This is a little “inside baseball” for a lot of people here, but it’s an important topic to me, at least, and I’m sure that at least some of you have jobs and responsibilities that require creativity as much as mine does. Being a full-time writer like I am now has definitely picked up my passion for writing out of the passion category and put it squarely in the “things I have to do” category–meaning that while I still love what I do, I have to do it, and I have to produce a certain amount of content, regardless of whether I feel especially creative or inspired that day. I have to deal with editors and colleagues who won’t hesitate to shoot down an idea that I think is otherwise brilliant, and the lack of recognition but overwhelming criticism that comes with putting your name out there in a place as expansive as the internet.
And all of that said, I still adore doing it (for the most part), and I continue to look for ways to get inspired, stay creative, and fiercely defend my personal time and my ideas against those things that would drag me down, make me frustrated and depressed, and get me bogged down in thinking about writing more than actually writing. That’s why this piece from Buffer founder Joel Gascoigne really resonated with me. More about this behind the jump.
