Showing posts with label negative thoughts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label negative thoughts. Show all posts

Writers - Don’t Let Your Fears Define You

Guest post by Irene S. Roth

Most writers are fearful of something. And for most of us we are afraid of any public acknowledgement and presentation of our work. So, for many of us, this can be a really difficult thing to overcome.  But it can have a negative impact on our health and well-being as writers.

    One of the most important ways to deal with your fears is to ensure that they don’t define you. Most of us take our fears personally. The important thing to remember is that our fears are out there just as your face and body image is. Also, our fears are merely negative stories that our mind keeps telling us over and over again. The real difficulty is that we usually end up believing these stories over time. And this is where our real problem lies.

Embracing Your Fears

    So many writers are plagued by fears when they write, regardless of whether they are beginning writers or more mature ones. They have so many negative thoughts and feelings about their writing career and their ability to complete these projects.  This negative mindset can wreak havoc with a writer’s self-confidence and overall productivity levels.

So, it is important to deal with these fears and embrace them as much as possible because if you don’t your fears will define you and possibly many of your writing projects. So, you have to deal proactively with your fears and come to terms with them before they start running your writing life.

    Here are a few ways to take steps to embrace your fears.

•    Sit down with your writing journal and write down all of your fears. Take your time coming up with your list. Be as honest as possible. The more honest you are the better it will be.

You may want to spend a week or so compiling your list. One way for you to generate this list is to carry your notebook with you at all times, especially when you sit down to write. As soon as you have a negative thought, write it down right away.

•    Once you have your list of fears and negative thoughts, examine them. Write down the recurring negative thoughts on a separate sheet of paper. Then, choose one of the most common negative statements and work at stamping it out over the next few weeks. Choose one that isn’t very emotional but yet consistently on your mind. Then beside it, write a positive statement to replace the negative one. Practice saying the positive statement for a few weeks.

For instance, if one of your negative statements is that I will never finish this project, change this statement to I plan to finish this project this time. And keep repeating this positive statement.

By taking these steps, you will be gaining self-confidence as a writer, and you will be embracing your fears. This is not a recipe for success and happiness but for overall health.

    So, you don’t have to be defined by your fears. Instead, you could problem-solve around your fears and resolve to be the best writer that you can be one step at a time. Just determine your worse fear and then work from there. In other words, work through your fears to eradicate them. By dealing with your fears directly, you will be taking steps to lessen their negative impact on you and in the process you will be taking control of these negative mindsets.

For a lot more tips on how to be a healthy writer, double click on this link: http://www.amazon.com/Healthy-Writer-Irene-S-Roth-ebook/dp/B0176Y6NWG/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1446101541&sr=1-1

Irene S. Roth, freelance writer and author, writes for teens, tweens, and kids about self-empowerment. She is the author of over thirty books and over five hundred online articles. She also writes articles for kids, tweens and teens and her articles have appeared in Encounter, Pockets, Guardian Angel Kids Ezine, and Stories for Children Magazine and Online. She also has five hundred published book reviews both online and in print. For more writing tips, please visit my website at: http://irenesroth.wordpress.com/

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3 Tips to Help New Writers Build Confidence


By now you should have your goals and objectives written down for 2016. The difficult part for some of us may be following through on our commitment. 

We all get off track for a variety of reasons. But if you find yourself continually bombarded with reasons that are really excuses, maybe the problem is you need confidence.

Confidence is a state of mind. It is built through positive experiences. I know I can educate children because I've seen the results. I know I can make a great pot of spaghetti sauce for the same reason. These things make me feel confident.

When you get something published, you will naturally feel more confident. But until that time comes, there is work to do! 

Here are 3 tips to begin building your confidence now: 

#1: Self-talk 

How do you talk to yourself? Do you get discouraged easily? Do you have difficulty following through? Do you believe in yourself? 

Action: make a decision to stop all negativity. Choose to think and speak positively: "I will write this book", "I will get assignments". It may feel awkward at first, but it works. Believe you have something to say and no one can tell it quite like you.

Believing in negative thoughts is the single greatest obstruction to success. 
― Charles F. Glassman
#2: Stop Comparing

Any new endeavor will naturally cause us to compare ourselves with those who are experienced and more knowledgeable. Guess what? They started out as a new writer, too. 

Action: if you love to write and know it is what you really want to do, go for it! Soon you will find your niche, get your rhythm, gain momentum, and you will enjoy the writing process.

Comparison is the death of joy.
― Mark Twain

#3: Keeping it Fresh and Fun

Are your writing attempts like walking through mud? Are you bored? Is it drudgery? If you're not enjoying what you are writing, if it's not fun, then you will quit. 

Action: keep writing anyway. It takes time to discover what you really like to write. When you do, it will be easier and enjoyable. If you quit, you'll never find out what your niche is.

There is no greater gift you can give or receive than to honor
your calling. It's why you were born. And how you
become most truly alive.
-Oprah Winfrey

Place these tips in a spot where you will see them. It will boost your confidence!

~~~

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net


After raising and homeschooling her 8 children and teaching art classes for 10 years, Kathy has found time to pursue freelance writing. She enjoys writing magazine articles and more recently had her story, "One of a Kind", published in The Kids' ArkYou can find her passion to bring encouragement and hope to people of all ages at When It Hurts http://kathleenmoulton.com


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