Stop Wishing, Create Your World-Class Life with Daily Increments – Daily Quote

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We hear this advice a lot, ‘Do your best,’ they say. But how do you go about it? Start by using yesterday as your baseline. What did you accomplish? Identify one item you could improve upon, then do it better, and faster. Incremental improvement is all you need. As you are working, throughout the day, let your passion seep into your work and do each task as if you intend to create a masterpiece.

Pretend you live a world-class life. You are the master chef when you prepare your morning coffee.  As the Prima Ballerina, you dance, floating gracefully into the shower, where Drake has curated your morning playlist. You channel your world-class stylist as you complete your morning routine. Coco selects your outfit and accessories. At work, your inner Einstein helps you complete your spreadsheet, Banksy illustrates your PowerPoints, while Hemmingway composes your emails, and Dale Carnegie conducts your meetings.

Bob Harper leads you through a grueling workout, Danica Patrick drives you to the grocery store, and Julia Childs prepares your dinner. Vow to give up using excuses for why you can’t. Get out of your way and start. Keep your promises to others, without fail. But realize it’s just as, even more, important to keep the promises you make to yourself.  Get a good night’s sleep, dream beautiful dreams, then do it 1% better tomorrow.

How will you make today better than yesterday?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – August 6

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 7 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 219 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday? Half of the year is in our rear-view mirror, and I am drawing a line in the sand. The targets I missed, the stories I didn’t compose, they no longer matter. These last six months are history. Done. I won’t lie, 2020 kicked me in the head, leaving me stunned, unsteady, and incapable of completing anything beyond basic tasks. I bet I am not alone, but don’t count me out yet. They say what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, right? I am confident I will discover I am more capable than I have ever been. I dug deep, reevaluated my annual goals, and I decided to double down. Can I get a year’s worth of work accomplished by Christmas? We will find out.

My turning point happened when I remembered reading somewhere that anxiety and excitement create similar emotional responses in the body. Anxiety raises your heart rate, your cortisol level increases, and your nerves prepare you for action. Most often, we respond by stress-eating a late-night pint of chocolate ice cream. The only difference between the two emotions is anxiety has a negative connotation, while we view excitement as positive. The answer seemed clear. I needed to reframe the context of my emotions and proceed as if my success lies on the horizon.

All that remains is for me to divide my workload into bite-size pieces, and do the next right thing. I am aligning my creative endeavors to focus on writing, editing, and creating a brighter future.

Try it, and let us know how you did in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

To Discover the Best Path to Your Truth, Just Jump – Daily Quote

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 6 Comments
ive-learnt-that-ive-had-the-best-results-from-just-trying-to-be-me-trying-to-make-a-movie-or-tv-show-i-want-to-see-or-write-a-script-i-want-to-read-and-thats-really-all-i-can-offer-being.

I have favorite authors, cherished books, and poems committed to memory.  Their words and the stories they create enrich my life, but I don’t want to write in their style or tell the same stories. The mold that shaped them is not the one that created me. Forcing myself to follow in their footsteps is the fastest way to kill my creativity. So, I don’t even try.

Those writers, authors, creators, and dreamers inspire bravery. Daring to pursue your own path means you walk alone. It pushes you to the edge of your comfort zone and forces you to jump. Life doesn’t hand you a parachute, bear repellent, or sunscreen as you head into the unknown. Friends and family offer sage advice, saying you don’t know what’s out there. They beg you to return to safety.

As a creative, it’s like asking you to stop breathing. The world needs your ideas, your stories, remarkable paintings, new devices, beautiful music, and the products of those searching for great achievement.

What achievement will you give the world?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – August 5

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 5 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 218 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday? Half of the year is in our rear-view mirror, and I am drawing a line in the sand. The targets I missed, the stories I didn’t compose, they no longer matter. These last six months are history. Done. I won’t lie, 2020 kicked me in the head, leaving me stunned, unsteady, and incapable of completing anything beyond basic tasks. I bet I am not alone, but don’t count me out yet. They say what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, right? I am confident I will discover I am more capable than I have ever been. I dug deep, reevaluated my annual goals, and I decided to double down. Can I get a year’s worth of work accomplished by Christmas? We will find out.

