November 20, 2009

People often tell me that I’m very productive, so it was a shock recently to take a procrastination test and come out in the top 10% of procrastinators!

It said I scored 80 out of 100 possible points and “when it comes to putting things off, you often do so even though you know you shouldn’t… Though you are likely incredibly productive just before a deadline, you might not get all your work done and there is a lot of unwanted stress.”

Hmmm…

I wanted to mutter “stupid test,” but I was aware that certain bad writing habits (dare I call it procrastination?) were affecting the quality of my work. Oh, I got the writing done, but too often lately the quality was less than it could be because I delayed starting. I was submitting writing that was less than my best because it was hurried.

I think I had deluded myself into thinking there was no problem because I was busy all the time. I am never late with student lessons, and usually early. I am never late for my M-W-F blogs or paid critiques. I don’t even procrastinate on writing nonfiction books. Just fiction. Just the “pulling words out of thin air and making up people and whole worlds” kind of writing.

Check Yourself Out

Why is getting started so hard? In a recent magazine article on procrastination  in Children’s Writer, the following quote struck me as true–of me, anyway:

“In many cases, we procrastinate because we are anxious about the work at hand. It seems too difficult or onerous. ‘The hardest part of any task is the first five minutes. It’s like cold water. It’s just getting in that’s the hard part. Once you’re in, the water feels great,’ says Steel [a university professor who studies procrastination]. ‘Usually after procrastinating, once people finally get around to the task, they say, ‘I don’t know why I thought this would be so much worse than it was.’”

That struck me as true, so this week I’ve been starting my NaNoWriMo writing by setting a timer for just five minutes. Then I write furiously for five minutes, with permission to quit if I hate it at the end of five minutes. Have I stopped yet when the timer went off? No. I’m on a roll by then, and it wasn’t nearly as hard as I’d made it in my mind.

Why do we do this to ourselves over and over? It feels silly to have to “trick” my muse with a kitchen timer. But hey, it works, so I’ll probably keep doing it until I find something that works better!

What about you? What tricks do YOU use to get started?

9 Comments »

1. 

   I totally agree that it’s just the getting started that’s hard. With fiction, I’m finding it helpful to end by beginning another section so I know what to write when I sit down again. And this Nano things is a constant reminder that once I get started, I’m fine. I’m hoping that will retrain my mind to not be bothered by the 1st 5 minutes if I know that it will get better.

   Amy

   Comment by Amy Simon — November 20, 2009 @ 4:40 pm

2. 

   So true. I don’t know why we have to play these mind-games with ourselves. If I can get past the first 5-10 minutes or so, I can work easily for an hour. No timer necessary.

   Have a good weekend, Krist.

   Comment by Vijaya — November 20, 2009 @ 4:47 pm

3. 

   Oh, I don’t have any tricks to get started because writing time is so limited. I know I usually have an hour … so I don’t have the luxury of getting in the mood. I simply dive right in.

   Comment by Vijaya — November 20, 2009 @ 4:49 pm

4. 

   I’m a pro at procrastinating so I read your post with interest. The only trick I know is to keep writing even if the words feel stiff and things aren’t flowing, usually I can easily smooth the words out another day.
   Oh, and I keep a pad and pencil by my bed just in case I have a Stephenie Myer dream. :o)
   I’ll definitely be trying out your kitchen timer thing, sometimes the simple things work the best.
   Maureen. http://www.thepizzagang.com

   Comment by Maureen — November 20, 2009 @ 6:17 pm

5. 

   Amy, I tried your suggestion about starting the next section before quitting for the day, and it made it a LOT easier to jump into those first five minutes when I went back to the computer. I’m going to do that from now on. It goes against my grain—I like things all tidied up and finished—but it doesn’t help you get started the next day.

   Vijaya, the mind games seem silly, don’t they? And yet, it’s wise to know how one’s mind works and plays tricks on us, so we can outsmart it. Knowledge is power, they say, and I have to agree—especially when it comes to SELF-knowledge! And yes, when your time is very limited, you don’t spend nearly as much time getting started. There’s a lesson there too!

   Maureen, I heard similar advice recently on Richard Peck’s Master Class DVD put out by SCBWI. Even he has trouble with this! And he makes himself stay in his chair and keep fiddling with his manuscript until something jars loose. He doesn’t get up and he doesn’t change projects. He said if he did stayed with it, no matter how it wasn’t progressing, eventually he’d get going. Nice to hear that even Newbery winners deal with this exact same issue!

   Comment by Kristi Holl — November 22, 2009 @ 3:40 pm

6. 

   Hi Kristi,
   I procrastinated about it - then I did take the “stupid” test. I scored 69 out of 100 so apparently I’m an above average Procrastinator… I’m looking for more fun things to do which adds a lot of useless stress to my days - I guess.
   It is so true though I have great intension but somehow they don’t always turn into actions.
   :p
   Great Post…

   Comment by Ally M — November 23, 2009 @ 2:27 pm

7. 

   Since I too am an 80% person, perhaps I should try the 5 min trick. I already know it would work. Usually, after much procrastination, I sit down and dive in. And when I look up, at least a half hour has passed.

   Comment by PatriciaW — November 24, 2009 @ 2:25 pm

8. 

   YES! The five-minute thing is so true. It’s getting into the chair, opening the document and getting the fingers on the keyboard that is the trick. After i get started, it’s fun. Sometimes I will open a WIP document then check my e-mail before going back to the document. For some reason, having the document open already makes it easier to come back to. Weird, but true, LOL.

   Thank you for another helpful post, Kristi. So many times reading your blog feels like coming home to an old writer friend who knows just how I’m feeling and just what I need to hear. I appreciate you!!

   Comment by Beth — November 25, 2009 @ 4:26 pm

9. 

   Patricia and Beth, thanks for your comments! I’m going to try that “open the WIP first” trick too. That will be the little reminder to finish email checking fast and get on to the main event!

   Comment by Kristi Holl — November 27, 2009 @ 6:16 am

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