The Lesson I Recently Learned About Habits and My Challenge To You

For the past week I've been dog sitting. I've been looking after my daughter's little dog for 7 days.

She's a sweet little thing, extremely tiny (a Chihuahua cross) and so full of life she wears me out.

She is such a full-on little girl and her energy never seems to wain. She's like the Everyready Bunny and just goes and goes and goes, wanting to play all day.

And she loves toys.

On my desk I have a little stuffed toy of Marvin The Martian character from the Looney Toons cartoons.

Whenever Marvin falls off my desk, the little dog is quick to snatch him up and run off with him.

I took the dog home yesterday and today I sat down to write (haven't done much of that over the past week with the little Tasmanian Devil of a dog whirling around and barking at me when I don't pay her  enough attention), I took out my diary and when I closed the desk drawer, Marvin slipped sideways.

He would have fallen off the desk but quick as a flash I grabbed him and sat him up again.

And it occured to me that the reason I grabbed him so fast was so that the little dog couldn't get him.

But she's not here anymore.

Not only that, but last night, I nearly snapped the end off a dog treat before I gave it to our dog, thinking that I still needed a little piece for the other dog.

It's amazing how quickly my new habits formed. In just 7 days.

And you may be wondering what this has to do with writing, so I'll tell you.

If you have poor writing habits, like not having enough bum-in-chair time or getting easily distracted by bright, shining things on the internet or Facebook, try changing your habits for just 7 days and see the impact in can make into how much writing you get done and how much more money you earn.

Make it a one week challenge to sit and write more and to not get distracted by the internet.

Just sit down every day, write, and ship your work.
https://goinswriter.com/you-must-ship/

See how much you can write and publish in the next 7 days.

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Goodbye Writer's Block
How to Be a Creative Genius and Have an Abundance of Ideas Plus the Inspiration and Motivation to Write
http://www.cheritonhousepublishing.com/books/WB.html

Want to Write More Books?

I don't know about you, but most of my income comes from writing books.

I also earn money from freelance writing (but I do less and less these days), online advertising and affiliate marketing.

But mostly from my books.

And if you're the same, then to make more money you need to write more books.

Naturally, this means you need a constant and never-ending supply of ideas.

Which isn't easy.

Years ago I found a way to not only find ideas, but to find great ideas and to know exactly what readers are looking for so I know what to include in my books.

And once you know how to find ideas, if you're like me, you'll quickly go from writers' block to idea overload.

And how do find great ideas?

You just have to start looking.

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Goodbye Writer's Block
How to Be a Creative Genius and Have an Abundance of Ideas Plus the Inspiration and Motivation to Write
http://www.cheritonhousepublishing.com/books/WB.html

Writer's Block - Cured!

Many writers are tormented writer's block while others just laugh at the entire thought of it and say that writer's block is just an excuse for lazy writers.

You probably have your own thoughts on this, and so have many psychologists and there have been many papers published on the topic of writer's block.

Here are two ways that some psychologists see writer's block:

(1) There are sufferers of writer's block and there are those that cannot believe that a creative person like a writer can stop writing (or fail to start) because they've run out of ideas.

(2) There are two reasons why people write - accomplishment or because they simply enjoy writing. Those writing for accomplishment, acceptance, praise, fame, and/or money, are more likely to experience writer's block. Those who write for the enjoyment of writing, itself, experience few if any experiences of writer's block.

But what it comes down to is that if you want to write, then you need to always have a plethora of ideas.

And if you make excuses, you cannot write.

So what can you do if the urge to write is there but the ideas just won't come?

Start by looking for ideas.

Look at what others have written on the same subject that you want to write about.

Doing this will not only give you some great ideas of your own but will also give you insights on how you could do it better.

Remember, you don't have to re-invent the wheel, you just have to create a better wheel than all the others by seeing what they're doing wrong, and doing it right.

And that's how easy it is to start the cure for writer's block.

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Goodbye Writer's Block
How to Be a Creative Genius and Have an Abundance of Ideas Plus the Inspiration and Motivation to Write
http://www.cheritonhousepublishing.com/books/WB.html

Writing With Confidence

No matter what you do for a living, having confidence is important for many reasons, but mostly it's because no one wants to do business with someone who lacks confidence in themselves, or in what they're selling.

And it's just as important if what you are selling is your writing.

If you lack confidence, it will show in your writing and in all your communications.

I often get emails from people offering me their publishing/proof-reading/graphic services and I delete them simply because the person comes across as simpering or desperate or unknowledgeable.

