All too often when we sit at the computer, we aren’t writing, we’re typing. It’s a subtle distinction but it’s an important one. Do you ever stare at your screen and know you need to get something down so you just hammer it out? Worse yet, do you ever stare at the screen, knowing you need to get something down, and then open a new tab and start reading the news or something? Writing isn’t always easy, anyone who says otherwise is selling something. You know that blogging is one of the best low cost SEO services, you know that you need to get it done, so let me suggest a little trick that may help you get those old synapses firing once again.
Try to write your blog longhand.
It seems crazy. Why break out the paper and pen when you have a perfectly good computer sitting right in front of you? There are two major reasons:
- First drafts
- No distractions
FIRST DRAFTS
Answer honestly, how often do you write multiple drafts of a blog post? If you’re like most people (myself included) it’s pretty much never. We’re so busy with a million different projects that all we can do it write the thing and then post it. Writing longhand forces you to slow down. First, it’s not as permanent seeming when you’re writing on paper, it will FEEL like a first draft. This will let your brain open up and get things down on paper. Second, when you write on paper, you still need to type the thing. When you start typing up your longhand work, you’ll invariably tweak and correct your own writing, giving you what amounts to an edited second draft without a lot of extra time wasted.
NO DISTRACTIONS
The biggest reason to go longhand is simple: no distractions. Sit yourself down somewhere nice (and kindly turn off your electronics) and start writing. You’ll quickly find that a pen and paper together present a very limited range of activities. You can use one (the pen) to make marks on the other (the paper) and not much else. Struck by a sudden desire to see what your friends are up to on Facebook? Too bad. Want to shoot off a quick email? Nope. Have an intense, burning curiosity to know what year Ziggy Stardust hit the scene?
Sorry Starman, you’ll just have to wait.
That’s the beauty of it. Even for people with chronic procrastination problems, there just isn’t much you can be distracted with when writing longhand. Sure, you could always get lost in thought, but we have it on pretty good authority that thinking never killed anyone. Just take a couple aspirin before hand and trust me, you’ll be fine.