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6 Habits Hurting Your Self-confidence And How To Overcome Them
Dominate With Confidence

6 Habits Hurting Your Self-confidence And How To Overcome Them

by Jane Anne
written by Jane Anne

Self-confidence is the most essential trait you need to possess to excel as a writer. Without confidence in your abilities, your values, and your worth, everything you are striving to achieve will crumble to dust.

As a writer, you build self-confidence by trusting yourself, for, without trust, your conviction in your creative endeavors holds no water.

What is Self-confidence?

Self-confidence is accepting who you are without prejudice. Being self-confident is understanding your capabilities and upholding your values without external dictations.

Building self-confidence positively affects every aspect of your life, not just your creative pursuits, yet you’ll discover you’re sometimes struggling to stay confident.

You can’t buy confidence. To own it, you have to believe in and trust yourself, which is tough to accomplish as a burgeoning writer finding your feet.

Your struggles with confidence are often psychological because you’ve developed a mindset that believes you aren’t good enough to accomplish your writing goals.

When you breed such negative thoughts in your mind, doubts, fear, anxiety, and frustration creep into your headspace and mess with your confidence.

Before we dive any deeper, take a minute to download our self-confidence handbook and affirmative self-confidence wallpapers for writers.

To understand how you can overcome your struggles with self-confidence mentally, you have to first acknowledge the harmful habits hurting your self-confidence.

6 Habits Hurting Your Self-confidence

  • Assuming the worst about your craft
  • Needing to prove your worth
  • Underestimating your creative abilities
  • Allowing everyone else to dictate your creative preferences
  • Not figuring out how you want to grow as a writer
  • Having a fixed mindset toward your creative growth

#1. Assuming The Worst About Your Craft

It’s one thing to have a critical opinion about your work and another to be embarrassed by them before anyone even points out a fault.

Allowing yourself to assume the worst of people’s opinions about your craft shows how little you believe in the piece you’ve created.

If you have so little faith in yourself and your art (even when you’re not qualified enough), no amount of skills, success, or growth will give you that confidence.

How To Deal With Unhealthy Assumptions

  • Own what you have created despite your fears.
  • Give room only for necessary constructive criticism.
  • When engaged in a conversation about your work, let the initiator lead.
  • Don’t be in a hurry to tear down your work.
  • Do what you need to clean up your work to your heart’s content.
  • Learn more if your lack of knowledge makes you nervous around like minds.

6 Habits Hurting Your Self-confidence And How To Overcome Them

#2. Needing To Prove Your Worth

You, just like the old me and one million other young creatives, feel the need to impress someone before you can take credit for your creation.

Acknowledgments don’t define your worth. You define what you are worth.

The world shouldn’t measure your worth on a scale for you to believe you have greatness in you. If you believe you can achieve greatness, the sky is only your starting point.

If you need to prove your worth to someone other than yourself, you are slowly poisoning your mind and chipping away at your confidence.

How To Deal With Feeling Unworthy

  • Always remind yourself why you write.
  • Acknowledge your work first before anyone else.
  • Remember that your work isn’t for everyone and only those it caters to will truly appreciate your work.
  • Replace the feelings of unworthiness with self-assurance.
  • Adopt a positive, affirmative attitude and fill up your space with affirmative words of self-confidence and repeat them daily.

#3. Underestimating Your Creative Abilities

Being self-confident is believing you can dominate and achieve your creative goals, even when you have no clue how.

Underestimating yourself, your skills, and your capabilities before you even try is a mindset that hurts your self-confidence.

When your self-esteem takes a hit, doubts creep in. Underestimating yourself is what gives birth to unhealthy assumptions and feelings of unworthiness.

How To Stop Underestimating Your Creative Abilities

  • Dedicate time to learn the skills needed to dominate your creative goals.
  • Practice and experiment in every area of your creative interest. This increases your confidence in your skills.
  • Seek tutelage from experts or creatives in your circle whom you truly admire their work.
  • Ask questions and seek ways to improve yourself always.

#4. Allowing Everyone Else Dictate Your Creative Preferences

You alone know what you want. No one else should dictate what your interest are.

When you create because it’s what’s in vogue, instead of following your path of interest, you’ll lose touch with yourself.

You’ll stop believing in your art and you’ll doubt your every move because you tethered it to the moves of others.

Nothing about your creative art will seem like it belongs to you, hence your lack of conviction and confidence in yourself and your creation.

How To Not Lose Touch With Your Creative Art

  • Love your reason for writing and embrace your passion.
  • Write out your creative values and purpose behind your writing brand.
  • Embrace new trends, but only if it aligns with your long-term writing goals.
  • Make adjustments where necessary, but not at the expense of your values as a writer.
  • Write the stories, articles, and posts you’ll truly want to read and you’re proud of.

