11 ways to stop procrastinating and get writing

11 ways to stop procrastinating and get writing 11 ways to stop procrastinating and get writing Do you ever feel like youre always in a face-off with your word processor – and losing? If so, you wont be surprised to hear that one of the biggest problems nearly everyone faces when they have something to write is getting started. Call it writers block. Call it finding your muse. Call it spending two hours on Facebook for every two lines you write. Whatever you call it, getting started is hard. Most of us are guilty of procrastinating sometimes – especially when we have something important to write. Thankfully, there are lots of ways you can tackle this problem. Dont think that finding the writing process horribly painful is inevitable. Its not. By using the right tools and techniques and going in with the right mindset, you can be more productive and spend less time agonising about your writing. Ive put together eleven of the best ways of doing this. Some get you unstuck. Some get your thinking clear. Others just kill distractions. Together, they attack the problem of getting started from multiple angles. Try them. Get writing. And spend less time staring into the blank whiteness of Document1.doc. 1) Use a timer A lot of the time, it feels like the only real finishing line in writing is when youve finally hit send on an email or handed in a report. That reward is a long way away and youre not sure when its coming. Its no wonder its hard to stay motivated. However, writing is much easier if you give yourself a clear finishing line – or a few of them. A timer can help. Heres how to do it: Write down a mini-task thats related to writing your document – say, researching some figures or writing your first draft. Use a timer (like this one) and set it for 25 minutes. Work on the mini-task you wrote down until the timer goes off. Take a break. You dont have to complete the mini-task. Thats not what counts as success here. Success is now defined as working on the problem for twenty-five minutes. Its far easier than just aiming for a really distant finishing line. Try it. Many people find it works. You can extend this method even further by trying the Pomodoro Technique. 2) Get your research done first Research can be the biggest part of your preparation. So if youre really not sure what it is youre writing about, you need to get back to the drawing board. Too many people struggle on, trying to make everything come together in one go. But lets say you have your ideas together, and you cant get unstuck because you cant figure out what needs to go in. Read on. 3) Write a mind map If writing is the problem, then try not writing. I know this sounds strange. But there are several ways you can move forward without having to write a single word of your document. Mind maps are one. Theyre a versatile tool (we go into lots of detail about these in our online-training programme e360). But the core idea is very simple. To create a mind map, follow these steps: Note down the subject in the middle of the page. Write the aspects of the subject around it. Look at each aspect and think about it. Draw a line for each new idea or piece of information and continue this process, radiating outwards. Keep asking questions such as Why?, How?, What?, When?, Where? and Who? until you’re satisfied you’ve put down everything you know about the subject. Just getting something down on paper will help you get into the flow. The same applies when youre face to face with your dreaded nemesis: the blank screen 4) Write absolute gibberish Hwgeuwhfeouwfewlfjewfn. Blub blub blub blub flep flep flep flep. Trolololololo. Feel better? Great. The relief of filling up the white space and getting your fingers moving can be good in itself for banishing the fear of getting going. (Ditch any idea that this is inherently ridiculous – if it gets you started, that’s all that matters.) The next tactic shows how you can take this complete freedom even further. 5) Get a draft written first: it doesnt have to be perfect If you write total gibberish, writing is as easy as randomly mashing the keyboard. If you aim for perfect writing first time, writing seems almost impossible. Thats because it is very, very hard to write brilliant, error-free content first time. Excellent content comes with gradual refinement by revising and editing your writing. But if you try and do writing and editing at the same time, youre paralysing yourself for no good reason. So draft freely. Try drafting more quickly than youre comfortable with, leaving spelling mistakes or sentences that dont sound that great behind – knowing you will return to fix your writing later. And take some pressure off yourself: 6) Stop aiming for the perfect document: the 90 per cent rule Trying to give 100 per cent can be a recipe for failure. The sports psychologist Robert Kriegel saw this while working with some Olympic sprinting hopefuls. The sprinters were tense and tight during practice runs. So Kriegel told them to try running at 90 per cent of their normal intensity. It had surprising results. The group ran faster when they were trying less. In fact, one sprinter even set an unofficial world record. Its the same with writing. Trying to be the 100 per cent complete greatest professional who will write the best of all possible documents is too much pressure. Youll do better by giving yourself (just a little) bit of slack. 