We're taking a poll here at Gumbo Writer today, so please leave your thoughts in a comment if you have time. 'Preciate you as always!
Before the serious question, I have one straight from my life of the moment~~Per day, how many pounds of poop can a perky puppy poo? Okay, on with the serious one now:
What's the biggest roadblock or hurdle standing between you and your goal/dream? Is it self-sabotage, lack of time, too many responsibilities, too scattered & distracted, fear? Whatever it is, do you have a plan to overcome it?
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35 comments:
Definitely self sabotage - otherwise, why would I be faffing around writing this, instead of gettng on with the business of conquering the world?!
Lack of time. LACK OF TIME!!!!!!!!
and too distracted.
and too scattered. But totally lack of time.
All of the above?
I plan to overcome it by sheer will. I'll let you know how that turns out. ;)
I think all of the above have finally alligned themselves for me (FINALLY) and slowly but steadily I'm doing things and accomplishing things I never would've thought possible. Sheer determination and a whole lot of guts and a little thing known as divine inspiration have daily helped me wade through all of my trials to get where I'm at. Because I'm a scrapper by nature. I fight for what i want, and work it and fix it until I get there. LOL! And ya'll thought I was always giddy! wahoo! I WILL be therefore I AM! Muhahah! --Jenni!
It's gotta be time. There's just not enough of it in the day. And as crass as it sounds, money. It seems like I'm always struggling to forestall financial disaster. Those people who say "money isn't everything" obviously already have enough of it. I had a bad day yesterday, which is bleeding over into today, so I'm feeling cynical and just plain worn out. Anyway, time and money I guess are my answers. But I'm determined by nature, so no matter the circumstances I'll eventually rally myself and go on!
The offer of paper still stands. As for the barriers, the one thing we have found is everyone, writers, athletes, goofballs, whoever, all have to give themselves permission to succeed. A lot of people have been programmed to not succeed. This is a tough nut to crack. Keep hammering away.
Oren
Jinksy, I don't know what other dreams & goals you have, but the poetry is great, the new blog is going gangbusters, and well, you're just a durn nice person! :)
Vodka Mom, I wonder if I'd waste the extra hour if there was suddenly 25 in each day. I'd probably use it for sleep.
Will be waiting for full reportage, ChristaCarol.
Jenni, you mean there are goals left you haven't conquered yet? Love to know what they are! hehe
So true about finances, Embee. Better days ahead for you, I hope!
Thanks, Oren. You're always a great encourager & rallyer. :)
Lack of a good multivitamin. I wear out before 5 pm. There's not enough caffeine in the world to keep me functioning.
It's definitely got to be time for me. I do have a plan to be more organized and disciplined though.
P.S. the answer to your first question is LOTS if the pounds of poop put out by my perky little yorkies is any indication!
Time, effort, my amazing ability to get distracted. What isn't holding me back?
Feeling the world is closing in and no matter how hard you try you think you won't succeed and then you are too down on yourself and all you want to do is pull your hair out and go, "AH-AH-AH," but nobody else understands or gives a rat's patooie so you crawl into a fetal position and suck on your thumb...wasting time.
*huff-huff*
Probably me -- when I get to doubting myself, or when I become distracted by shiny things, or when I work so hard to make something happen that I don't leave time for what I love the most: the creating of characters and what they do.
I really did laugh out loud at the poopy pup comment HAWWWW!
Well, Angie, let me see...first and foremost it is lack of time. If I could just figure out a way to get rid of this 8 hour job things would be so much easier. Secondly, it was lack of concentration. I have figured that out; buy a bigger house...lol. Most of the time it is from being so exhausted during the week. I find I am very productive on the weekends, so I simply adjust my writing schedule.
Now, for you first question...I am wondering what the answer could possibly be myself. My puppy tends to leave little gifts everywhere...lol. He seemed to get the hang of paper training except in that department...I WILL NEVER GIVE UP...HE SHALL LEARN THE ERROR OF HIS WAYS. He's only 7 months old so we forgive him most of the time.
For me it is definitely time along with guilt. I always feel like I am not working hard enough... no matter how hard I work. Either I am neglecting my writing, or my kids, or my hubby. There simply isn't enough time in the day to work and spend all the time I want to with them. This is a common problem I suppose. I know none of my family feels neglected, but it is still a constant worry. Right now I am solving this by only writing late at night after everyone goes to bed. It is not so smart, so soon I plan to make millions so that I can hire someone to do all the cooking and cleaning and I can have more time. After my next trip to Vegas perhaps? :D
Self-sabotage, most definitely. Allowing myself to whine and make excuses and be afraid.
Self-sabotage. Letting those rejections get to me. I have to nag myself to keep going!
A unique blend of fear of success/failure.
Lori, get you a good One A Day quick!
LOL, Linda. My 7-week-old Boston is just full of it. But at least he's pretty much going outside now for that, if we take him out. Pretty smart for a baby, plus he's fetching tennis balls already. ;)
Debbie, hear ya!
Michelle, don't get that thumb too soggy. You need it for more writing!