AFFIRMATIVE SELF-CONFIDENCE WALLPAPERS

#5. Not Figuring Out How You Want To Grow

Nothing gives you a kick in the gut and takes a knife to your self-confidence, like doing everything they say works.

I not talking about Mentorship, having a Role model, or Learning.

I mean jumping the gun and chasing everything without figuring out how you want to grow as a writer.

Your confidence level hits below 20% when you’re stuck doing something and everything that does not correlate with your true interests as a writer.

How To Align Your Interest And Growth

  • Figure out how you want to grow as a writer.

(I want to become an author, a freelancer, a coach, a better writer, a blogger, e.t.c) Knowing this helps you align your interest to match your growth.

  • Identify areas within your interest that resonate more with you and build skills in those areas.

(Doing this feels way better and builds your confidence in your art than chasing after everything)

  • Focus your energy on chasing only things that correlate with your visions of growth.
  • Take a genuine interest in yourself and explore the things you’re truly passionate about.

#6. Having A Fixed Mindset Toward Your Creative Growth

Nothing dampens your creative spirit and weakens your confidence like stagnation.

Having a rigid mindset toward your creative growth is the surest way to remain stuck in a spot until you give up.

The beauty of writing and developing your creative craft is the never-ending shape it can take and the endless possibilities out there waiting for you.

Believing that if a system doesn’t work, then nothing else will, isn’t the type of mindset that sets you up for success. It’s the type that kills your creative dreams and buries your self-confidence with it.

How To Develop A Positive, Flexible Attitude That Improves Your Confidence

  • Believe that your creative opportunities are vast, and failure is a testing arena.
  • Search inward for things that spark your curiosity and give them room to thrive.
  • Continue improving yourself and your skills. The more you expand your knowledge, the wider your scope of opportunities as a creator.
  • Cultivate a love for experimentation.
  • Never rely on one system for your success. Ensure you diversify your portfolio and give more energy to the groups of systems that work.

Endnotes

Your self-confidence as a writer is your greatest superpower. Don’t lose it to pressure.

Appreciating your capabilities and trusting yourself helps you protect your self-confidence from harm. Believe in your dreams and creative goals, pursue them relentlessly, and don’t let the world tell you otherwise.

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How To Manage Procrastination And Work Smart As A Writer
Guests PostsPersonal Development

How To Manage Procrastination And Work Smart As A Writer

by Grace Malik
written by Grace Malik

Procrastination is not an uncommon action among writers. It is an avoidance pattern exhibited by writers resulting from unpleasant emotions influencing our moods.

Making serial excuses that sound like, “I’ll write that article later,” when you could write it now, or “I’ll do my research when I wake up,” when you have all the time in the world to do it, is a sign of procrastination.

In simpler terms, it is putting off something you ought to do till the “perfect time” which honestly doesn’t exist.

Are you caught in the vicious avoidance loop caused by procrastination? This article will provide actionable guides on how to manage procrastination better and work smarter as a writer.

Before we dive in, what is procrastination?

What Is Procrastination?

Procrastination is the act of unnecessarily postponing an action or activity until a later date.

It’s a habitual pattern of continually putting off a certain happening or action, postponing it, or pushing it forward, way down your to-do list.

As a writer, the time used to fine-tune your excuses to procrastinate, you could use to take action immediately, especially when it’s what you should be doing.

How To Manage Procrastination And Work Smart As A Writer

Why Do We Often Procrastinate?

Even knowing what procrastination is doesn’t stop us from doing it sometimes. Everyone procrastinates, that’s a fact.

So, it raises the question, why? Why do we still procrastinate even knowing how unproductive it is?

Here are three reasons you procrastinate.

You’re Waiting For The Perfect Time

It’s common for us, as humans and creatives, to push certain things forward or to not do them because we are waiting for the perfect time, which again does not exist.

You want it in such a way that when you finally hit “publish” or click “research” everything should fall in line, and when it isn’t, you decide to wait, for that time, that sign, that signifies the perfect time.

The above scenario is one of the biggest reasons you and I end up procrastinating, even when we know it’s unnecessary.

Fear

It similarly relates to imposter syndrome.

The fear of failure, fear of imperfection, fear of wrong timing, fear of people’s perception, fear of creative block, fear of the future, and many more.

I honestly could go on, because yes, fear is terribly gripping, and mind-sucking like that. It has sharp claws that are ready to pick on any sign of your hesitance and empower it.

It is an underlying reason you procrastinate.

Lack Of Priorities

Sometimes, all you need is to set your priorities right, because until you do, all your affairs are going to be pretty much all over the place. That’s a fact.

Not setting your priorities straight can cause you to procrastinate because in the end you’ll do so little and overlook important tasks because you have no working strategy in place.