7) Ask whoever needs the document what they want If youre really stuck, it may just be because you dont really know what you should write and why. Thats a pretty hard thing to admit, especially if youre deep in the writing process. But for some documents, it can be best to pull yourself away from your screen and ask whomever youre writing for what they want. This can be something as simple as, ‘Youve asked for a report on the incident, so Im going to write what happened and why it happened, interview everyone who was involved and ask them what they did, and give some recommendations to make sure it doesnt happen again.’ At this point, you might find out that youre missing a big section, or conversely that what youre writing is more detail than they want. Either way, getting some clarity on what’s expected will make every other part of your writing easier. (But what if you cant ask them? In that case, you can profile the reader in your head.) 8) Discipline yourself: install something that will force you to get focused Some of the best engineers, psychologists, designers and marketers in the world have collaborated to make the most distracting websites possible. Theyve developed ways of systematically undermining your willpower and keeping you hooked. And theyre getting better all the time. This can occasionally cause minor problems in staying focused. So, instead of fighting the siren call of these websites with your willpower, it can be best just to block all such sites completely. The tools RescueTime and SelfControl both help you do this. Many people find the compulsion to flip to their favourite wasting-time site fades once theyve run into a few messages telling them that its blocked. After a while, it gets easier to get into a state of flow and get on with your writing. 9) Take away your options: stop playing with fonts One of the most popular articles weve ever written is The best fonts for business documents – in the time youve been reading this, its very likely that several people have read that article. Were happy people are interested in looking professional, and any reduction in the number of serious business documents written in Comic Sans is a good thing. But, unfortunately, too many people look at formatting first, rather than last. Instead of drafting your document in Word, which is constantly offering you a range of seductive fonts and line heights and margin sizes and bullet-point options (and on and on and on), it can be better just to strip all this out. Draft does this. Its a site that lets you write documents in your browser, and we swear by it at Emphasis. The interface limits your formatting options and lets you get on with writing. (You can read our review of it here.) Best of all? A completely functional version is free (its the one I used to write this article). 10) Speak to someone As children, we communicated our ideas by speaking long before we started doing so in writing. For many people, speaking still comes more naturally and easily than writing once they’re adults. So if youre struggling, stop typing and talk to someone. Tell them the main points of what youre writing about and why. Youll find that, when youre speaking more conversationally, you cant get away with being vague or speaking in professionalese. Then, once the ideas are flowing, transfer them to the page. If you havent got anyone to talk to, you can imagine talking to someone. (Or talk to yourself – though doing this unannounced in the middle of the office might make it look like the pressure of writing has really got to you.) 11) Remind yourself why youre writing Too often, we can get so lost in the process of writing that we dont remember why were writing. But its good to keep your why in mind. If you have a to-do list for your document, try writing at the top make the customer feel happy or get basics of information to manager so we can get this project moving – or whatever applies to your piece of work. Moving away from your words and back to the main purpose of what youre doing makes it easier to get on with mini subtasks (like writing a first draft). Thats because you can see what youre doing in the context of something more meaningful. Try something new If you find yourself habitually procrastinating, you need to change at least some of your writing habits. This can feel scary. A good example is writing faster than youre comfortable with, leaving imperfect sentences in your wake. If youre used to writing something really, really good and deleting each sentence and re-writing as you go, its going to be tough when you first try writing more freely. But you should try. If theres anything to be learned from the extremely diverse habits of famous authors, its that they found their own best habits for writing well. Youre just as much a unique individual as they are. Try some of the ideas here, find what works for you, and get writing. If youd like to learn more about how to tackle other challenges in writing, check out our in-person courses for individuals and companies or our online-training programme e360 – or just get in touch. Image credit: Nataly Studio / Shutterstock

