Another verb…

[Busydave]

I was struggling with the concept of squeezing some creative writing into my daily routine. No matter how specific I tried to be in articulating the next action, it still felt like I was one indefinable step away from that next action i.e. it was not the genuine next action that allowed me feel that my foot was really on the pavement.

I knew it was going to have to be a recurring action reminder, but descriptions like “write 500 words” were not working, because the idea was surrounded with tension and anxiety: should I REALLY be trying to squeeze this activity in amongst a lot of other responsibility - driven tasks?

Then the solution hit me. I wrote down "Allow yourself to write 500 words”, and it’s working.

Dave

 

[CosmoGTD]

I interpret that as a subtle Cognitive Adjustment.
How we Language and Word things, changes how they are represented in our brain and nervous system.

DA talks about modifying HOW the Next Action is languaged.
This is very sophisticated stuff.
Its really a form of "Cognitive Neuroscience", or at least Cognitive Therapy.

When we transform how we are representing something in our Mind, then we change how we FEEL about it, and thus what we DO.
Allen talks about this in his new book, about how he was unconsciously "resisting" answering the phone, until he raised his prices. (I am simplifying what he said).

Some of the greatest writers would actually write EVERYDAY for a few hours in the morning, no matter what, then they would get on with the rest of their day.
If you can make writing something that is intrinsically motivated, then doing it is an effortless Flow at times.

Good point!
Its very important to remember to be very subtle about how we LANGUAGE our Next Actions, and Projects, and everything else for that matter.
That is what is creating our emotional response, for good or ill or nil.

Cognitions (Thoughts-Language-Images) CREATE the Emotional response, which creates the Behavioral response, which creates the Result...Good-Ill-Nil.

Coz