Time waits for no one, and the earlier you work intentionally, the better.

Effects Of Procrastination On Creative Productivity

The personal consequence of lack of intentionality aside, there are major effects of procrastination on you as a creative and on your creative productivity.

Drains Your Mental Health

You might find this hard to believe, but procrastination spreads its tendrils even to your emotional and mental health.

That fear stopping you from writing and pushing you to procrastinate will eventually make you become weary, frustrated, and angry at everything and nothing at the same time.

Worse still, it makes you avoid doing anything which is mentally draining.

Procrastination Leads To Loss Of Opportunities

Imagine being in a writer’s contest, perhaps, or a speaking contest, and instead of doing it or going for it right away, you procrastinate.

What happens then? You might miss out on that opportunity. The opportunity to put yourself out there, to shine, to show your works, to be.

You missed out on it because you procrastinated, and that alone can damage your productivity as a creator, because it makes you feel as if you’re doing nothing, wasting your time.

Lack Of Motivation

When you procrastinate, you put off what needs to be done. It is scheduling tasks in your planner and not doing them regardless, despite having the time to do them.

Procrastination affects your productivity by hindering your motivation.

Let me break it down.

Procrastination leads to a fear of inadequacy that eats away at your time and opportunities and makes you feel stuck. Pray to tell, what better way is there to lose motivation?

When you don’t have the self-motivation to write, create, or stay productive, your results will remain as they were.

Ways To Manage Procrastination And Work Smart As A Writer.

As terrible as procrastination is, there are ways to manage it and work smart as a writer. I have highlighted some very effective ways below:

Set “SMART” goals

It takes a lot to set intentional goals, but I’ll try to break them down.

One reason you procrastinate is that you set unattainable goals. Yes, that’s a thing.

Having accepted the fact that you’re drowning in the avoidance loop, you have to set intentional goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound.

Before you set these goals, be strict with yourself. Ask yourself how and why.

Done that? Break these tasks. Don’t just crumple them together. Batch them separately and ask yourself how you plan to achieve each of them. Write it down if possible.

Start Doing

Yes, you have planned it all, but nothing magical will happen if you don’t put in the work. Do it now! That’s your mantra.

Don’t overthink it. Just do it with intention. And don’t forget that the little things matter. Start small, it’s what will build the big acts soon.

Clear Distractions

Do away with apps that distract you, distracting environments, and whatever else that might keep you procrastinating.

In addition, always prioritize, be confident and be positive.

End Notes

It’s work. It’s actual work to make procrastination stop for good and to actually turn it around to make you work smarter as a writer. But it is attainable. After all, who said good things come easy?

Dear reader, you can battle procrastination. Believe that you can do it and start putting in the work. Trust me, procrastination will soon be a thing of the past.

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10 Unique Ways to Improve Your Writing Skill
Creative WritingPersonal Development

10 Unique Ways to Improve Your Writing Skill

by Fausat Abiola
written by Fausat Abiola

Writing is an artistic expression, and there are unique ways to improve your writing skill.

Another widely held definition is that writing is an effective way of communication.

Excellent writing skills are to a writer what oxygen is to a human being, because just as we wouldn’t be able to live and function without air, a writer wouldn’t get very far without solid writing abilities.

Unfortunately, there is no easy way to boost your writing skill without effort, personal development, and practice.

Even if you have a natural talent for writing, you still need to put in the time and effort to become proficient at it before making a career out of it.

Improving your writing skills takes time, effort, and determination. It also demands constant learning, consistency, and practice.

Although there may not be a fast route to becoming a better writer, there are unique ways to improve your writing skills and hone your craft. This article explores 10 unique ways to improve your writing skills.

The Importance Of Developing Your Writing Skills

Writing is often the first impression your readers have of you.

The imprint you leave in their mind about your style begins with your written word because so many of your readers first encounter you through your writing, even before they meet you in person.

When you write poorly, they may conclude on your level of intelligence and professionalism based on the errors you have made or the disorganization of your thoughts on paper.

In essence, people will judge you by your writing, so clear writing will genuinely increase your chances of success.

10 Unique Ways to Improve Your Writing Skills

Master Your Language

Become fluent in the language you plan to write in.

Perhaps you have a decent grasp of the language for purposes, such as talking to people and reading the news. However, the ability to write well is technical.

So, learning the language thoroughly involves understanding sentence construction, selecting appropriate words, and using them correctly. Here are 7 top-read books to help you master your creative language.

Read A lot

Reading is a unique way to improve your writing skill. You can learn so much from reading widely.

Challenge yourself to read any kind of writing, including but not limited to print media, online content, and oral histories. When you take up reading as a hobby, you will find an abundance of books to choose from.

