Learn from Hobby : 6 things I learnt while on my Writing Spree

Photo Credit- Robin Sharma

Rome was not built in a day.

If I can't fly then I will run, If I can’t run then I will walk, if I can’t walk then I will crawl, but I will always move forward.

The pace of my writing has been slow compared to what I have thought of while challenging myself. When I challenged myself some 15-17 days ago, I thought that I can sail through writing 111 posts in 30 days. But, guys, it is really an uphill task. Even my sister politely told me that even 50 posts in 30 days is a big thing. I am still miles away from the finish line. But, I want to share with you that the challenge has really helped me to be on the writing spree and I am sharing my experience and learning while pursuing my hobby of writing.

1.    Passion- While you chase a target, don’t forget that it is the journey which is as beautiful as the destination. We must enjoy the process and if it is not enjoyable then we are not on the right track. Blogging is a passion as it helps me express myself. I am able to pursue things which fascinate me and then I write about them. I am enjoying the process.

2. Keep Learning- Whatever we are doing in Life; whether as a professional or an amateur, it is essential to keep learning new things about the trade. It helps us to get better with time if we make a conscious effort to keep continuing learning. Also Learn the Lessons fromthe Monk who sold his Ferrari

3.   Avoid Distractions- Life is a Journey and distractions are those fearful things which put a brake on our pace.  Distractions are difficult to avoid all together, but we can easily manage our response to them. While pursuing my challenge, I get distracted by thoughts like how to get more audience to my blog, whether I am able to connect with anyone or not, whether my efforts are worth it, is my writing very ordinary, and so on. But, when I remind myself of my purpose, I overcome those distractions.

4.    Time Management- I feel that I am putting more time than necessary. I have to be more disciplined with respect to time. Sometimes, due to over enthusiasm, we don’t realize that we have to optimize the time available with us, effort we are putting and the quality of the work at hand. Just by being more conscious about time, we can do get more satisfaction. These days, I am really not concerned about eating, sleeping or talking to anyone because I am hungry to write more and more. 

I am in flow and the process is really amazing. I need to go now to clean the mess that I have created over these weeks which are a byproduct of my writing spree. My beards have grown up a lot and I have not shaved for 2 weeks. I have piles of cloths that are waiting for getting washed for long as literally my entire wardrobe in now in the cloth bin. Whatever, it may be but this is a amazing feeling and I am experiencing in after long time. I don’t want this flow to die and hence I am planning to be much disciplined to enjoy this Flow forever.

5.    Don’t get overwhelmed- I want to share that while chasing a target like I have set, it sometimes feels overwhelming and chances are that we can quit the challenge in the middle. But, by being a bit careful, we can use such tall challenges to do great wonders. I want to explain it by citing an example; my writing challenge is like chasing the score of 450 runs against Australia in a 50 over Match. I have two options.

Either, I can play aggressively from the first over or I try to make a strong foundation, save my wickets early in my inning and score at a decent rate to scale up after getting closer to the target in the last 15 over to seal the game. In the first case either I will definitely win or I may lost by huge margin like get all out on 180 in 30 over, and fail to play 50 over of my quota. But, in the second case, chances are that I may win or go very close to the target.

I feel that while chasing an uphill challenge like what I set for myself for writing 111 blog posts in 30 days, the second approach is better. Because, it’s all about staying focus and write as many beautiful posts in 30 days. I don’t want to burnout and quit the challenge altogether. I want to go close to the target, as close as possible while enjoying my writing spree. After all, it is first of all about my passion. 

It is not a compulsion but a joy and I want to continue it like that forever. I feel successful in the challenge irrespective of the outcome because it helped me overcome my inhibition to write and I am enjoying what I am doing. You can let me know what you feel about my approach @ Discussion Forum.

6.   Deal with apathy/ negative feedbacks or immediate attention- I am able to write regularly for more than last 2 weeks just because I learned to deal with these three things- Apathy, Negative Feedback & Immediate attention.  Let me candidly explain all these things. Apathy is lack of enthusiasm of my readers, who were coming initially. I have got a couple of negative feedback regarding my style of writing from close friends. It was found to be plain as someone felt I should add some spice in my writing. 

But, again, I am unable to learn how to do it without compromising with my intent to write passionately with my heart rather that sensitizing anything to impress my audiences. I am here to express not to impress. While, I was dealing with a feeling that probably I was unable to connect with my audiences, my two answers on Quora, which were well received helped me to regain my confidence. Many people started visiting this blog all of a sudden and I was feeling very uncomfortable to receive so much attention. It is a very good learning experience for me. Also see my answers on quora which were a morale boosters- What’s wrong with Flipkart ( 145+ up votes and approx. 5000 views) & How does it feels to not quality in IIT JEE ( 55+ up votes and approx 3800 views)

I want my readers to just get the motivation to start doing something they truly want without getting affected by anything. If they are not good enough in something they want to do then by starting doing those things more often they will evolve their skills and eventually become very good in what they want to do. I am feeling proud that I am able to fulfill my passion while reminding others that Life is Beautiful.

By- Rohan Sinha

(This is the 31st blog post in his challenge to create 111 blog posts in 30 days, now 12 days are left for this challenge to get over)