If we stay where we are, where we’re stuck, where we’re comfortable and safe, we die there. We become like mushrooms, living in the dark, with poop up to our chins. If you want to know only what you already know, you’re dying. You’re saying: Leave me alone; I don’t mind this little rathole. It’s warm and dry. Really, it’s fine. When nothing new can get in, that’s death. When oxygen can’t find a way in, you die. But new is scary, and new can be disappointing, and confusing – we had this all figured out, and now we don’t. New is life.” ~ Anne Lamott
Writers Block. Stuck In A Rut. 21 Ways To Overcome…
You can’t think yourself out of a writing block; you have to write yourself out of a thinking block. ~John Rogers
Writers block is a common phenomenon among writers. It’s the condition of being unable to think of what to write or how to proceed with writing. The question was asked and the list was compiled from advice gleaned from a Book Writers’ forum. The ideas are simple and delightfully thought-provoking. Here I share 21 of the more exhilarating.
- Embrace it as gestation
- Listen to music
- Take a break or work on something else
- Go back to what inspired you first
- Change your scenery.
- Go for a walk
- Write something personal
- Read. Get motivated. Then go back
- Put the pen and paper down.
- Leave it alone and the ideas will come home
- Ask questions of your stories
- Try writing something different
- Take a shower. Let the water flow and the ideas will come
- Free write. Write about your day. Just write
- Ask another writer what they are working on. The change of focus will inspire you
- People who succeed as writers write
- Take a writing course
- Be in a group
- Write about writer’s block. Something will inspire
- Watch a movie
- Get physical. Go to the gym. Break a sweat
Did any of the above resonate? Can you add any? Do share! We would love to hear!
Cheers!
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Literary Event…
Always thrilled to participate in South Florida’s Writers Of Color igniting, harnessing, directing literary imagination and creativity. Come see, hear, listen and be inspired March 2-3, in Miami.
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Time Out…
Rushing To A Place Where You Don’t Want To Be. The Answer Is In The Why…
I go to seek a Great Perhaps. ~Francois Rabelais
Rushing to a place where you don’t want to be. Why? Why do you do that? Why do you spend your life rushing around? Rushing to work? Rushing home to a place where you do not want to be. Rushing to water a failing relationship with family, friends or foe? Rushing to do what others want you to do?
Then after all the rush…when you finally arrive at your destination, you are miserable. Life seems hard. Unfair. So many questions. Why do you do it? Is it because you can’t do any better?
The Answer Is In The Why
You rush to the job because you need to pay the rent-to have shelter. A place to rest. A place where you want to feel the solace of those who care. You need food. Independence. You need to feel worthy. To avoid the shame. To avoid the dread of what others may think.
Forget Them
Forget them. Take the steps needed to do you. To go after that dream. Make a plan. Work that plan. Keep it at the forefront of your mind. And when the going gets rough…work it even harder. You will get there… someway, somehow.
Here are a 7 tips to help you when you feel stuck. Need help? Let’s connect.
Cheers!
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Top 20 Companies To Work For…
Success is no accident
Years ago I managed the process that led to GlaxoSmithKline capturing the coveted Employer of Choice Award. It was indeed a great place to work. Since then I have always been encouraged by other companies who achieve the same feat and become the envy of many who long for a great place to work…somewhere you can’t wait to jump out of bed in the mornings to get to.
Fortune 100 Best revealed its list of the top 100 Best companies to work for in 2019. Here I share the top 20.
- Hilton
- Salesforce
- Wegmans Food Market Inc
- Workday
- Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants
- Cisco
- Edward Jones
- Ultimate Software
- Texas Health Resources
- The Boston Consulting Group Inc
- Stryker Corporation
- Publix Super Markets Inc
- American Express
- Quicken Loans
- Orrick
- Baird
- JM Family Enterprises
- Kimley-Horn
- Camden Property Trust
- Cooley LLP
Didn’t see your company’s name? Check the list to see where they fall.
Cheers!
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On The Hunt? 7 Ways To Show Your Talents And Accomplishments…
Life changes. Careers that once were exciting later becomes a strain or even boring. Sometimes the organization changes or a beloved supervisor leaves and the environment becomes unbearable. Other times you may simply want more…or less as with managers who no longer wish to lead. Newly weds may want to start a family and just want to do enough to get by.
Resume Reveal
Well if you haven’t looked at your resume for a while you’ve got some work to do to capture your the journey your career has been on to start your search. Don’t rush it. Take your time to get it done. You may not get it perfect immediately, but in time you will.
Here are 7 ways authors Wendy Enelow and Louise Kursmark espoused by SHRM on updating your resume. The tips can be applied to any situation. Read the full article How to Write Powerful and Memorable Resumes
- Use a well-branded headline
- Share details about the organization you worked for
- Emphasize Achievements
- Highlight key words
- Prepare your resume for applicant tracking system (ATS)
- Share what makes you special ( what separates you from others)
- Write tight, clean and lean
Need help? Let’s connect
Cheers!