You can benefit in various ways by reading because there are many types of writing that you will encounter. It also improves your vocabulary and fills your knowledge bank with fascinating information about the craft of writing.

10 Unique Ways to Improve Your Writing Skill

Get Used To Proofreading Tools

Even the most seasoned authors occasionally make a few mistakes in their writing.

As we have already established, these blunders can detract from your message and lead your reader to form unfavorable opinions of you.

Get the help you need from Grammarly or ProWritingAid to ensure that your writing is free of typos, grammatical errors, and style blunders.

Familiarize Yourself With The Basic Principles Of Writing

You can trace writers’ success to understanding and implementing the rudimental rules of writing because, when you master the basic art of writing, it becomes second nature to you.

Your writing style and voice will grow.

Every proficient author has handy – a copy of “The Elements of Style” and a good dictionary.

I highly recommended that you get familiar with, know how to use, and frequently refer to these style guides, though you do not necessarily need to learn all the intricacies of these stylebooks. Read Understanding the Basic elements of creative writing.

Make Your Message Clear

Think about why you want to write about a topic. What do you want people to get out of reading your piece?

Try putting your message into a 40-second “elevator pitch” that explains what you want to say with your writing. Work on this speech until you have got it down.

Developing message clarity before writing saves time and wasted effort.

Avoid Using Unnecessarily Complicated Language

Avoid using complex terms when simpler words would suffice. To what extent, for instance, is the word “municipality” required when “city” or “town” would suffice?

Note that your goal should not be to impress your readers with how knowledgeable you are, but to teach them something new. Your words should be as simple as possible.

Acknowledge That First Drafts Are Often Subpar

It’s not easy to put words on paper. It’s not something you can achieve in one swift motion; Rather, it’s a lengthy process. A draft is the first version of something that you will improve upon before publishing.

The quality of most first drafts is often low and terrible, so acknowledging it while preparing for an epic editing battle is a great way to hone your writing skills. Read 6 creative ways to write consistently.

Be A Ruthless Editor

Editing and proofreading are musts before submitting any written work. Acting as your greatest critic is important. If you can shorten a sentence without changing the rhythm or the content, do so as you read through your drafts.

It’s natural and unavoidable to develop a romantic attachment to your work. Editing ruthlessly will help you observe glaring errors in your work and how to improve on them.

Anticipate Your Audience’s Questions

It’s helpful to imagine the kinds of questions your readers may have if you were having a casual chat with them about the topic you’re working on.

When writing about your experiences, knowledge, and viewpoints, anticipate the questions they could have so you can answer them thoroughly in your article.

Show Your Personality In Your Writing

Being genuine is the best method to create a distinct voice in your writing. Use your writing to express who you are.

Use a voice and style that sound and feels natural to you. When appropriate, include a personal narrative to shed light on the topic at hand.

Endnotes

Although there is no one-size-fits-all approach to writing, developing these routines will help any writer improve.

After you have finished writing, you should always give your content a full read-through. While most of us read silently, reading aloud is beneficial because it captures the physicality of words.

Our understanding of reading is incomplete and impoverished unless we also take the time to read aloud. This trick will show you whether your piece flows well and if it keeps your readers interested.

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Top Must-Read Creative Books for Burgeoning Writers
Creative WritingPersonal Development

Top Must-Read Creative Books for Burgeoning Writers

by Fausat Abiola
written by Fausat Abiola

Read books. Then read some more creative books for burgeoning writers because the more you read, the less likely you will embarrass yourself with your pen.

Ben Johnson says, For a man to write well, there are required three necessaries: to read the best authors, observe the best speakers, and many exercises of his style.

Inherent or learned, the ability to write well still requires practice. To be effective and grow as a writer, you will need to hone this skill and put in a lot of time and work on improving yourself through reading.

There are instances when one possesses the information to express but lacks the linguistic ability to do so effectively. Thus, for a writer, in the classical sense, writing must be cohesive, articulate, instructive, engaging, relatable, intelligible, and free from structural, grammatical, and clerical errors.

You should be aware that readers are picky and dissect every word they read. Fluency and articulation in writing are the only way to avoid your reader’s dire criticisms.

Honestly, books have a way of being possessive. Why is this? This is because the act of beginning to read a book indicates a level of trust from the reader. That is why people only read books that are highly recommended.

No one wants to squander their time reading something difficult to understand. As a result, there is a need for a two-way interaction between the writer and the reader.

You should find joy in reading. All writers are also avid readers, and it is in reading that you can also expect to improve.

How Reading Books Can Help Your Writing 

Zadie Smith says, Learning to be an excellent reader makes you a better writer.

Never underestimate the infinite value of reading in learning to write. There is an intricate link between writing and reading, and you cannot expect to improve as a writer if reading is not something you enjoy.

