By
Jennifer Bean Bower
Several
days a week I have the opportunity to work at home. On those days, I rise early
as I am eager to work on an article, chapter, or pitch. Yet, at the end of most
days—no matter how hard I try—my cursor sits blinking on an empty screen of
white.
Where
does the time go? And, more importantly, why can I not write? The answer is
easy.
Home is a
hard place from which to write. For it is there that distractions consume my
time and steal my thoughts.
Early on,
I took my distractions in stride and would cease writing for anything. If the
phone rang, I answered it. If I was invited to a three-hour lunch, I accepted.
If the laundry basket was full, I emptied it. No matter the interruption, it
received my full attention; writing, however, did not. After all, there would
be other days to write, and if need be, I could stay up all night. But that way
of thinking proved detrimental to my writing. As a result of not prioritizing
my writing, I submitted a poorly composed article to a publisher I had longed
to write for. Needless to say, I was not asked to write for them again. At that
point, I knew something had to change. I needed a strategy if I was going to
write and write well.
First, I
compiled a list of distractions. Then, I came up with a plan to defeat them.
But, the battle was not easy. I turned off the phone to prevent it from
ringing, but someone knocked at my door. I said no to a lunch invitation, but
worried that I had offended a friend or family member. I hid the laundry in a
closet, but could not get the sight of unfolded clothes out of my mind. For
every distraction conquered, a new one took its place. The struggle was endless.
Finally,
I had an epiphany. Distractions were not the enemy. The problem was my
perception of writing. When I worked full-time, outside of the home, I was not
hindered by any of the distractions on my list. I went to work, completed my
duties and went home. After work, and on my days off, I completed housework,
talked on the phone, and enjoyed time with family and friends.
Once I
started putting value on my time and writing, others did too. Now, when I am
officially on the clock; phone calls, visits, requests for time, and thoughts
of laundry, are less frequent. If you are in a current battle with
distractions, think about how you—and others—perceive your writing. Perhaps all
you need is a new perspective.
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