Social Consequences of Japanese Industrialization essays

Social Consequences of Japanese Industrialization essays Many scholars and historians in the academic community have always debated the question why Japanese achieve its economic performance during industrialization. This paper will briefly examine why Japanese manage to catch up its Western competitors and argue that in the 9 decades between 1880 to 1970, Japanese society was undergoing a series of social-economic reform which enable Japanese society accomplish rapid growth during industrialization. From the period of 1600 to 1868, Tokugawa Japan managed to develop well-structured road networks and riverbanks to enhance agricultural productivity, rice cultivation, seed varieties and planting methods. Increased agricultural productivity affords Japanese labour to move from the agricultural sectors to industrial based sector such as mining, manufacturing and crafting industries. After the collapse of the Tokugawa government in 1868, the new centralized Meiji government proposed compulsory primary education for the masses and elite university education intended to advance in engineering and scientific fields. In fact, compulsory education was extended to middle school after WWII and national universities established in each forty-six Japanese prefectures. The government started building railroad networks connecting major islands and deep-water harbour in preparation for large steamships. Monopolized tax authority also encouraged national government to propose the best agricul tural technique to increase its tax revenue. As a result, a well-developed infrastructure was built to facilitate flow of innovations and new technology. Also, compulsory education and concentrated studies in science and technology deepened society `s acceptance to imported western technologies and further prepared new generation to new ideas and methods in industrialization. In the 1930s, a segmented Japanese labour market was resulted of lacki ...

Article Critque 2 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Critque 2 - Article Example As a function of this differential of decision-making, the article in question, entitled â€Å"Wildlife Fire and Decision Making†, seeks to analyze the means by which the process of the controlled burn can be improved upon as a means to analyze emergent science with regards to forestry management and forest fires to secure a more efficient and helpful process by which the low lying undergrowth of a particular region can be reduced without impacting to a negative degree on the extant wildlife within such a region. The article seeks to pay a special level of attention to the fact that the decrease in forested lands has placed a greatly increased burden upon species, both endangered and non-endangered, to occupy a smaller and smaller territory; thereby impacting disproportionately on the means by which controlled burns can provide a positive impact upon the extant environment. On the one side of the debate, those within the fire sciences community have traditionally pointed to the fact that the controlled burns are ultimately beneficial in each and every way; however, those that promote such a one dimensional view of the beneficial nature of this particular application of the fire sciences cannot take into account the changing dynamics of the environment and the means by which extant wildlife is disproportionately affected by these controlled burns. Although it is true that the controlled burn was beneficial in the past, and could very well continue to represent a net positive, the authors of the article seek to analyze the means and metrics by which the controlled burns should be carried out. Rather than merely engaging in a controlled burn for the sake of carrying out a program that has been practiced for decades, the authors promote the idea that the controlled burn should be guided by a complex series of metrics which would help to maximize the good f or a changing environment and dynamic that exists within our current world as

Persuasive Speech Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Persuasive Speech - Essay Example Body Paragraph 2: Alcohol related road accidents are increasing government’s financial burden. According to Blincoe the total economic cost experienced by the nation of America due to drinking and driving incidents is $277 billion and this cost includes expenses in shape of medical bills, expenses paid for repairing damaged property and even legal expenses (Blincoe, 2014). The CDC reports that during the year of 2009, more than 10000 deaths were caused due to vehicles that were being steered by individuals who were drunk (Cdc.gov, 2012). My name is (first & last name) and I am here to persuade you to install breathalyzers in your cars. The term breathalyzer is used to refer to a digital device which has been specifically designed to identify the level of alcohol in an individual’s blood at one point in time. Traditionally these devices have only been used by police officers in order to identify drivers who have consumed alcohol and are driving on the road. These devices come in all shapes and sizes and are available at competitive prices. The issue with drinking and driving is that drinking alcohol results in impairment of various significant driving skills of a drive. Each year a high number of the people who die due to road accidents are involved in a crash where the person sitting behind the wheels is drunk. Due to this the burden on the gov ernment is increasing in shape of safeguarding the lives of their citizens and the financial costs that the government has to pay for each incident. The emotional and financial costs are not only paid by the government, the emotional cost is even bared by the individuals involved in the accident and their families. Breathalyzers should be installed in the car of every individual because drinking and driving reduces the ability to drive, road accidents caused due to driving under influence increases the cost of the government and it even