Reading increases your mental capacity and vocabulary size. You can learn more about the mechanical and stylistic decisions that make different genres work by reading novels in a wide variety of genres.

Finding your unique writing voice requires exposure to a wide range of books, with careful attention paid to the authors’ recognizable stylistic patterns.

Reading’s true value lies in the comfort and familiarity it brings with the act of writing itself. Reading often will get you in the headspace (or state of mind) where you can write eagerly and without inhibition.

It provides you with an ever-expanding understanding of what has been done and what hasn’t, what is boring and what is new, what is beneficial, and what is just lying there dying (or dead) on the page.

Here’s how reading can help you improve as a writer;
  • Reading improves your concentration and vocabulary.
  • Reading introduces you to different writing styles.
  • Reading aids in the subconscious acquisition of syntax, grammar, style, and punctuation.
  • Reading increases your knowledge and inspires you.
  • Reading can help you become more sympathetic.
  • Reading can help you unwind and reduce stress.
  • Reading can help you sleep, but not under the blue light of an e-book.
Treat yourself to beginners guides and other writing resources here

7 Top Must-Read Creative Writing Books for Burgeoning Writers

Top Must-Read Creative Books for Burgeoning Writers

The War of Art by Steven Pressfield

There is a reason this book is at the top of my list. Starting something new is often tasking and holds us back from realizing our full potential.

The first stage in developing into a writer is overcoming personal obstacles. Resistance is what Steven Pressfield labeled it.

He claims that writers face the same challenges while trying to put pen to paper, such as procrastination, lack of time, illness, social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube), distractions (television, smartphone, etc.), etc.

Pressfield distinguishes between amateurs and pros in The War of Art, where he tags ‘amateurs’ are individuals who talk and think a lot about writing but never actually sit down and write, and ‘pros’ are those who sit down and write.

This book teaches how to overcome resistance and become a true master of the game.

Writing is difficult for many people, but The War of Art is a no-nonsense, straight-to-the-point approach to getting past those first hurdles.

Top Must-Read Creative Books for Burgeoning Writers

The Sense of Style by Steven Pinker

The Sense of Style is an excellent creative writing book for anyone looking to improve their writing skills by mastering the art of writing in clear, active, and declarative sentences.

A necessary read for any writer serious about improving their ability to convey ideas clearly and effectively. To explain why people write poorly, Steven Pinker used linguistics and neuroscientific investigation.

Top Must-Read Creative Books for Burgeoning Writers

Steering the Craft by Ursula K. Le Guin

Steering the craft is a Non-fiction, creative writing book. This book serves as a how-to manual for both creative and informative writing.

The author focuses on word choice and style, the keys to creating your writer’s voice, exercises to rid your writing of superfluous adjectives and adverbs, and exercises to bolster your writing’s invisible exposition.

Top Must-Read Creative Books for Burgeoning Writers

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott’s

Abraham Lincoln once said, “Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”

You can’t cut a tree with a dull axe, and neither can you create masterpieces without mastering the finer points of your profession. To become an expert writer, you must first master the fundamentals and research the area thoroughly.

Anne Lamott’s book called Bird by Bird is one such book you should pick up to read. Anne uses her experiences and a humorous tone to instruct you on how to become a better writer.

Not only does she provide you with detailed instructions on how to write, but she also motivates and inspires you to put pen to paper.

You will find out how to begin, how to deal with awful first drafts, and how to create interesting characters and natural-sounding dialogue.

She also shares insights on how to hone your writing skills and how to know when you’re done. As a bonus, she shows you how to recover from failure. Any budding author will benefit much from reading Bird by Bird.

Top Must-Read Creative Books for Burgeoning Writers

The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr., E. B. White

Knowledge of grammar and style conventions is essential for any burgeoning writer. While it is not necessary to be completely rule-abiding, it is helpful to be aware of the rules you are breaking and to know why you are doing so.

“Learn the rules like a pro, so you may defy them like an artist,” Pablo Picasso once said.

Learn the fundamentals of the English language with help from The Elements of Style and you will develop the ability to articulate your thoughts clearly and to write concisely effective sentences. This book’s propensity to make you swoon over the English language may be its greatest strength.

Top Must-Read Creative Books for Burgeoning Writers

Lord Of the Flies by William Golding

While it’s tempting to use big words in your writing if you have a good vocabulary, remember that often the simplest words and language can convey your meaning more effectively than the most flowery.

Lord of the Flies by William Golding is a great example because, despite its length, Golding conveys complex topics in accessible language, including the human propensity to seek and exert power as well as moral concerns.

Top Must-Read Creative Books for Burgeoning Writers

The God of Small Things | Arundhati Roy

Let us assume for a moment that you have read the aforementioned books in their entirety. That you have overcome the resistance, and have mastered the art of writing and language. However, a writer’s arsenal isn’t complete without vocabulary.

