Tomorrow
A young and very gifted writer was in a quandary. She had won awards in her school, and had even been published in a few nationally syndicated publications. Her future looked bright and promising.
Yet she was stuck in a slough of intellectual mud. This brilliant, once seemingly unstoppable writer had fallen into a deep depression as far as creatives go. Her output was erratic, and even the few things she did publish did not have the same impact as when she was “in the zone,” as she had been not long prior. She had begun to doubt her writing abilities, and these doubts had manifested in the form of inaction, uninspiring work, even missing a few deadlines.
She was in a funk, desperate for answers on how to reclaim her past glory. So when she came across a ragged, one-legged shaman reciting Zoroastrian mantras and emanating a faint odor of ancient Amazonian herbs at the Cottonwood Mall in Omaha, NE (btw, she lived in Omaha) who told her he would reveal the #1 killer of productivity, she was willing to listen.
“Meet me outside the Cinnabon here at the mall at 12 pm tomorrow, and I will reveal the mystery of great productivity to you,” the one-legged shaman said.
Not knowing where else to turn for answers, the writer nervously yet resolutely agreed she would indeed meet at the appointed place and time.
The following day, our writer-hero was at the Cinnabon at Cottonwood Mall at 11:55 with a hot cinnamon roll and fresh cup of coffee at her table. At exactly 12 pm, seemingly out of nowhere, the shaman appeared.
“You’re here,” said the shaman to the girl. “I’m glad to see it. It shows you keep your word, which is very important in your line of work.”
“Yes,” said the girl. “I told my good friend about meeting you, and while she had her doubts, I told her I was desperate and have nowhere else to turn for answers. She told me I’ve tried everything else, what do I have to lose by trying this out.”
“I see,” said the shaman. “Well, are you ready to have the secret revealed? The #1 killer of productivity?”
“Yes,” said the girl. “Will you reveal this to me?”
“I will,” replied the shaman. “Tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?”
“Yes. Tomorrow.”
“But you said yesterday that ‘tomorrow I’ll reveal the secret to the #1 killer of productivity.’ I even have it recorded as I always secretly record conversations with strangers on my iPhone for safety purposes. Are you now saying I have to meet you again to have this so-called secret revealed to me?”
“I see why you’re in this rut,” said the shaman. “What curiosity you once had is seemingly vanished.
‘Tomorrow’ is the #1 killer of productivity. More brilliant ideas that could have led to great wealth and even life-saving inventions than I care to reveal have been either abandoned or never even started because of that word.
“Yet many a mediocre idea has led to great riches and fame because the person with that idea simply did the work day in and day out.
“You’re in this rut because you’ve used the word ‘tomorrow’ too many times. ‘Tomorrow I’ll begin writing this. Tomorrow I’ll continue writing that.’ You allowed yourself to get in the habit of procrastinating. This is why even the stuff you do publish is way below your standards. To get back to where you once were, you must never allow that word to even creep in to your consciousness until you’ve completed the day’s work. Then and only then can you think about what you’ll do ‘tomorrow.'”
The girl was stunned. An hour had passed since their conversation began. The cinnamon roll and coffee she had purchased before meeting this one-legged shaman who wreaked of Amazonian herbs had grown cold and stale. She could only stare at the floor in wonder at the profound yet simple truth that had been revealed to her. She thought about all the times she had sat down to write, only to allow distraction after distraction to take her focus away from her thought. She thought about all the times she said, “I’ll finish this later today,” only to have the day fly by, and suddenly it’s 11 pm, tired and exhausted, and nothing to show for it creative wise. Even when she would summon the will to force herself to write something out of sheer guilt, it was far from her best work.
“Tomorrow,” she said out loud, to no one in particular. She raised her head to thank the shaman, yet he was no longer there. Who was there was her best friend with a decidedly concerned look on her face.
“Girl, who you talkin’ to? ‘Cuz I know you wasn’t talking to me,” said her friend.
This writer was now thoroughly confused. Was this shaman she had just met even real, or was he simply a part of her imagination? An imagination that was now revitalized because of this simple epiphany that was revealed to her throughout her own subconscious.
She realized she may never know, and quite honestly didn’t really care from where this truth came to her. The important thing is that the truth indeed came.
She was the cause of her writing funk. It was her lack of decisive action, constantly procrastinating, allowing doubt and fear of the opinions of others to keep her from just sitting down and doing the work.
What you’ve just read is the autobiography of every single creative person who has ever existed. While the people, places and times may vary, what I’ve just shared is what anyone who has ever set out to write or speak something onto paper, a keyboard, a microphone, a video camera, followed by hitting a button that says “publish” has experienced.
Helping creatives through such creative funks is what gives me a sense of purpose with my business. I love helping creatives work through their mental blocks, giving a fresh set of eyes to their issues. And I can help anyone that produces anything that involves hitting a button that says “Publish.” Not just in the technical and production elements, but with sound advice and hard-earned wisdom in the strategy and direction of any creative endeavor.
I do have both of my legs, and I wreak of coffee and eggs – not Amazonian herbs – but setting up a call to discuss working together in a coaching situation might be what you need to get through your own funk and set you on the path to creative success.
To do so, just schedule a time that suits your schedule using the following link: https://jamesdnewcomb.com/coaching/