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Living Your Life As A Mask…
A new writer shared her Instagram name. It was nowhere close to her real names . I beckoned to her… smile in tow…”you do make it hard, don’t you? In haste she retorted “it’s so my employer can’t find me”.
I smiled.
Our Lives In Compartments
How many of us are like that? We live our lives in compartments trying to separate our true selves from what those around us see publicly.
To Hide To Be
It’s a hard choice but sometimes you have to hide in order “to be“. I pray one day that you will be able to just be. To reveal your true identity and just be the you that you want to be.
Cheers!
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This Secret Of Mine…
A group of writers were challenged to a Write In, Write Out Session. After free writing for an hour, Akiim Jarrett wrote this spoken word that characterises his gift. Here I share:
Screams, Shrieks and Secrets
it screams – this secret of mine-
hidden heartbreak and soul-stirring agony,
so I crave peace.
a peace which remains unbothered
a peace ne’er t’be interrupted;
but these days dreams don’t get fulfilled and life rolls you along with the punches at whim.
it shrieks – this secret of mine-
divine calamity a beautiful harmony
can you see it in catastrophic splendor?
a jaw dropping visage,
an image and event to die for-
a living truth I’d reluctantly lie for.
it sounds off –
like the loud silence insecurities decorate-
a masterpiece that doubt artfully paints
can’t you see?
or will you see how this feels like it’s been before,
karmic justice settling the score-
quote raven or mock the peacock
choose that which haunts less is all I implore
secrets aside – lies do thrive
tis better to release than bury inside.
it can be different
things need not be the same
you can produce the change
from the inner stain of shame
that brought you much pain.
just be – you – in its entirety
and all good things will follow-
beloved, it’s merely a formality
By Akiim Alqhumizta
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Does It Require A No?
Every secret of a writer’s soul, every experience of his life, every quality of his mind, is written large in his works. ~Virginia Woolf
A group of writers were challenged to a Write In, Write Out Session. After free writing for an hour, Antoya Lee wrote this delectable piece that shows her talent waiting to be honed. Here I share:
What is Rape? Does it Require A “No?”
~Antoya Lee
If I push my beliefs, wants, and desires on you, and I succeed in having my way, should I be held accountable for my actions? If, my persistence made me successful in having my way but brought upon you harm and danger.
Or, should I be vindicated from my exploitation of your mind and body and be freed from punishment because of my intellectual ignorance? My mind’s ability to reason and understand based on the knowledge or lack thereof, stored within my mind.
Hear, the words, that proceed as I speak. Abuse and harassment, of any type: sexual, verbal, physical, mistreatment, recklessness, carelessness, ignorance and arrogance. Have you been impacted by such activities or behaviors? Were you the offender, or of your life, a victim of such social behaviors that are communicated amongst our social environment?
Sadly, were you an offender in any group or area of your social environment, where you mistreated, misrepresented yourself or something, in order to have your way and accomplish your desires and wants. Or, to support your beliefs and needs, with your friends, with your family, and coworkers, strangers and lovers, church or other group member affiliation.
Were you ever so persistent in having your way to the detriment of another against that person’s comfort and will?
Is rape or harassment just something sexual?
Or, could it be a form of social communication, verbally and physically, expressed in any type of social situation and setting amongst people in your social circle.
Could it be social manipulation, simply to accomplish one’s own disparate deeply desired wishes?
Not just sexual, but could rape simply, but greatly be social dysfunction, after all the offenses in every area of our lives that happened upon us, or we upon them.
I forgive you. Do you forgive me? Of social rape. Trying to have my own way.
My point: Lets be mindful of how we interact and how we share our habits with each other because rape is social contamination.
By Antoya Lee
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The Biggest Challenge Writers Face….
There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.
― Maya Angelou
A public writers forum asked the question “what is the single biggest challenge you as a writer face?” Here I share responses as writers chimed in:
- Writing everyday
- Marketing
- Not enough erasers
- Find an agent
- A full-time job that isn’t
- Learning all the required skills – writing, editing, cover art, publishing, marketing, salesmanship, accounting …
- Identifying my audience
- Details
- Time
- Reviews
- Getting books sold
- Selling myself
- Lethargy
- Butt in chair
- Discipline
- Marketing costs. Dispite what some may say, it is expensive to self-publish. Editor, copy editor, cover design, copyright, ISBN numbers, authors copies, advertising, website, domain name, contests, give-aways, and on and on it goes
- Self-Doubt
- Stay Motivated
- Writers block
The list goes on. Are you a new or published author? Is anything missing? Do share. We would love to hear.
Need help? Let’s connect.
Cheers!
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Love’s Impossiblity…
My story is about love
The impossibility of perfect love
Though I have the perfect love
It’s impossible to hone it
Impossible to prove it
Impossible to feel it
Impossible to find it
Perfect love
My love
My perfect love at Valentine
