I’ve mentioned it before, but I have to say it again: I dislike excuses. I become frustrated when I hear other people making excuses, but I’m especially hard on myself.
I definitely neglected Too Shy to Stop for the few months that school took over my life, and now I’m trying to smooth all the ragged edges and refocus my energy. I forgot to respond to e-mails, had little time to recruit new writers, and stopped contributing my own share of articles.
I’m trying to remind myself that all is not lost. If you have a project that you neglected and wonder if it’s best to give up, do reconsider! Here is a list of things I will do to get myself back on the right track:
Evaluate why I lost my focus/drive. I am pretty sure that finishing my thesis stole my energy, but now that school is over, I can no longer use it as an excuse. I will acknowledge this bump in the road and move forward.
(Pictured at left: Playing with fire, by cat segovia)
Develop an action plan. To-do lists are great motivators for daily life, but I am a fan of the universal to-do list. The universal to-do list is a list of tasks that you should be doing EVERY DAY. You should print this list, laminate it, and always keep it in a place where you can see it.
Jump in headfirst. Recovering from burnout is difficult. It will require a great effort! You have to be sure that you’re ready to throw your heart and soul into the project. A little effort here and there will not be enough to pull you out of your rut.
Remind myself why I love the work. Reading old Too Shy to Stop articles is a great reminder for me. I remember why I love the website and what energizes me to work for it. Talking to friends and family about a project is also a great way to remind yourself why you love what you love; when you hear the energy in your own voice, you will be inspired!
Surround myself with people who believe in the project/my abilities. Know your fan club. When you spend a lot of time in your head, like I do, it’s easy to blow your burnout out of proportion. You might just need a compliment from a loved one to re-energize and ignite you.
We all need to remember that neglected projects had an original purpose. Maybe that purpose is no longer relevant? Maybe your reason for beginning the project is no longer a priority?
Twitter member @JaySlacks finds it helpful to reevaluate the project from beginning to end, in order to gain perspective. A few years ago, he was writing a profile of an old bookstore owner but abandoned the project. “Never finished until three years later, when he was closing,” he writes. “I was able to really see how I was dancing around him before, and used the early research to make a much better article.”
If you’re going to change your course, you need to have a good reason. However, remember that reasons are different from excuses (Is that true?).