Instead I prefer to hear from someone who is sure about what they are trying to sell and know their product well. It makes me feel safe to do business with them.

So when you're writing, have confidence in what you're saying. Not only will it make your writing stronger and give the reader confidence in what you're saying, but it also makes you come across as really intelligent.

But how do you get the confidence you need?

There's a popular saying, "fake it till you make it."

Best selling author Joe Vitale calls it Nevillizing.

The term comes from his book The Attractor Factor: 5 Easy Steps for Creating Wealth (or Anything Else) From the Inside Out. He named this method  after Neville Goddard, a very inspiring self-help author, and chapter 4 of this book (it's one of my favourite books) is all about how to Nevillize.

Nevillizing uses creative visualization for attracting anything that you want in your life. It uses vivid images to create a virtual reality of living the end result of anything that you want to achieve.

Nevillizing means living the emotions of already being who/where you want to be.

So if you want to be a best selling author, imagine yourself as having already sold a million copies of your books.

How confident would you be writing a blog post if you'd already achieved your writing and publishing dream of being a millionaire author?

THAT'S the confidence you need to write with.

And the time to start doing it is now.

------------------

Jeff Gardner Multi-Million-Dollar Copywriter

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THIS is How You Make Money as a Writer

Have you ever bought a book about writing?

And if you did, did you use it?

Well, let me tell you a secret about how to make an unlimited amount of money from your writing.

Take the book (or ebook, or audiobook or writing course...etc) that you bought, and use it over and over again.

You see, when you bought the book, you must have bought it for a reason. And that reason was because you wanted to learn how to do something.

So look at your purchase this way:

The cost of the book is a one-off payment. You bought it and now it's yours to keep.

But the value you can get from it is unlimited.

This means that you pay for it once and then use it over and over again until you can do whatever it is without having to use the book every time.

And it works with anything.

For instance,  if you bought a gardening book, you can use it over and over until your garden looks like the one in the pictures.

If you bought a diet and fitness book, read it several times and follow the advice until you have the body of your dreams.

If you bought a writing/marketing book, the earnings you can make by following the advice in the book are only limited by how many times you do it.

Make this the year that you unlock the potential of all the how-to books, ebooks, audios and seminar recordings that you already own.

And if you don't have any, buy some and go deep with them.

----------------

Money-Making Books From Cheriton House Publishing
http://www.cheritonhousepublishing.com/make-money.html

The Demand For Books On Spirituality

For a while I've noticed a trend in the rising number of books being written and published on the subject of spirituality.

There seem to be more and more books about how to meditate, how to be more mindful, how to be happy and so forth.

And I recently read an article in Publisher's Weekly (https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/religion/article/76064-religion-and-spirituality-books-preview-march-2018.html) that talked about this very subject.

It seems that the reason for this rise, is because Millenials are swiftly moving away from churches and organised religion and so are looking for answers elsewhere.

So many are turning particularly, it seems, to meditation and Buddhism.

Yet there are still plenty of books being published about organised religion too, all aimed at trying to bring Millenials back to the church and organised religion.

And the reason I'm telling you this is because if you have been wanting to write a self-help book based on religion helping to heal lives, then is a great market to be writing for right now.

Just remember that before you write a word, know exactly who you're writing your book for plus have a 10-point marketing plan to make sure your intended readers find your book.

I talk about this in my free ebook, How to Write  a Book in 6 Days
http://www.cheritonhousepublishing.com/free-ebooks.html

-------------------------


The 10 Day Ebook
Write your next ebook in 10 days or less AND earn AT LEAST $1,000/month from it. Guaranteed or your money back.
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An Ingenious Strategy For Writing More Books

I was listening to one of the audio recordings from The Titans of Direct Response Marketing seminar which I purchased recently. http://titansdvds.com.

And in it, one of the biggest Titans, Gary Bencivenga, was talking about the best time to write.

He said that the first hour of the morning was the best time because (and I'm paraphrasing here) it's a mix of time in the brain between the awake conscious mind and the still-sleepy unconscious mind, which makes it the best time to let great ideas flow.

This is also somewhat echoed by others like author Jack Canfield who calls the first hour of the day his "Hour of Power" which he uses for 20 minutes each of exercise, meditation and reading. You can read more about it at http://jackcanfield.com/blog/tools-for-success-hour-of-power/.

And there is also, of course, writer and speaker, Hal Elrod who years ago devised his Miracle Morning strategy to help people really set up their day so they feel highly motivated and productive.

