Real priorities

If you do not make your book a major priority in your life you will never be able to finish it. Something else will always overshadow it and steal the time you need to write.

Your time stealers could be legitimate. When the food in the house is finished you have to go grocery shopping. When nobody has a clean pair of socks left you have to do the laundry. When a work project demands overtime your scheduled writing session is out the window.

Manage and minimize these distractions as best as you can. But also know that there are real priorities.

For me certain things are more important than writing. My health is one. My family another. Over the last week I had one of the worst colds ever. Writing this I still suffer from the tail end of it. I could have forced myself to write despite of my health but I hope to live to be a hundred and for that I want to protect my health.

Similarly I want to reach success as a writer with my family intact. One of the reasons I write is because of them. I will not sacrifice them on the altar of the writer as a lone hero. Therefore I spent a lot of the last week watching DVD's with my son who also had a cold. Time I could have spent writing but that was much better spent recuperating and bonding.

What is your real priorities and where do you draw the line?

Gerhi Janse van Vuuren

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== Gerhi Janse van Vuuren is a writer. Read more of his articles at 2 Write a Book.com or visit his personal site at Gerhi.com ==

Links:

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