Reading novels with a wide range of vocabulary, including some that are less common, is a great approach to expanding your lexicon. Having a dictionary on hand will allow you to quickly and easily look up unfamiliar terms.

If you are looking for a book with a rich vocabulary and sophisticated writing style, The God of Small Things is an excellent option.

Be warned, you may need to refer to a dictionary frequently, but the time spent reading it will be well worth it.

Endnotes

There are plenty of other books you can read to improve your writing skills. A Fiction or Non-fiction book will suffice. Just grab a pick and enjoy it.

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Effects Of Positive Growth Mindset On Your Writing Career
Personal Development

Positive Growth Mindset And Its Effects On The Success Of Your Writing Career

by O.J Ebubeoha
written by O.J Ebubeoha

The best bet for any young writer venturing into the world of writing is to have a positive growth mindset which improves your outlook toward your writing journey.

Your goal plan and what becomes of the success of your writing career as a budding creative is parallel to the kind of growth mindset you have developed at the start of your creative journey.

This begs the question, what kind of growth mindset have you cultivated as a new writer? What kind of expectations have you projected for yourself?

Certain unrealistic expectations you project for yourself as a new writer will greatly affect your mindset toward building a successful writing career.

Refining these unrealistic expectations to mirror actual achievable results, in reality, is a great step towards building a positive growth mindset that will serve you long-term, keep your productivity levels at their peak, and fuel your motivation to stay on track.

 

What Is A Positive Growth Mindset?

A positive growth mindset is characterized by flexibility of perspective. It is a type of mindset held by people who believe they can adapt to change and shifts their focus to things that are necessary to achieve their goals.

People with a positive growth mindset view their diverse character traits as strengths rather than weaknesses and work hard to embrace their struggles with personal development, which creates room for knowledge expansion.

As a new writer, it is crucial to cultivate a positive growth mindset because it sets your writing journey apart, allows you to embrace new challenges, drives your zeal and focus, and encourages you to keep trying.

A lovely positive growth mindset quote from Thomas Watson says, “Would you like me to give you a formula for success? It’s quite simple, really. Double your rate of failure.”

Despite the many failures you’ll encounter as a new writer, developing a positive growth mindset will help you harness that failure and transform it into a career success story.

How To Cultivate A Positive Growth Mindset As A New Writer

Your mind is the powerhouse of your creativity, and the type of mindset you have as a budding creative will greatly affect the success of your writing career.

Before diving into ways to cultivate a positive growth mindset, it is important to understand that changing from any other kind of mindset you may currently have as a new writer will require some effort.

It’ll take discipline, mindfulness, and consistent efforts to outgrow your present mindset and evolve into a positive growth mindset that’s free of inhibitions.

Here are seven ways to cultivate a positive growth mindset as a new writer.

Focus on your action steps, not the results

As a new writer, it is easy to feel pressured to jump right in and chase your goals, but after a short while, the strength to pursue that goal begins to wane.

The best line of approach to this is to focus more on your crafted action steps than on your endgame.

Keep an eye on the prize, but focus on taking it one step at a time

Understand that failure is a part of the process

Not even renowned and bestselling authors escaped this phase, so why shy away from it. As with any other endeavor, failure is a massive part of the process, and your writing journey is no different.

“Success is most often achieved by those who don’t know that failure is inevitable.” – Coco Chanel

Understanding that failure is a part of the process of building a successful writing career as a new writer will help you stay better prepared for when it hits and not take you unawares.

Celebrate your small wins

As with failures, you’ll also have times of triumph.

Celebrating your small wins without comparison to how many failures produced the result is a great way to cultivate a positive growth mindset as a writer.

Effects Of Positive Growth Mindset On Your Writing Career

Reward your progress

For every successful completion of an action step, it is important to reward yourself as a writer.

How big or little the reward should be doesn’t matter, what’s important is that you’ve acknowledged the progress you’ve made and that fuels your drive to achieve more success.

Accept challenges as a learning curve

Maintaining a positive growth mindset means your thinking progression isn’t linear or static.

This helps you accept new challenges as a part of your learning curve as a writer rather than perceiving it as a threat to the success of your writing career.

Know your purpose

You should be able to answer the basic question about your passion for writing, and understand what drives your need to achieve your goals.

Knowing your purpose for venturing into writing is a great motivation to stay on track and embrace all the challenges that come with it.

Ensuring that your drive for pursuing a career in writing is more internal than it is external will help you cultivate a positive growth mindset that’s free of inhibitions.

Revamp your perception

Every mindful creative understands the power of perception and the magic it creates. Perception is the reason why storytelling never gets old because it can make and break a soul.