My turning point happened when I remembered reading somewhere that anxiety and excitement create similar emotional responses in the body. Anxiety raises your heart rate, your cortisol level increases, and your nerves prepare you for action. Most often, we respond by stress-eating a late-night pint of chocolate ice cream. The only difference between the two emotions is anxiety has a negative connotation, while we view excitement as positive. The answer seemed clear. I needed to reframe the context of my emotions and proceed as if my success lies on the horizon.

All that remains is for me to divide my workload into bite-size pieces, and do the next right thing. I am aligning my creative endeavors to focus on writing, editing, and creating a brighter future.

Try it, and let us know how you did in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Breaking Rules to Embrace the Path that Celebrates You – Daily Quote

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if-you-look-back-in-history-of-the-women-who-are-most-memorable-and-most-stylish-they-were-never-the-followers-of-fashion.-they-were-the-ones-who-were-unique-in-their-style-breakers-of-t

I never fit in at school. Child me didn’t understand, I thought I would gain knowledge. Adult me realized schools are institutions to teach children one lesson. They imprinted our minds, hard-wiring our psyche with the need to conform, to act like everyone else, to aspire to be average. When you finish high school, the path leads to college and your first job. Every step on the trail reinforces the advantages of conformity and sameness while nurturing a perception of the risk involved in being different.

Peer pressure, dress codes, formal reviews, and dollars in your bank account remind you, we are being judged. Somewhere, someone doesn’t approve of who I am, what I wear, what I do, and scoffs at how much money I don’t have. I would hate for them to lose their job, so I stopped following the rush to mediocrity. The opportunity cost of copying trends and denying my unique style became massive.  

Being yourself is difficult. Misunderstood, mocked, and treated as an outcast, is the norm for the nonconformist. They attack because they don’t understand and are fearful of the answers to questions they don’t want to consider. The payoff comes at some future date when even if they still don’t understand, they learn to respect the consistency of those who dare to be different.

How will you celebrate your unique self today?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – August 4

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 4 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 217 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday? Half of the year is in our rear-view mirror, and I am drawing a line in the sand. The targets I missed, the stories I didn’t compose, they no longer matter. These last six months are history. Done. I won’t lie, 2020 kicked me in the head, leaving me stunned, unsteady, and incapable of completing anything beyond basic tasks. I bet I am not alone, but don’t count me out yet. They say what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, right? I am confident I will discover I am more capable than I have ever been. I dug deep, reevaluated my annual goals, and I decided to double down. Can I get a year’s worth of work accomplished by Christmas? We will find out.

My turning point happened when I remembered reading somewhere that anxiety and excitement create similar emotional responses in the body. Anxiety raises your heart rate, your cortisol level increases, and your nerves prepare you for action. Most often, we respond by stress-eating a late-night pint of chocolate ice cream. The only difference between the two emotions is anxiety has a negative connotation, while we view excitement as positive. The answer seemed clear. I needed to reframe the context of my emotions and proceed as if my success lies on the horizon.

All that remains is for me to divide my workload into bite-size pieces, and do the next right thing. I am aligning my creative endeavors to focus on writing, editing, and creating a brighter future.

Try it, and let us know how you did in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Enjoying the Struggle Not the Destination – Daily Quote

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 7 Comments
ive-always-prided-myself-on-working-so-hard-and-then-achieving-goals-without-realizing-t

The internet hums with suggestions to be more productive, run faster, finish the never-ending to-do list. Don’t slacken your pace. Continue to advance to the next great item guaranteed to make our day. We spend our time working hard and achieving our goals. The message is attaining our objectives will bring us gratification. We buy into the mindset, the lifestyle. One by one, we reach the target and discover it leaves us without the fulfillment they promised.

