Edward Cullen in Twilight said, “I don’t have the strength to stay away from you anymore!” Yet, there were more than warm and fuzzy feelings hitting hormonal teenagers and middle-aged moms. From some dark, deep and dreary place, stay-at-home mom and Twilight series author Stephanie Meyer drew a well and from it an empire of wealth and success.
It’s that intense, can’t live without it passion that shakes us silly from our boring day-to-day reverie. Whether we’re copywriters, social media experts, bloggers or any writing gig for that matter, we need to get off our flat (cause we sit on our chair all day) butts and work to get passion back.
Why? Because succumbing to the monotony of daily tasks makes for rather insipid writing. And who’d hire us for that?
Remember passion? That obnoxious heart racing, mind numbing tick that for a moment in time made us feel half-way between stupid and enlightened? You probably swallowed that same pill to start writing in the first place. That luxurious emotion helped get you through the most difficult spots (bad clients, no clients, fear of failure) and now like Meyer let’s draw from it again.
Several months ago, in May, I posted this post for the witty and ever-so-talented Carson Brackney. And I thought it’d be great to share it with you here. Hope you like it!
4 Ways to Bring the Passion Back
Turn yourself on. You might have loads of interesting jobs and cool clients, but after awhile even they aren’t enough. Learn to turn yourself on by mixing it up. Try switching the topics you write about, the publications you pitch to or the websites you write for. Doing something beyond the daily duds that actually excites you, will end up affecting your writing in a good way. Just like returning home after an adventurous vacay, your normal day job will surprisingly feel exciting again.
Be adventurous. Always work at home in front of the same desk on the same chair working with the same people (yourself)? Take a chance by stepping foot outside. Don’t worry about losing time doing so. What you’ll get back in return is more than a breath of fresh air. Working in a different venue or with other people (try Meetup.com or http://wiki.workatjelly.com/) can get you potential job leads, network with future clients or get fresh ideas rolling around your head. I’d say not bad for a trip to the café and the price of a cup of Joe.
Give in to your guilty pleasure. Chic novel? Mindless magazine read? Tempting television show? Give in. Just do it. Why? You’ll open yourself up to something so crazy it’ll blow your mind away. What is this secret weapon? It’s fun. Fun helps bring the passion back. When I was on twitter one night, tweeting with one of my favorite people author, life coach, O magazine writer Martha Beck, she said something so profound it got me thinking and rethinking it for days after. I told her I was delving deeply into her inspiring book The Joy Diet. Her comment? “Pretty soon you’ll be LIGHTLY into it, and we’ll know it’s working!” I realized I was taking myself too seriously. Writers should be serious about their work, but not work seriously. Get it? Work with passion and you’ll get your flow on without forcing it.
Be bad. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard an actor say that the best role they ever played was the bad guy. There’s something titillating about taking on a role opposite from your normal every day self. As a blogger who writes to inspire others, even I need to switch roles every once in awhile. If, for example, you’re a writer of self-improvement articles, then try experimenting a different persona. Change up your blogging voice by guest posting at a different type of blog, write a book through the eyes of an evil character or get unstuck from a copywriting project by taking a break and writing a fake ad written in the perspective of the product you’re trying to sell. Be bad for a bit and see if it doesn’t help return excitement and enthusiasm back into your writing game.
Fight to bring passion back to your passion for writing and see if that doesn’t renew your interest in your work, your clients and your business.
