The Productivity Engine

Brian Niemeier offers solid advice for authors, artists, or anyone setting out on a long term creative project.

First, what I_don't_do is set word count goals. I think Scott Adams gets it right with his maxim "Goals are for losers. Systems are for winners." The reason is the demoralization you feel when you fall short of a goal. That creates disincentives that you must expend willpower to overcome. No one has unlimited willpower. Eventually, you will burn out.

Second, the way to achieve high productivity is to set up a system that minimizes effort. Really examine your writing process. You already know that you top out at 500 words most days. Guess what? That's about equal to my most recent daily word count on a paying project under a deadline. But I'm not worried because I wrote well over 2000 words the day before and likely will tomorrow, too. If you're like me, some days you'll barely muster 500 words, and other days, you'll break 5000. Take note of those peak productive days. Ask yourself why you were so prolific. What factors contributed to your high output?

I would add that allotting time is more important than setting milestones. Remove any distractions, setup your perfect work environment that gets you into the zone, and just let it happen. Every artist starts with a basic structure. That basic structure can be molded into completely different forms. You just need an armature to begin with. From this amorphous lump you then hone, file, and shape it into fine detail until it is pleasing to the eye/ear.

Sometimes when you see a work that is just so bad, it's immediately apparent what needs to be fixed. This means that even if what you start off with is awful, it can still be a suitable starting point. As you get better at your craft, you can start with a more sound armature, edit and shape with a more discerning eye and make those needed changes more boldly, with less effort and less time spent in the process. Even professionals can hit a brick wall, but they have time proven habits to fall back on and get them over the hump. I hope you can add this one habit to your next creative endeavor.

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