Kat - You're still experiencing self-doubt with a book contract??? For shame! :) Now get ta writing.
Too many irons in the fire with work and the new house and moving, Angie. It'll level out, hopefully. (Are you crate-training Mr. Puppy?)
Jenn, yeah, it's really hard juggling all we have, isn't it? Your post on the Vegas trip was so interesting. What a great time y'all had!
Be not afraid, Janna. Your words are good!!
Wendy, go go go! Time's flying. (Talking to Self too.)
I'd say my biggest obstacle is time management. But since I kicked the t.v. out of the house, that has helped a lot.
I would definitely say B,C,D and probably E.
Not so much A.
Most of the time it's all I can do to keep up with life around me.
All of the above. Haven't thought much about a plan. Better get started.
I want to say that there is no roadblocks, I'm going after my dream, but when I really start to think of it, I realize that maybe it's a little bit of self-sabotage. Because I know that even though I think I'm doing everything I can, I really could be querying more, and putting myself out there more. Maybe there's a little fear in me too.
Well, since my dream is (was) to be a major league baseball player, I'd say the biggest obstacle standing in my way is (was) lack of talent (along with the fact that I'm 51 years old.)
Lack of time by far. And when I finally get some time I'm too mentally exhausted to do anything other than play a video game or watch trash TV.
Lack of time by far. And when I finally get some time I'm too mentally exhausted to do anything other than play a video game or watch trash TV.
Right now it's the seasonal stall (winter) and too much time (Please forgive me all you not-enough-timers). I'm trying to figure out when to schedule what project. I have so much going I get unfocused, waste time. Those goals/dreams - what are they again? I was reviewing those just today - Humph!
My dream is standing between me and the realization of my dream. Who told me to dream about becoming a writer who people love to read and purchase every word she writes. And who told me to dream of moving out of this house before it has sold and that there would be no negative consequences. And who told me to dream about being loved as deeply as I can love.
It would have to be self sabotage/self esteem. This time of year (for my job) doesn't help, but honestly, I use it as an excuse. I have at least ten short stories that I should be submitting, but I'm afraid of rejection. The only work I've really had complete faith in is my script which is going nowhere agent wise. :/
Tim, thanks so much for dropping by! I don't know why you don't have time...given you are editor of RATTLE, have a new book of poetry out, and now a new venture with FOUND POETRY. Congrats on all the great work/success. BLOGGY FRIENDS, STOP BY TIM'S BLOG AND SEE ALL THE GREAT WRITING AND STUFF AVAILABLE!!
Make some lists, Joy, or try the dry erase board. That might help you prioritize. :)
Laura, I hope every roadblock and trouble lift and leave you free to pursue every single one of your dreams. ((((Laura)))
That's such a common concern for us writers, Eric. But I fear having old age regrets more than the rejection. (Maybe that comes with age.) How will you know if you don't try? Just gotta submit, keep working and submit some more. I'll be glad to look over a short story and give you my .02 if you're interested. :)
Lack of desire and ambition holds me back from any goal I might be interested in achieving. I like a peaceful existence and I love stopping and smelling the roses. I'm don't think there is a goal that is as important to me as enjoying life and the simple things.
My roadblocks are mostly things out of my control. So, I'm just going to keep doing what I can.
In answer to the question...I would have to say that my biggest road block to achieving my goals and dreams...is not really having them clearly defined, floundering around a bit in so much uncertainty. Top that off with a mixture of self-sabatoge, fear, being too scattered brained, and a host of other vices, and I'd say you have a deadly combination of never getting anything done! UGH!
Definitely lack of time but I will say scattered and distracted is a big problem too because even when I try and carve out some time I have two little boys who always need something or are rowdy and noisy.
I am often my own big hurdle though because I have a neighbor who wants to trade babysitting, a sister who offers to take the boys for a few hours, and a mother who would probably be willing to watch the boys a few hours every other week. It's all great but I have a big problem asking for help, taking help, or convincing myself it's not selfish to ask or take the help offered.
Just writing this makes me sound ridiculous. I think I will take my neighbor up on her offer today and grab a few hours to write :)!
A serious lack of discipline and organization keeps me from achieving my writing dreams. I always seem to be distracted by sleep, food, social invitations, other people's blogs ;-) A little bit of fear, too -- What if I have made the wrong career move? How to remedy it -- I have to schedule blocks of writing time, stick to the schedule like I would a job, and stop saying yes to everyone! P.S. Thanks for your comments about my Christmas cards!
Funny you should ask that question, as I am currently living my dream. The biggest thing that kept me from actually pursuing my dream in the past was responsibilities--I had three children. Now that they are all grown up, and have are on their own, I sold the house and all the stuff, and now live in a travel trailer and work seasonally for the National Park Service.
I found that instead of getting encouragement from others around me, people who otherwise love me all try to discourage me from doing what I want to do (except for my adult children, who all think it is great that I am doing this). There are a lot of people who really know how to suck the fun out of anything you try to do that is out of the ordinary.
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