He even wrote a book about it that has been one of the world's best sellers for years. The Miracle Morning: The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed To Transform Your Life… (Before 8AM) is one of the highest rated books on Amazon and is being widely regarded as “one of the most life-changing books ever written.”

It's based on the premise that how you start your day largely determines the quality of your day, your work, and your life. http://viewbook.at/MiracleMorning.

And I've found the first hour of my day to be the best time to write my books.

Before I do anything else like check emails or check my diary to see what I'll be working on for the rest of the day, I get out my latest manuscript and work on that for an hour.

I find that my ideas flow much more freely and easily.

And it also helps me because even if other things come up during the day so that I don't get as much writing done as I wanted to, at least I've moved further forward on my book.

And it's an ingenious way to make sure that I get more writing done because as Hal Elrod says in his book, The Miracle Morning, how you start your day determines the quality of the rest of the day.

----------------


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In The Writing Flow

"Eliminate the time between the idea and the act and your dreams will become realities."
~ Dr Edward L Kramer

If you want to do great writing, the "secret" is to write it quickly.

You see, if you have a great idea about a book, an article, or any other writing project, if you don't act on it straight away, you won't act on it at all.

I've heard it said that ideas are gifts. Each one arrives only once and when it's gone, it's irrevocably gone.

Here is what I know happens with ideas:

1. A great idea is lost if you don't act on it straight away. Don't think that you'll remember it because you won't. Once it's gone, it's over.

2. Making a note of it and putting it in a drawer won't work either. It will still be lost because once you get around to reading your notes, it won't be the same because your initial enthusiasm and drive are gone.

3. You won't be able to act on your ideas unless you make your writing your most important mission. Don't let anything else get in the way. Once you have a brilliant idea, use it.

You won't lose your ideas if you act fast.

You don't even have to get it right, you only have to get it written.

You can always go back later and polish it.

But you can't do anything with a blank page.

So don't lose your next great idea.

Act fast.

Make your writing your main mission and work on it straight away.



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Then read it again, and again, and again.
Then act on it.

Not Getting Enough Writing Done & What to Do About It

"Change your mind and it will change your life. If nothing around you changes, change the things that are around you." 

~ Tyrese Gibson

Are you getting enough writing done?

If not, do you know why or what to do about it?

You can tell if you're not getting enough writing done by how much money you're earning from your writing. If you're not earning enough, you're not writing enough.

The quote above is true. If you want change, then something has to change first, because if you keep doing what you're doing, you'll keep getting what you're getting.

But what needs to change so that you can write more?

The answer depends on your circumstances and what you're doing now.

It can be as simple as changing where you write. 

Some writers find it much easier to write when they're away from home, like sitting in a park or at the library or in a cafe. While others prefer to have a designated writing place at home so that as soon as they sit down their mind moves into writing mode.

Or it may be that you're not doing enough of the right kind of writing.

If you're writing books that aren't selling, perhaps you need to do more marketing, or maybe you shouldn't write books and should blog instead or do freelance writing or affiliate marketing, or branch out and do them all.

Whatever it is, look at where you write and what you write.

Don't just think about it fleetingly, but sit down and give it serious consideration. 

When I need to think something over  I write down what I'm thinking which forces me to look at things logically so that it all makes sense, and then I come up with lots of other ideas.

They say that you can change your life in a minute, by changing your mind.

So if you're not getting enough writing done, change what's around you (physically and/or mentally), because if nothing changes, then nothing changes.

What If...

What would happen if you wandered into a cafe with nothing but a notebook and pen just to see where it can take you?

How much writing do you think you could do?

How many ideas could you discover?

Just you, your steaming hot cup of coffee and nothing to do but use your notebook and pen.

Bliss.

That's what sometimes needs to happen.

 But it doesn't have to be a cafe.

It can be a travel mug of coffee that you take to the park, or go sit on a bench/chair in the middle of a busy shopping mall.

Try it for yourself.

I once sat on a bench in the middle of a busy shopping mall while I was waiting for someone who was in a job interview in one of the large department stores.

She got the job and I got heaps of writing done.

And the funny thing was that when she came out of the interview, she apologised that it took so long.

Yet I had been so busy writing that I thought she'd only been gone 10 or 15 minutes. But it was actually an hour and a half.

I had no idea how the time passed so quickly, but I got pages and pages of hand-writing done.

And so many new ideas my head was buzzing.

It was a great day for us both.


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What To Do When You Don't Feel Like Writing

Do you have days when you just don't feel like writing?

