All I knew was that I couldn’t wait for someone else to pick me up out of the rut I’d fallen in, dust me off, and plant me on a productive blogging course of action. No, I had to get myself up out of that rut all by my little lonesome. I had to get the end game in focus, recalibrate, and deliberately make myself put one foot in front of the other as I headed in the direction of my blogging goal(s) once again.

I’m not claiming to be an expert at what to do when you fall into a blogging rut, but I’ll share with you some thought processes that I went through to pull from within the very action-oriented mindset I needed to display to get some work out. So, try the following mental conversations with yourself when you need a little strength from within:

• I’ve worked so hard to get this far. If I succumb to whatever is holding me back, it’ll quite possibly undo all of the hard work I’ve put in to-date. And if I truly enjoy the positive results that extend from my work, do I really want that all to go away?
• I’ve got to look at what’s going on now as a temporary set-back. “Temporary” means that I can’t let this unproductive moment in time be the final snapshot of my blogging (or whatever it is) experience. I’m meant to move out of this stage and not let it take over indefinitely.
• Do I really feel good about myself in this state I’m in? And if not, what am I going to do about it? When you’re in moments of pain or discomfort, an appropriate reaction is to do everything you can constructively do to move to a state of pleasure or comfort. Right?
• Am I letting anyone down (including myself) by doing what I’m doing now? Are there individuals who have invested their time, energy, and resources in my ability to be an active participant in the blogging community, or whatever community I’m supposed to be involved in? How will they feel if I don’t function in my purpose?
• What example do I want to set for my children? It makes it quite difficult to instruct my child to work hard, never give up, pick himself or herself up by the bootstraps and keep it moving, don’t let others and yourself down by not showing up — when you (as the authority figure) are doing those very things yourself. In other words, practice what you preach.

COMBAT INACTIVITY WITH ACTIVITY.