Psychology

Schedules, Order, and The Zone

by

(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com and Steve’s Tumblr.  Find out more at my newsletter.)

With the coronavirus lockdown, it was challenging to keep up with my writing, especially my novel “A School Of Many Futures.” My life had been disrupted, my girlfriend’s life had been disrupted, my co-workers were dealing with changes, and there was the omnipresent specter of death. Not the best time to feel creative.

But I wanted to write, despite not having much of the right mood. There was something there that wanted to, writing is part of me, and I didn’t want to give up.

So here’s what I did – and something I found that surprised me.

What I started doing was scheduling writing time and/or goals. Each day more or less I tried to write, my Worldbook having a goal of writing 2 questions a day, and for my novel usually an hour on it (or an hour replotting). I admit for a stretch of weeks I was at best meeting 80% of my goals, but it was better than zero, and I was still writing.

It was a slog for awhile. You can kind of guess the reasons for it as you’re probably experiencing them or have experienced them. Still, work got done, and it was pretty good work.

Then I noticed something. I was getting more ideas, especially for my novel. I began noticing techniques that fired my imagination. I was getting inspired despite the slog, following the schedule . . .

. . . except I wasn’t. I was inspired because of the schedule.

I realized in time that because of the coronavirus crisis I’d lost touch with my inspirations. If I had just written because I was “in the mood” I’d never have written. But following a schedule meant I was always in touch with my writing even if I didn’t want to be or care.

And in time, that awareness led to inspiration and ideas and being viscerally aware of my work. Instead of writing when in the mood, the schedule kept me writing and let me more easily find the writing mood where inspiration flowed.

If you’re having trouble being creative in something, try this. Don’t wait for the mood, just make plans and do your best. Keep at it, but don’t beat yourself up if it’s not perfect. See what happens when you spend time on it.

It worked for me in time, but first you have to put in the work.

Steven Savage

The Haunt

by

(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com and Steve’s Tumblr.  Find out more at my newsletter.)

“I feel like I’m haunting my own life,” is how I described my creative state of mind while sheltering in place during the COVID-19 pandemic.

I’m here, but I’m not quite me. I’m less than I was, but still going. I’m engaged, but not fully there. Sounds horrible, doesn’t it, but also understandable.

We’re locked down, limiting our movement and activities. We’re trying to restructure our lives to work within new constraints. There’s a pandemic rushing around the world. Most government responses leave something to be desired, to be kind.

We’re tired, disoriented, afraid, and unsure of the future. No wonder we feel bad. No wonder I feel bad, like a ghost in my own experience.

But you know what? I’ll take it.

At least, like a ghost, I’m still here and still going. I haven’t given up and am holding on by sheer will.

At least I’m still in my own life, even if I feel insubstantial. I’m still here, if currently an echo of myself.

At least it’s an approximation of me and my creativity.

And if nothing else, like a wandering spirit, I might just find a way back.

So know what? I’m going to take this sensation, this echo of my usual creativity. At least there’s enough me to have this sensation to feel. I may not be at 100%, but at least I’m at some percent.

Besides like a ghost I can find a way back.

Not quite feeling yourself? Of course you don’t feel like yourself, we’re in a terrible situation. As long as you feel enough like yourself to keep going, you’ll find a way forward.

It’s OK to feel a little ghostly.

Steven Savage

Social Ruggedization

by

(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com and Steve’s Tumblr.  Find out more at my newsletter.)

You didn’t see any blog posts from me last week as life was busy and disrupted due to the coronavirus. Don’t worry, I’m fine, its just that there were a lot of changes.

I, my girlfriend, and a lot of people we know are working from home, which is a huge schedule change. We’re in a shelter-in-place order here. Then there’s the collapsing economy and so on.

You’ll understand the lack of blog posts and the large amount of junk food consumed.

So now a lot of us find ourselves in a disease crisis, not leaving home, and worrying about the state of the world. We’re all working to stay connected, stick together and make it through. So I wanted to talk about “social ruggedization.”

I’ve heard people use the term “ruggedizing” to refer to dealing with climate change – we need to make our cities and supply chains rugged in the face of disruption. The same goes for our social systems, from our world to our countries to our own social groups.

This crisis has shown the need to build resilient social systems. That’s not just my job, or your job, it’s everyone’s job. So here’s what I’m doing and a few suggestions from what I’ve learned.

Connect Regularly: People need some kind of regular checkin to connect. This could be a regular event like a weekly call. It could be a regular tool people use for communication like Discord. Sync up.

Overcome Space: Right now we’ve got to overcome the space between us, but remember there’s always space between us. It may be the space of a schedule change, or someone is laid up, or simple distance. Be pre-emptively planning to connect with people.

Share Events: There’s doing things together, but you can also share events passively. A lot of my friends and I do viewing parties where we just hang out, watch TV and do our creative projects, and so on. We’ll move those online – and streaming and so on make it easier.

Check In: Reach out to people to see how they’re doing regularly. Right now I post a daily update to some social media and check in with a few people via text messages. It’s a way to let people know you’re OK, hear from them, and encourage them to do the same.

Pool Resources: Start getting ready to share resources now. It could be food, it could be technology, or something. Start getting into the habit of helping each other and covering each other. We need it and have always need it.

Built The Society You Want: Focus on building real connections and social structures you want. Have a vision. Make it work.

Share and Promote Ruggedization: Share and promote making serious, surviving social structures. Share tips like this. Share technology that works. You want a stable society, share what you learned in making your own little stable society.

Meet New People: Go on and meet new people. YOu might make new friends and make new connections. Sure, be selective and have standards, but see who else fits them.

Connect People: In these tough times, I’ve been working to introduce people to each other. This way folks make more social connections and find allies and resources.

I hope you’re doing well in surviving these crazy times. Reach out to me with your thoughts and your ideas – or just reach out.

Steven Savage