The Critics of the Government’s Proposals Essay Example for Free

The Critics of the Government’s Proposals Essay Topic: â€Å"The critics of the Government’s proposals to abolish the post of Lord Chancellor and create a Supreme Court are motivated by blind adherence to tradition rather than a rational analysis of the issues† The United Kingdom is a Constitutional Monarchy and is based on Parliamentary Democracy, with a Queen and a Parliament that has two houses: the House of Lords, and the House of Commons. Supreme legislative power is vested in Parliament, which sits for five years unless dissolved sooner. The executive power of the Crown is exercised by the Cabinet, headed by the Prime Minister. Since the advent of the 10th century, England has existed as a unified entity and along with that has brought about many changes into the way England was governed which constantly reflected the changes in the times as the years passed by. In the year 1997 the electoral victory of the Labour Party after eighteen years of a Conservative rule is promising to bring about a Constitutional reform that will not only serve to decentralize the United Kingdom but also contribute to the effectiveness of the Separation of Powers which has long been an issue of contention, along with the introduction of separate Parliaments in Wales and Scotland. Among some of the other elements of the Constitutional Reform as proposed by this government is the decentralization of powers from Westminster and Whitehall. The role of the Lord Chancellor is rather controversial in the sense that his responsibilities are in conflict with the doctrine of the Separation of Powers. This doctrine states that the power of the state has to be divided between the three organs, namely the judiciary, legislature and executive. Each of the organs should operate independently and none will become all powerful. The Lord Chancellor, who is the member of the cabinet, is the head of the judiciary and is entitled to sit in the House of Lords to hear the appeal cases. Besides that, he is the speaker of the House of Lords, which is the legislative chamber. This direct conflict to the doctrine of separation of powers is seen to be incompatible with the independence of the judiciary. The fact that the Lord Chancellor is involved in all the three organs of government is said to be unacceptable. What about ensuring fair trial which requires that a judge must be independent of the government? However, one could have doubt as to whether the Lord Chancellor, when sitting as a judge, would be biased against the government. In light of the proposed Constitutional Reform the Lord Chancellor because of his responsibility in connection with this system of justice, he should no longer be allowed to sit as a judge hearing a case. Apart from the office of the Lord Chancellor being revamped is the proposed creation of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. The government also announced in 2003 that it would end the constitutional anomaly under which a House of Lords Committee served as Britains final Court of Appeal, and replace it with a 12-member Supreme Court located in its own building. Among some of the criticisms is the fear expressed by some judges that the Supreme Court will become more powerful than the House of Lords Committee it is supposed to replace, and the possibility that this court can assert itself in opposition to government. There is also the argument that any change to the present British Constitution would destabilize the nation and would be detrimental to its citizens, however, one can surely realize that the simple fears and concerns being expressed are no more than children throwing tantrums when they have been taken away from that which they are accustomed. Are we so afraid of change that we are not seeing the benefit which these two drastic changes will offer, not only for the reputation and character of the United Kingdom but also to the citizens it governs? The Supreme Court will be bolder in vindicating both the freedoms of individuals. What this means is that the twelve justices which will be appointed will be the final arbitrators between the citizens and the state and they will be the ultimate checks and balances that the law is correctly and fairly applied. This is just a case of changing the form rather than the substance of the United Kingdom. There is little difference in the work the Supreme Court does. The case work that will be dealt with by the Supreme Court is the same that comes before justices as they sit as Law Lords in Parliament. The marked difference is that they will be leaving the House of Lords and will be therefore independent of Parliament. The issues are these: We have a situation where the Judges who decide cases in the House of Lords are the very judges who sit in Parliament where laws are being made. It is a clear overlap of powers when it is observed that these said members of the judiciary are participating in the law making process as well. It is nothing less than a protracted brainwash if this is not observed as a benefit of the reform. It is not only about allocating balanced power to the judiciary, independence doctrine of the United Kingdoms legal system is even guaranteed from the grass root. The most important theme of this reform will be to modernize the legal system of the United Kingdom: putting more balanced power, independent mechanisms toward selecting the judges; all are the mechanism to reach equal human dignities. Is this not what we should strive for? Have we become so accustomed to our old ways that we are simply negating the issue of change no matter how positive it may be for us? Be this as it may, we seem to forget that this United Kingdom has a history of change which is only brought about to maintain our image of steadfastness and stability but enough to reflect the modern aspects of life. This separation brings the United Kingdom into line with many comparable modern states. It means the Supreme Court becomes the final pillar in the constitution: Parliament creates laws, the government and public bodies use those laws and the courts monitor their application. The issue with those who have severely criticized and believe in the hindering of this change is simply that members of the United Kingdom are very proud of their traditions and they attempt to maintain same. However, every nation and every country has its own customs and traditions. It is only natural for this to be so. However we cannot let our love and passion for what has since been a tradition blind us to what the country needs for further development to take place. We cannot forget the ideality of the Separation of Powers we have been striving to achieve by simply shutting down the very change which may bring about this ideal. The change in function of the Lord Chancellor and the advent of the Supreme Court must not be treated as a short glass of cheap whiskey which one simply engorges rather let us treat it as a bottle of fine wine which increases in value over time.

