(Look for this week’s #ThursdayThoughtfulness questions after the jump.)
This Week’s Questions: Do you often feel rushed to achieve your goals or dreams? Or, do you have a habit of overwhelming yourself by putting too much on your plate, even if those “to-do” items are things you truly want? How could practicing patience with those pursuits ease those burdens and allow you to enjoy the journey, or the act of accomplishing those goals or dreams, as much as finally reaching them?
Follow #ThursdayThoughtfulness at the blog and on Twitter at 11:00 AM Eastern. Feel free to spread the thoughtfulness by reblogging this post, writing your own post on this topic, or sharing the quote image on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.
Sara Letourneau 
Yes to all the questions! I’m even in a hurry to be more patient! But I thoroughly agree the journey is as important as the destination. Ironically, my WIP is mostly a race between two expeditions, whose rivalry and haste get them both into constant trouble, making it a literal race to the death for many of the explorers.
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Yes to all the questions! I’m even in a hurry to be more patient!
*lol* Which only defeats the purpose, right? 😉
I like how you made a connection between the quote’s overall theme and your WIP. Impulsiveness, among other factors, can definitely lead to characters making poor decisions that can affect their lives as well as the world around them. It’s also an idea that’s worth thinking about in real life, maybe now more than ever before…
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Some of my characters are impulsiveness personified, even the good guys. They follow the ‘Ready, fire, aim!’ school! Quite unlike myself, since I am very careful despite my impatience.
I love your George Eliot quote. I could argue with it, but I won’t, because it’s intended to be inspirational rather than literally correct.
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Isn’t it fun to write characters who are so different from yourself, though? It’s like you get to live vicariously through them, and do things you wouldn’t dare do in real life. 🙂
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Oh, I have an ongoing back and forth relationship with these very things. I have so much on my plate right now that I frequently wonder what the heck I’m thinking taking on so much, and I feel like the world is collapsing in on me. And then then next day I’ll think, oh everything is falling into place. No problems here. But I’m certainly enjoying the ride. At least I can say that.
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🙂 I was just responding to Phoenix’s comment, and she said something very similar. The ride isn’t always going to be smooth; there will be challenges (either of our own making, or ones that life throws at us), but if we’re perseverant enough, we can make it through. And I hear you about the stress of having a lot on your plate. It’s one of my worst habits… but I think I’m slowly becoming more mindful of balancing commitments with my energy level and my time. Emphasis on “think,” of course.
I’m guessing yours must be related to the local literary events you’ve been involved with recently, among other things?
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Being mindful of the balance between commitments and energy level is a wise plan. I don’t foresee that being in the cards for me.
You are absolutely right that I’ve found myself buried as a result of the literary events I’ve been planning. I need to learn how to enjoy this part too though. On the bright side, I just finalized the date for the quarterly event with the library this week. Now I need to make sure we get an agenda worked out. The event isn’t until Sept., but I’d like to get that part worked out in the next week or so. And I’m heading to an open mic tonight at a local cafe with a member for my writing group. We’re going to scout out the event they already have, which I hear is primarily music, but is open to literary works, and see if we can’t just start our event under the umbrella of what they’re already doing until we grow large enough to need a date of our own.
And I just discovered that by telling you about all that, I actually am excited about it. Maybe I can enjoy this part after all. 🙂
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Yay! 🙂 I’m glad that by writing about everything that’s coming up, you were able to find joy in all of it again. So I wish you the best of luck as you continue planning and preparing. How was the open mic night, btw?
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It was wonderful. A lot of fun, but it was evident the crowd expected to hear music and the place was already packed with people. I think it’s a great venue, so my next plan is to see if they’ll allow us to do a literary open mic on a different night.
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I certainly feel like I have too much on my plate right now. I seem to go from having nothing, to having everything. It would be so nice to enjoy the journey more. Instead I feel like I’m fighting my way through it. But I think the moments where things do come together, and I see the results of my fight, the moments where I smile and can’t stop, are worth the fight.
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You made an excellent point, though. Sometimes the journey can be stressful and difficult to enjoy, and all we want is to simply get through it and reach our destination or goals so that those challenges can be behind us. And when things do work out, not only is it a relief, but it gives you a chance to look back and say, “I did it, even through all the busyness and heartache.” And, in a strange sort of way, it makes you grateful for your patience, determination, and resilience along the way. Right?
