What Do You Keep Talking About?

I have a "sticky note" that hangs over my desk. It only has two words written on it, but they kick my butt every time I see them.

I love writing. I truly do. I love it so much that I love to read about it, think about it, journal about it, dream about it, talk about it, plan about it, buy books about it, watch videos about it, attend workshops about it ...

When you think about it, it's like I'm DATING WRITING!

But when it comes to actually sitting my butt down in the chair to write ... well ... I suddenly become incredibly interested in my to-do list.

I find myself doing things I haven't had the slightest desire to do in months .

Why?

Well .. I could write a lot about why. Mostly it comes down to fear. Fear that I really won't have anything important. Fear that no one will care about what I write. Fear of the critics who have already sliced me with their well-meaning words. Fear that I don't have what it takes to succeed. Fear that somehow I will succeed wildly and my whole life will change.

It's all enough to make a girl go alphabetize her spice drawer! (and that's the short list)

Here's the thing I've learned: the THING that we talk about is the THING that we SHOULD BE DOING!

That THING that won't go away ... it is there because it is YOUR CALLING. Tweet this!

Don't let that scare you. It doesn't mean it's the complete picture of your life. (After all, I know some people who keep talking about chocolate cake). You don't have to restructure your whole world around it tomorrow. You don't have to commit to it until you die.

You can always STOP when it stops calling to you. (You have no idea how freeing this was the day I realized it!)

But the most important thing is that you should never ignore it. Like the blinking "Check Oil" light on your dashboard, that THING won't go away because it is pointing to something very significant in your life. Think of it as a friendly flashing light saying, "OVER HERE ... here is where you are meant to develop and grow." "HERE ... look! This is how you are meant to serve your world and make it more beautiful."

I'm going to write a whole post on selfishness ... but for now, let me say this: IT IS NOT SELFISH TO FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS. So you can lay down that excuse/fear too.

You know what that THING is, don't you? Just to help you be sure, here are a few clues:

* It's the thing that you dabble in but feel a little sheepish to admit.

* It's the thing that you keep researching, thinking, dreaming, talking about doing .. but keep putting everything else first

* It's the thing that you are afraid to even start because your heart will be broken if it doesn't work out.

That is the THING that you MUST DO.

So let's make a deal, ok?

Let's do our THINGS a little more this week. How about 15 minutes a day? That's not too extreme.

Let's NOT read about it or watch a Youtube video about it. We've done enough of that. Let's DO IT. Let's take a REAL step on the path toward our dream.

For me, it is sitting down and writing for real. For you, it may be,

* making a phone call

* signing up for a class

* going to the gym

* ordering business cards

* dusting off the guitar

The beautiful thing is that it's OK if nothing profound happens. The world will keep turning if what I write stinks. And the sun will come up tomorrow even if you feel foolish tonight.

But I'm pretty sure you won't! I'm pretty sure that you will feel amazing. There is joy in doing what you were born to do.

Writer's WRITE!

Fill in the blanks for yourself: _______________________ _________________________ Better yet, make yourself a "sticky note."