Visualizing the success of your writing career begins in your mind. If you cannot imagine your goals as a writer, then there’s a 70% chance they may not come to fruition.

Effects Of Cultivating A Positive Growth Mindset And How It Affects The Success Of Your Writing Career

Pursuing a career in writing can be tough; still, when it comes to achieving success with your writing, it boils down to the type of growth mindset you have.

Inherently, there will always be challenges associated with achieving your goal, but it is your mindset toward these challenges and how you perceive them that affects your reactions and solutions to the,

Jack Sparrow said, “The problem is not the problem. The problem is your attitude about the problem.”

Cultivating a positive growth mindset as a new writer is ultimately the best kind of mindset that will set your writing journey apart and propels the success of your writing career because it is unhindered by the perception of failure and challenges as a shameful roadblocks.

Here are 5 effects of cultivating a positive growth mindset and how it affects the success of your writing career

Builds Self-Confidence

The driving force behind pursuing your writing career is you. The person pushing for the success of your writing career is you.

So, ultimately without a crippling personal conviction that your goals are worth fighting for, they will remain but mere figments of an imaginative mind.

Cultivating a positive growth mindset builds your self-confidence as a person first, then as a writer who understands that every journey to success is different.

The minute you begin to perceive the challenges you encounter in your writing journey as a learning curve, your self-confidence increases considerably and builds the momentum for success in your writing career.

Builds A Resilient Personality

Slow and steady wins in the race are important moral lessons for cultivating a positive growth mindset.

To build a resilient personality as a new writer, you have to embrace the notion that no two writing journeys are the same. How progressive another writer’s journey is, has nothing to do with yours.

How many times you’ve failed in comparison to how many times you’ve achieved success should have no room in your thoughts or it could be catastrophic and negatively impact your pursuit of success in your writing career.

I hope this quote by J.K Rowling clarifies a few misgivings you might have.

“Failure is so important. We speak about success all the time. It is the ability to resist failure or use failure that often leads to greater success. I’ve met people who don’t want to try for fear of failing.” – J.K. Rowling

Resilience is very important to the success of your writing career as a budding creative and cultivating a positive growth mindset is key to building a resilient personality.

Refines Perception To Change

Planning and goal setting is always susceptible to change because the world evolves and things change.

Having a fixed growth mindset on how to achieve success with your writing career is morally damaging because you are inflexible to change.

However, cultivating a positive growth mindset will help you forego the lapses in your plan and realign your goals to match current trends that will help you achieve success in your writing career.

Refining your perception to change is an important advantage of cultivating a positive growth mindset, and helps you tailor your expectations to match your current reality.

Increases Productivity

When your mindset is not tamed by the fear of failure, or caged by the fixed perceptions of negative and positive outcomes, you become more productive in the pursuit of success in your writing career.

Untaming the wild side of your imaginative creativity will help you find diversity in your pursuits at every challenging step. No longer will you have to feel ashamed of your failure but embrace it as a part of the process.

Your productivity levels will greatly improve as a young writer who visualizes failure as a podium for growth. This projects a positive outlook and keeps you right on track for achieving success with your writing career.

Increases Motivation and Encourages Consistency

One of the earliest drivers of any goal plan is motivation. It may not be the key ingredient to achieving that goal plan but it is the sauce that spices up 50% of the process and gets you out of bed in the morning.

Consistency also plays a key role in achieving your goals alongside motivation but the trigger that activates these powerful feelings in you is your mindset.

When you approach the pursuit of success with your writing career from the standpoint of a person with a fixed or negative mindset, you are easily discouraged by tumultuous circumstances in your journey.

However, when you approach it from the flexible standpoint of a person with a positive growth mindset, these challenges will add more color to your process, spark your creativity, increase your problem-solving skills, and fuel your desire to keep moving.

Endnotes

Cultivating a positive growth mindset is important to your personal development as a new writer.

With so much to learn and even more challenges to tackle, there is a need to embrace the flexibilities that come with having a positive growth mindset.

Change is scary and takes time to adjust, but the achievable results of cultivating this type of mindset are far better than dwelling on things that aren’t sustainable.

Roy T. Bennett said it better. “Don’t be pushed around by the fears in your mind. Be led by the dreams in your heart.”

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How To Overcome Your Struggles with Self-Development As A New Writer
Guests PostsPersonal Development

How To Overcome Your Struggles with Self-Development As A New Writer

by Fausat Abiola
written by Fausat Abiola

One of the many challenges you’ll encounter as a newbie writer is how to overcome your struggles with self-development and hone your craft as a writer.

Self-development is important to your success and enhanced growth builds your confidence, develops your writing skills, and improves your informed knowledge on every aspect of the writing process.

