Perfectionism
Summer 2014 Online Classes
I’m teaching three great online classes this summer, two on writing productivity, and one on weight loss. Online classes are fun, convenient, inexpensive, and you do get loads of individualized attention from me. Check out my Events page for more information, and hope to see you in class.
Read MoreWhat Being “Willing to Fail” Really Means
These days, many people know it’s okay to fail.* They understand that failure is an essential part of any ambitious path, and also a fantastic learning opportunity. They also know that if you’re not failing at least some of the time, you’re probably not taking enough risks. This failure-is-okay viewpoint is reinforced by many inspiring…
Read MoreWhy People Quit Big Projects (And How Not To!)
The below fantastic article from ThesisWhisperer.com is aimed at graduate students, but really pertains to anyone who is struggling, or has struggled, with a big project. (Just substitute “boss” for “supervisor” if needed!) Thanks to the the Thesis Whisperer herself, Dr. Inger Mewburn, Director of Research Training at the Australian National University, for kind permission…
Read MoreHistorians are Getting Less Blame-y and You Should, Too!
So privileged, last night, to hear a lecture at Kalamazoo College by Christopher Clark, one of the world’s leading historians. His recent book on the causes of World War I is called The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914; and please note the interesting “How” in the subtitle. Clark says he used “how”…
Read MoreDo You Suffer From Marketer’s Block?
Recently, I’ve noticed an interesting evolution in the writing productivity classes I teach. Up until a few years ago, writers almost always took one of my classes because they were procrastinating or blocked on a book or other work. These days, however, many who take my classes have finished their book: it’s their marketing they’re…
Read MoreAnn Patchett on Surviving Creativity’s Core Disappointment
Ann Patchett has many useful things to say about writing in her new essay collection, This is the Story of a Happy Marriage, and in particular about the core creative challenge of surviving the fatal moment when, having finally summoned the courage to bring your vision to life, it immediately disappoints: “Only a few of us…
Read MoreJohn Scalzi on Why You Should Never Let Your Reviewers Get You Down
The Inimitable One offers a list of one-star reviews of books that later went on to win science fiction’s celebrated Hugo award. My favorite is this review of Scalzi’s own novel Red Shirts, which actually uses the word “onanistic”: This is an onanistic shallow and very disappointing book. Little or no character development. What should…
Read MoreNew Yorker Cartoonist Shows What to do When You’re Stuck on a Piece
Please check out this wonderful piece by New Yorker cartoonist Drew Dernavich, in which he discusses his creative process for a cartoon. He submitted it in 2007, but it was rejected. At that point, he did NOT do what many perfectionists would do, which is to either: (a) despair, and maybe give up cartooning,…
Read MoreRecognizing and Valuing Your Successes. Part II: Character and Moral Successes
In my last newsletter, I discussed the importance of not undervaluing your work successes. Perfectionists tend to ignore or devalue all accomplishments other than “the big score,” which is a very demoralizing and demotivating mindset.) But it’s also important to recognize your “character successes,” and I list some types of those below. I decided to…
Read MoreTerrible Article in Salon Romanticizes “The Suffering Artist”
It actually promotes self-loathing as a productivity strategy! My comment: Sorry, this is the kind of grandiose macho posturing bunk that holds many writers back. Writing, absent perfectionism, is not that hard. And true self-loathing (as opposed to facile expressions of it) is far more likely to lead to a block than anything. There are…
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