I have those days sometimes.

And do you know what I do?

I write anyway.

Writing is a daily job.

I don't always feel inspirational before I sit down to write, but once I start writing, the inspiration comes.

I think it was Stephen King who said (and I'm paraphrasing) that your muse doesn't show up for work until you do.

So when the same thing happens to you and you really, REALLY don't feel like writing, my advice is just sit down and start.

If you don't know what to do, re-read the previous day's work.

Look through your ideas book.

Copy out someone else's work that you admire.

Just start doing something. Anything. And the rest is easy.

Be professional about it. When you had a regular job and you just weren't in the mood for work, did you just simply not turn up?

Of course not. You went to work and once you got into the flow, it was easy to keep going.

And so it is with writing.

So treat it as a job, not a hobby.

And if you want to try something different, download The 10 Day Ebook course, follow the step by step instructions, and it will make it so easy to get your book written and published. And you can earn $1,000 a month from it. That's guaranteed, or you can have a full refund.

So try it.

You've got absolutely nothing to lose.

http://ruthiswriting.com/links/10dayebook.html

Doing Goals Wrong?

I've heard quite a few people lately talking about their "new" goals for 2018.

And what struck me the most is not that their "new" goals seem the same as their usual goals that they make every year, and that they had an end goal but no plans to get there.

That's why I think that goal planning is more about knowing the tasks you need to do rather than the end goal you're expecting.

For instance, if you want to lose weight, don't make losing 20kg your goal, instead decide what exercise you're going to take up, what it is that you're going to eat, and, more importantly, what you're not going to eat. In other words, know what you're going to do every day.

And if you want to make more money from your writing, instead of having a goal of making $100K this year, think about how you're going earn a lot more money, what writing you're going to do every day, what time of day you're going to do it, or what you need to learn so that you can achieve your goal.

Perhaps you need to learn more about blogging, or how to write a book or how to make money freelance writing.

Whatever it is, think of what you need to do to get you to your goal, and then concentrate only on working your way through the steps you need to take.

This is a much better way to approach goal setting because it puts you in the driving seat of what you can control (the tasks you need to do) instead of looking at something that is unachievable without knowing the right steps to take (your goal).

Focus on what you can control.

And if you don't know how to reach your goal, find a way to learn what you need to know.



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Affiliate Marketing Needs At Least Temporary Enthusiasm

When you're working as an affiliate marketer and you're writing content for your blog/website to promote a product, you're selling something that your customer want, but it doesn't necessarily have to be something that you want for yourself.

But your enthusiasm for the product needs to come across in your writing.

So how do you do it?

I was once listening (we'll, actually I've listened to it lots of times because it was so good) to an audio interview with one of the world's top copywriters, Bob Bly.

It's a fascinating interview because he talks about how and where he writes, and he's written sales copy for a lot of top people and big companies.

He said that he has to write about all kinds of different products and that while he doesn't always love what he's writing about, he needs to be able to get at least what he calls, temporarily enthusiastic about it.

For instance, he said he couldn't write about hunting because he doesn't hunt and has no interest in it. But he could talk about vegetarianism because although he's not a vegetarian, he can see why it appeals to a lot of people, so he could get temporarily enthusiastic about the subject.

But it's not just topics that you need to get temporarily enthusiastic about.

It can be individual products too.

I sell writing products that I don't personally need but I know that others do, so I have to get temporarily enthusiastic about owning it.

I also write in the weight loss niche, and although I don't have weight issues myself, I can understand what drives others who do.

Plus I find healthy diets an interesting subject so I can write enthusiastically about it in my marketing and emails.

So find a hungry market, look at products they want, and see if it's something you can get at least temporarily enthusiastic about while you research and write about it.

And if you can't, then you need a different niche.



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Make 2018 Your Best Year Ever

If you want to make 2018 your best year ever (and who wouldn't want that?) then you start by making sure you do better than you did in 2017.

Look at what you did right.

Look at what you did wrong.

What do you need to stop doing?

And, more importantly, what do you need to start doing?

Thank clearly about what it is that you want to do.

Not what you think you "should" be doing, but what you really want to do more than anything else.

Once you know what that is, make a plan of how to achieve it.

What is the first thing you need to do?

What is the first step you need to take?

If you need some help, download the free 30-Day Planner and start your journey of making 2018 your best year ever.

http://ruthiswriting.com/links/LOAplanner.html

A Xmas Day Email? Why?

Today is Christmas Day so you're probably wondering why I'm sending an email?