Before I dive into what self-development is, here is my favorite quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson on self-improvement.

He says, “Unless you tried to do something above what you already mastered, you can never grow.”

What is self-development?

Self-development is the process of learning new things and developing new skills. These skill sets will improve your chances of success, attain your goals, and manifest your ambitions.

As an aspiring writer, you don’t need to overwhelm yourself with severe exercises to improve your writing. You are already practicing self-development and consistency if you write every day.

One thing you should remember is that you cannot improve in a single day. Personal development occurs throughout an individual’s entire lifespan and is not limited to one stage of a person’s life.

Are you still struggling to understand how to practice self-development? Here are some activities that will help. Engage in activities that will improve your personal capabilities and potential, improve the quality of your life, and help in the actualization of goals and aspirations as a new writer.

Importance Of Self-Development

As a new writer, self-development is essential. You must constantly develop yourself personally and professionally as a writer to become successful at it. Here are a few reasons why practicing self-development is important.

  • You become a better reader and communicator
  • You become more confident in yourself
  • You become adept with time management
  • You have clarity purpose
  • You become unafraid to seek new possibilities and expand your horizon.

How To Overcome Your Struggles with Self-Development As A New Writer

Six Reasons Why You Struggle With Self-Development as A New Writer

As a budding writer, practicing self-development becomes a struggle because of the following factors.

  • Distraction

Distraction is a big challenge to development, especially when you lack direction.

In the age of social media, it is easy to get lost in the sea of information without actually creating time to practice any of what you’ve learned.

Distractions cause you to expend energy and quality time that could serve other useful purposes.

  • Lack of direction

You probably have come across this saying that says, “he is like a lost ship on the sea, who is without a direction.” As a writer, if you lack direction, you will be all over the place, with no particular focus. Y

ou will find it hard to understand your strengths or what areas need development. This isn’t particularly good for your growth or writing journey.

  • Lack of self-discipline

Indiscipline makes you lose focus as a writer. It causes a writer to stray off the purpose path. If you lack self-discipline, development may be a little bit hard for you.

  • Fear of the unknown

This is one of the biggest challenges to self-development. I experience this when I was just starting.

The fear of not knowing what lies ahead for you as a writer can hold you back and keep you glued to your comfort zone, and you become unable to take bold steps toward improvement.

  • Procrastination

Procrastination is a thief of time they say.

Procrastination becomes a problem when you consistently put off what you should do now for a later time. It makes you redundant and affects your skills.

One thing you should know is that writing consistently is a good way to develop and hone your skill as a new writer.

  • Lack of personal conviction

When you doubt yourself, not much can be accomplished.

Self-belief is important in life because if you think you can do it, you can and if you think you cannot, you can’t. Possibility and impossibility all start with you.

How To Overcome Your Struggles with Self-Development as A New Writer

Hence you fully understand some of the factors that may affect your self-improvement plans as a writer, it is imperative to understand how to overcome your struggles with self-development as a new writer.

  • Set specific goals

This should be your first line of action. Set SMART goals. When you have goals, you have laser focus.

Setting goals and creating action plans to achieve them make you less susceptible to getting distracted.

Therefore, set actionable and objective goals from a writer’s POV and measure them from time to time.

  • Face your fear

It is normal for anyone to entertain fear especially when you are new to something but you should never let your fear become a barrier to your growth.

You are capable enough. Push through your fear and focus on your growth.

  • Believe in yourself

Of course, writing sounds like a lot. In fact, let’s be honest. It is a lot but when you do not entertain any thought or doubt about what you can or cannot do; you’d realized that writing is in fact very easy.

Have a strong belief in your abilities. Tell yourself often, that you can do it. Make it a daily mantra to encourage yourself to believe in yourself.

Once you have this belief, you have successfully eliminated one of your struggles with self-development.

  • Be disciplined

Self-discipline is important if you do not want to derail off track of your writing journey.

Self-discipline is the ability to work hard, control yourself and behave in an accepted way without needing anyone to tell you what to do.

As a budding writer, make sure you stick to your set aim and objectives, and no matter what you do, always stay on course.

  • Avoid distraction

Distraction makes you lose focus and also causes you to lose sight of your goals. You need to be wary and very careful of this.

Manage how you use social media. Of course, it serves as a great tool for cultivating knowledge but it can become distracting if not properly managed.

  • Practice time management

Time management is very important. I don’t know how and why writers often get the narrative that they have the whole time in the world because they don’t.

Create a daily routine and stick to it. This way you learn to manage your time effectively.

End notes

Self-development isn’t only important to you because you are a writer. It is important to you as an individual.

If you are the ambitious type, then it is only normal that you find out what can be the challenges for you on the path of achieving your dream.

Once you identify it, coming up with a solution becomes an easy-peasy thing.

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