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How I Slowed Down to Be a Better Writer
From fearless motivation to poetry, November was a month of polar extremes in my writing. Looking back, one theme stands out — self-reflection.
In our 24–7 culture, we often charge along at full speed. Hyperactive from dawn to dusk, we are always on a tight schedule. There are never enough hours in the day — when not putting out fires at work, we are absorbed by the admin of our daily lives.
As we speed along, we can neglect to reflect on how far we have come. The human impulse to always want more.
Look back at how far you’ve come
There is nothing wrong with setting the bar high, but when you are always wanting more you can overlook that which you already have. A better approach is to think back to where you started. Appreciate how much you have accomplished along the way.
Slowing down can help you to speed up.
To give a personal example:
In November I took a mini-break from long-form writing. I focused on writing in a more lyrical style, the output of which was a slew of poems and Haiku.
If you look at my Haiku you will notice I publish in both English and Japanese. Japan is a huge part of who I am. Yet…