Because no one else is. But I do know that many people check their inboxes on Christmas Day.

Christmas is an exciting time of year for most people - but only at the beginning of the day.

The rest of it is usually an anti-climax after all the months, weeks and days, of planning, shopping and preparing.

And some people are like me, and they don't bother with it.

Where I live on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia, it's hot right now. It's summer.

So I often take off and go to the beach for most of the day. Or go to a shady park with my dog. Or stay in and avoid seeing anyone at all. To me, it's a welcome day off.

But no matter what, I know that people will be checking their emails at some point in the day, so emailing on Christmas Day means I'm one of the few if any, emails in people's inboxes so mine have more chance of being read.

It's also a time of year when many start thinking about their New Year resolutions.

So instead of thinking about what you're going to stop doing in 2018 (smoking, drinking, over-eating), think about what you want to start doing.

Is there something you've always wanted to do but didn't know where to start or what to do?

Well, now you can begin by downloading a free 30-day planner to get you started.

Take the first step in your commitment to having a better year.

Download your free planner right now as a gift to yourself.

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Exercise Your Muscle to Sell More Books

This is a good time of year for my book sales because one of my books is always my Christmas best seller.

And that book is 'How To Quit Smoking Without Giving Up Cigarettes.'

Why is it a best seller this time of year?

Because most people think that January 1st is magical and it will somehow give them with more willpower, so they buy my quit smoking book or give it as a gift to someone who they think will have more willpower in the New Year.

And while that's really great for me, the truth (that we already know but don't want to admit it) is that we already have all the willpower we need to accomplish anything we want, or to give up bad habits.

You see, willpower is a muscle. And just like any other muscle, if it doesn't get used enough, it becomes weak.

But the good news is that all it takes to make it strong again is to use it.

Because the more you use it the stronger it gets.

And it's not just good for quitting smoking.

It's also a great muscle to use to help you write more and earn more.

You just have to exercise it every day.

So don't wait until next year rolls around.

You already have what you need.


-----------

How to Quit Smoking Without Giving Up Cigarettes
Let this amazing quit-smoking course, help you to use your willpower to quit for good.
http://cheritonhousepublishing.com/books/HQS.html

Hanging With The Smartest Writers

It’s a well-known fact that is you want to improve your life or your business, you need to hang out with people who are smarter than you or who you want to be like.

And you don’t have to be with them in person.

It can be bloggers you follow online, or people you go to see at seminars, or authors you read.

I was watching a seminar a few days ago and the speaker was author and marketer, Brian Kurtz and he said, “Only surround yourself with the smartest people. And if you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room.”

And I agree. That’s why I only follow writers and marketers who I believe are the best.

One that I follow and have bought many products from, is email expert, Ben Settle.

I don’t follow him because I want to be an email expert, but I like three things about him.

1. He works alone. He has no staff and works completely by himself out of his own home. That’s the way I prefer to work too. AND he earns thousands a month from his emails, books, and courses.

2. His products are no-nonsense, and by that I mean he always gets straight to the point and doesn’t waste time with useless ‘filler’ information. I like that and I know that whatever I buy from him will be full of useable information.

3. He is full of ideas which I find really inspirational. By studying and disecting just his free emails I’ve discovered that he can take one idea and write 20 or more emails about it. And knowing how he does it is gold.

Having plenty of ideas is THE most important thing about being a writer, because without ideas you can’t write anything.

I’ve never had a problem with finding ideas and that’s why I wrote an ebook to show others just how easy it is. And even if you can’t think of anything, I'll show you how.

And once you know how to get your creative juices flowing, you’ll get 100s of ideas in just a few minutes.


Goodbye Writer's Block
How To Be A Creative Genius
And Have An Abundance Of Ideas
Plus The Inspiration
And Motivation To Write
http://cheritonhousepublishing.com/books/WB.html

Start the Day Write

Have you ever noticed that however a day starts, it tends to carry on that way?

So if you start the day by getting up late, you seem to spend the rest of the day trying to catch up with yourself?

Or if you start by spending way too much time on Face Book or checking emails, you spend the rest of the day getting zero done.

This is why I find it so, so, important to start my days how I want them to go on.

If I start the day right, it usually keeps up the moment.

So I have a morning routine that gets me into my most important writing straight away.

I don't waste it on trivial things like social media or email because the first hour of my day is the most important hour.

I originally learned about this from a book called "The Miracle Morning" and it really made a difference in my life.