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Oh dear, I thought I’d replied to this comment ages ago. 😦 Sorry.
Life does have a habit of throwing a lot onto our plates, which can be frustrating when you finally think you’ve got things to a manageable level.
And yes, I think most things are worth it in the end. In my life I see a lot of people who give up part way through a journey, and it makes me so grateful that I’m determined (and stubborn) enough to keep going, despite how hard things are.
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It’s OK. I’m sure I’ve lost track of comments in the past myself, so I totally understand. 😉
And I agree with everything you said here, especially the part about not wanting to be one of those people who have given up. Sometimes I think about what my life would be like without writing… and that’s what keeps me going. Because if I stopped, for any reason, life would become empty, as if I’ve lost sight of what brings meaning to it all – and that frightens me, and motivates me to keep going.
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Love this quote and this image. ^ ^ I definitely feel rushed to achieve my goals sometimes.
storitorigrace.blogspot.com
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^^ I feel the same way sometimes, which is why I decided to share that particular quote last week. Maybe it’s because we want to reach those goals so badly and are impatient to get to that point? Or because we compare our progress negatively next to other writers, and wish we could keep pace with anyone who writes faster, works more productively, etc.? But when I read this quote, it reminds me that rushing does no good as you pursue your desires. As long as you work toward your goals consistently and believe in yourself, chances are you’ll get there someday.
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I’ll go with the plate theme here, Sara! You know i love a full plate – I don’t like much, though, when my green beans are mixed in with my cole slaw. A monumental, recent change I’ve made is putting all my thoughts and projects onto index cards, and prioritizing them.
I devote fully to each card at a time. Putting all my projects on cards clears them from my mind. Previously, I was NOT doing dozens of things in my head, and feeling as if I’d failed each of them together. Now, I have those cards, with the next action listed on them.
This gives me the peace of mind to foster new thoughts and ideas, and not try to sort through all my to-do’s on a constant loop. Love how timely your post is with where I am!
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p.s. Is it true that that is you in the picture in this post?? Rad.
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*gasps* How did you know?? XD
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*lol* But doesn’t all our food go down the same pipe in the end? 😉 (Don’t mind me – I’m just teasing.)
Index cards… I’ve never thought of that before in terms of “taking care of to-do items.” But by putting them on separate index cards, it probably makes it less overwhelming than looking at a list of everything you need / want to do. Do you add a new index card / to-do item when you take care of another one? Or do you add each card as you think of something?
“Love how timely your post is with where I am!”
You’re not the first person to say that about this series in general. 😉 I’m glad this quote resonated with you!
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Yes, food goes down the same pipe, but we don’t have to taste it there, Sara! haha.
I add cards as I think of separate tasks – and I write only the next actionable item. For instance, I have one item, “Call AT&T,” and “find invoice” as the first action item – I can’t do anything until I find that! (Which I did, incidentally.)
Love this new feature.
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It’s a very good quote. With the push for success and the constant reminder of younger people already being “there”, I can imagine almost everyone feel like they’re already too late to achieve anything.
I also think that this thought is missing one little thing: it’s not too late if you start “today”, and not “tomorrow”. So many people leave reaching their dreams for the unspecified tomorrow that they fail to ever start getting to them.
As for feeling overwhelmed, I don’t feel it that much lately. I choose my priorities, change them if needed, and generally I’m more conscious about what I need to do, what is important to me, and what can wait.
My bullet journal helps me to stay organized and somewhat on track with things, and I don’t feel like I need anything more organization-wise at the moment.
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“it’s not too late if you start “today”, and not “tomorrow”. So many people leave reaching their dreams for the unspecified tomorrow that they fail to ever start getting to them.”
YES. As another famous saying goes, “Why put off till tomorrow what you can do today?” The sooner we start pursuing our dreams, the more likely we are to reach them than if we continually delay ourselves. We just have to remember that, whatever this pursuit might be, it’s going to require patience and perseverance. 🙂
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Indeed. Planning instead of only dreaming, and then as you say: patience and perseverance.
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I was going to procrastinate today, but I decided to put it off until tomorrow…
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LOL! And did the procrastinating on procrastination work? Did you have a productive day in the end? 🙂
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Yes. I accomplished much procrastination!
But seriously, what Stephen King (in?)famously called ‘dicking off’ and most of us call ‘life’ intervened. I’m not writing much at the moment, but I am writing about writing (like this!) and plotting (my WIPS, not to take over the world!).
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