If we are honest, we realize real pleasure, fun and enjoyment lie in the journey, the places we see, the individuals we met, the lives we touch. The struggle is thrilling. Helping each other brings us an unparalleled joy.  These truths etch themselves on our souls and represent the stories we need to tell. These paths filled with hardship and hope are the journeys our readers want to follow.

How do you celebrate the journey?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – August 3

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 4 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 216 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday? Half of the year is in our rear-view mirror, and I am drawing a line in the sand. The targets I missed, the stories I didn’t compose, they no longer matter. These last six months are history. Done. I won’t lie, 2020 kicked me in the head, leaving me stunned, unsteady, and incapable of completing anything beyond basic tasks. I bet I am not alone, but don’t count me out yet. They say what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, right? I am confident I will discover I am more capable than I have ever been. I dug deep, reevaluated my annual goals, and I decided to double down. Can I get a year’s worth of work accomplished by Christmas? We will find out.

My turning point happened when I remembered reading somewhere that anxiety and excitement create similar emotional responses in the body. Anxiety raises your heart rate, your cortisol level increases, and your nerves prepare you for action. Most often, we respond by stress-eating a late-night pint of chocolate ice cream. The only difference between the two emotions is anxiety has a negative connotation, while we view excitement as positive. The answer seemed clear. I needed to reframe the context of my emotions and proceed as if my success lies on the horizon.

All that remains is for me to divide my workload into bite-size pieces, and do the next right thing. I am aligning my creative endeavors to focus on writing, editing, and creating a brighter future.

Try it, and let us know how you did in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Allowing You Indecision to Create More Thoughtful Solutions – Daily Quote

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 7 Comments
i-used-to-think-i-was-indecisive-but-now-im-not-too-sure.-anonymous.

We look at indecisiveness as a negative attribute. There is unquestionable value in the ability to decide and act. But sometimes being indecisive can have its advantages, especially if it involves multiple sides to a complex issue. Often, we don’t care. We will follow our friends to whichever restaurant or movie the group chooses, knowing the real joy is in the moments spent with our buddies.

Someone once said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.”

Being indecisive allows time to gather and digest facts essential to validating or disproving opposing points of view. We open ourselves to information which conflicts with our existing opinions. We examine the merits of both sides of an argument. The pause stops us from blindly following long-held convictions. It means we are self-aware and willing to consider if those doctrines still reflect our inner selves.

Indecisiveness provides an opportunity to analyze what might happen if we opt to answer “yes” instead of our automatic “no.”  We can weigh short-term gains against a future benefit, which may far surpass an easy decision.

It is a valuable exercise to break from daily details and habits to give serious consideration to our assumptions. By questioning beliefs, indulging in contemplation, and trying new things, we find space to grow and find ourselves.

How can your indecisiveness improve your life?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – August 2

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 5 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 215 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday? Half of the year is in our rear-view mirror, and I am drawing a line in the sand. The targets I missed, the stories I didn’t compose, they no longer matter. These last six months are history. Done. I won’t lie, 2020 kicked me in the head, leaving me stunned, unsteady, and incapable of completing anything beyond basic tasks. I bet I am not alone, but don’t count me out yet. They say what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, right? I am confident I will discover I am more capable than I have ever been. I dug deep, reevaluated my annual goals, and I decided to double down. Can I get a year’s worth of work accomplished by Christmas? We will find out.

My turning point happened when I remembered reading somewhere that anxiety and excitement create similar emotional responses in the body. Anxiety raises your heart rate, your cortisol level increases, and your nerves prepare you for action. Most often, we respond by stress-eating a late-night pint of chocolate ice cream. The only difference between the two emotions is anxiety has a negative connotation, while we view excitement as positive. The answer seemed clear. I needed to reframe the context of my emotions and proceed as if my success lies on the horizon.

All that remains is for me to divide my workload into bite-size pieces, and do the next right thing. I am aligning my creative endeavors to focus on writing, editing, and creating a brighter future.

Try it, and let us know how you did in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer