Are you plagued by “writer’s block”?
(I prefer to call it “blank page paralysis” because that terminology at least provides some clue as to how to overcome it.)
As I began writing today I felt a bit of this “paralysis” creeping into my psyche.
That’s when I was reminded of perhaps the world’s most effective 3-word success mantra.
Sorry Nike, it’s NOT “Just Do It”.
That sentiment is correct. But the directions are still just a little too unclear.
No, the three words I’m alluding to come from the “Prince of Print” himself, legendary copywriter Gary Halbert.
If you’re familiar with Halbert – as I’m sure most of my readers are – you know that he had more than a few tricks up his copywriting sleeve.
“Operation Money Suck” is one you’ll hear about.
That’s where you focus on the activities that “bring in the money” to the exclusion of literally everything else.
A powerful concept in business – something we should all be thinking about regularly.
But “Operation Money Suck” is NOT the 3-word phrase I’m referring to.
No, it’s even simpler than that.
And I find it provides almost instant clarity when I am stuck on what to do.
The phrase I’m referring to is this:
“Movement over meditation.”
Getting into motion is the KEY factor to making things happen.
You can’t go anywhere unless you first START moving.
This advice is so utterly simple – and yet for that same reason, I think we often take for granted its true power.
Nothing gets accomplished without action.
It’s perfectly fine to think.
There’s nothing wrong with thinking whatsoever (in fact, it’s a rare skill these days).
But to remain “in thought” for too long without taking action is the death of your entrepreneurial success, your sales ability, your content creation capacity, whatever it is you are trying to accomplish – it is ALL stifled by inaction.
Get out of “meditation” mode.
When you fool yourself into believing that you are getting work done by analyzing things in your mind, by ruminating and mulling things over, by “thinking things through” for another day or two. Realize this:
There is a time and a place for critical thought – and it’s ALWAYS!
But it can’t get in the way of your getting things in motion, getting things in action, getting things done and out the door.
Get into “movement” mode.
Make your default position to be that of taking action – no matter how minuscule.
Every action builds upon the previous one.
No mountains get climbed by pure thought alone.
Every mountain is conquered by the smallest of steps, repeated.
It requires the will to put your feet down one after another, again and again, until the job is done.
Yes, sometimes this process is agonizing and laborious.
No, it is not always a “walk in the park”.
It can be grueling.
But given the option of getting things done or not, the answer – if you want to make more money and create a better life for yourself, over the long term, at least – should be as obvious as a hot apple strudel being stuffed down your gym shorts.
How did Halbert overcome “blank page paralysis”?
Here’s where the utter simplicity of Halbert’s genius is exposed.
When plagued by “writer’s block” Halbert’s recommendation was to literally begin writing the words “blah, blah, blah, blah, blah” until you thought of something else to say.
Now, the fact is that most copywriters (or writers in general) likely won’t follow this advice…
Because it’s “too simple” for them.
But here’s where the psychology (or function) of the human brain takes over.
When we find ourselves in movement, with some momentum, AND when we are engaged in a task that we are both challenged by but also enjoy, then we enter a state often referred to as “flow”.
In a flow state, the passage of time seems to disappear from our awareness, and we are engrossed in our activity – the laboriousness of the task is superseded by our fascination and enjoyment of the sheer activity of doing.
That is a semi-meditative state in itself.
And THAT is the hack in the “movement over meditation” philosophy.
When properly executed, movement can BE meditation – while being immensely productive at the same time.
Let this idea rub its fingers on the walls of your grey matter for a while, and start testing out the theory.
It begins, of course, with movement.
Go get ‘em, tiger.
Paul
P.S. I’m writing a short book on how writers (and “wannabe” writers) can develop skills that get them past this “blank page paralysis” quickly and also help them develop into faster, more consistent content creators.
If you’d like to be notified when this book is completed sign up below.
I don’t know how much I’ll be selling it for when it gets released, but I do know that those who sign up now will get the best deal when it’s ready.