I not only read this book once, I studied it, and listened to the audio version several times too.

So if you're like I used to be and find that you get up every day with the best intentions, yet go to bed every night wondering why you even bothered, try it for yourself.

Use the first hour of every day for the most important thing.

Mine is book writing or studying.


The Miracle Morning: 
The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life (Before 8AM)

By Hal Elrod

http://viewbook.at/MiracleMorning

Writing Distractions That Were Overwhelming

For the last week and a half, it’s done nothing but rain.

Not just any rain, but with really strong winds and it was a huge deluge that sent cascades of water running down my garden, carving out huge channels in the dirt as it went.

But you might be asking what this has to do with writing?

Well, I was trying to sit inside and write while all hell seemed to be breaking loose outside, but it wasn’t easy.

During the first few days, it was doubly hard because two of my chickens started suffering from the downpour, and it was also really cold.

I kept running outside to keep an eye on them and try and tempt them with food (they were all sheltering under the house, which is raised on stumps).

But the cold and damp got to be too much for them, and sadly, I had to take them to the vet to end their suffering. The poor girls couldn’t even open their eyes or uncurl their feet at the end (see the last photo of them, above).

One of them was Miss Broken Comb who’d been ill recently.

The other smaller one who is upright in the photo, was Miss Scrappy, so-called because she was always shirt-fronting any animal that came into the garden.

So while my other 7 girls continued to shelter under the house from the storm, I carried on bravely with my writing, to help keep my mind off everything.

But with everything going on around me, with losing 2 of my girls, the loud tempest raging outside and the awful dampness and darkness everywhere, it was all starting to feel somewhat surreal.

I found though, that once I was able to focus properly, I not only got plenty of writing done, but I managed to have a huge brainstorming session that went on for hours.

And when I checked my online accounts, I saw that I was still making sales from my books and affiliate products.

So it does go to show that it’s always possible to keep writing.

And sales can continue to happen from other places, while yours seems to be in chaos.

That’s what I love about being working from home and earning all my income from my writing.

Living The Laptop Lifestyle: How to start and grow a profitable online business so you can quit your job.

http://cheritonhousepublishing.com/books/LLS.html

The Writing Is On The Wall

For over 2 weeks now I've been busy painting.

It's not that I'm any kind of artist.

The painting I've been doing is painting the whole exterior of my house (with a little bit of help from my husband, of course.)

It's a huge task, far bigger than I first anticipated.

And we've been painting all day, every day now for over 2 weeks and today is our first day off, and we still have at least another week of work ahead of us. (sad face)

Below is a before and after shot of one of the walls on our verandah. The first picture was taken by the realtor before we moved in and the second picture is the wall painted and the verandah items replaced, including Banjo, sitting on his doggy hammock. I just couldn't keep him out of the photo, sigh...

But you can see how much better the house looks already.

So with today as my one and only day off from painting, I've been doing a bit of writing and catching up on a few other chores as well.

But despite the long, tedious, work of house painting, I have learned a really good lesson from it.

And that is, sticking at a job gets it done. And it also gives me a feeling of satisfaction when I see how much work we get through every day.

And this doesn't only apply to painting. It's the same with everything I do.

If I stick with it and get it done, not only does it get finished, but it feels really good to have achieved something.

And the way to stick to doing something is to make it a number one priority and not let other things get in the way.

It's so easy to get distracted. Like with me last week. One of my chickens got really ill and I had to take her to the vet. Thankfully she was put on a course of antibiotics and started to get better after a few days, but I was so worried about her and I kept going into the garden to sit with her for a few minutes as often as I could. But I had to keep painting, plus there really wasn't much more I could do for her except stop her feeling alone.

I took a photo of her at the weekend because I thought she was going to die. Even the vet didn't hold out much hope for her. And you can see in the photo that Miss Broken Comb (so named for obvious reasons) was so ill that she couldn't even hold her head up or open her eyes.

Thank goodness she's well now and running around with her 8 friends again. :)

I have also spent the last couple of weeks getting up early and rushing around doing other jobs and then walking the dog late every day so that we could keep painting while we still had the daylight.

But it has been a good lesson in finding the one important thing to do every day and prioritising it over everything else.

Because it works.

And the same can be applied to every day, no matter what that day's number one thing is.

Most days, it's writing. That is my number one thing I have to do. So all other tasks and chores have to take a back seat.

And that's how to get plenty of writing done.

Find books to help you write and earn money.

And then make it your number one task and do it.

http://cheritonhousepublishing.com/make-money.html