The Speech of Marcus Antonius in Julius Caesar -- William Shakespeare

The speech made by Marcus Antonius, called Antony, in Act Three, Scene Two of Julius Caesar shows that despite being considered a sportsman above all else, he is highly skilled with the art of oratory as well. In the play by William Shakespeare, this speech is made at the funeral of Caesar after he is killed by Brutus and the other conspirators. Brutus claimed earlier, in his own funeral speech, that the killing of Caesar was justified. He felt that Caesar was a threat, and too ambitious to be allowed as ruler. Much of this sentiment, however, was developed by the treacherous Cassius. Antony, on the other hand, felt that the conspirators were traitors to Rome and should be dealt with. This speech used a variety of methods to gradually bring the crowd to his side, yet maintain his side of the deal with Brutus. This deal was that he, â€Å"shall not in your funeral speech blame us...† (3.1.245) for the death of Caesar. Antony holds his end of the deal for the majority of the speech, yet by doing so convinces the crowd of Brutus' and the others' disloyalty. In many ways, this speech can be seen as the ultimate rhetoric, and it includes all three of Aristotle's methods of persuasion. This are the appeal to credibility, called ethos, the appeal to emotions, called pathos, and the appeal to logic, called logos. All three of these devices are used to great effect during the speech of Marcus Antonius. Antony begins with the now famous words, â€Å"Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears.†(3.2.62) In referring to the commoners as equals, they feel a sense of empathy even at the first line. This can be seen as a sort of ethos. He goes on to say that Brutus has said that Caesar was ambitious, and that this, if true, is a serious... ...2.248) Antony, though he kept to his bargain, brought the audience to his side in a variety of ways. He used all three methods of persuasion to his advantage. He claimed the killers of Caesar to be honorable and noble, and in the very act of doing so turned Brutus' followers against him. This shows the true ability of Marcus Antonius, and that he is a far greater threat than the conspirators recognized. This power of words is well known, and Aristotle's three methods of persuasion live on in modern speechwriters. Ethos, logos, and pathos are just as effective in our time as in that of Shakespeare, the Roman Empire, and wherever there are people to speak and people to listen. Thus even today, this speech of Shakespeare through Antony shows the sheer impact that mere words can have. Works Cited Shakespeare, William. Julius Caesar. New York: Simon, 1975.

Ethical Issues Created by Technology Essay

It is my belief that a crucial part of the ethics of business is computer ethics or information ethics. Most corporations today are teetering on whether computer improprieties are a violation of â€Å"professional ethic† rather than a legal ethics issue. The purpose of this paper will be to examine some of the ethical issues of the Internet as it relates to the theft of private or personal information from the material sent over the Internet. Professional ethics can best be defined as learning what is right or wrong as it relates to the workplace and then doing the right thing. This Code of Professional Ethics lays down the standards of integrity, professionalism and confidentiality which all members of that particular profession shall be bound to respect in their work. Where as legal ethics is best defined as principles of conduct that members of the profession are expected to observe in the constraints of the governing laws. These ethics are usually the outgrowth or the development of both case or Tort court findings and verdicts. To better explain this issue. The Internet is a global Web of linked networks and computers, whose nature is such that it is very difficult if not impossible, to determine its size at a given moment. It is indisputable, however, that the Internet recently has experienced a tremendous growth, with the ranks of new users swelling at ever-increasing rates. This expansion has catapulted it from the realm of academic research towards newfound mainstream acceptance and increased social relevance for the average individual. This increased reliance on the Internet has the potential to erode the personal privacy that an individual once took for granted. New users of the Internet generally do not realize that every post they make to a newsgroup, every piece of email they send, every World Wide Web page they access, and every item they purchase online is monitored or logged by some unseen third party. The impact on personal privacy is enormous. Databases of many different kinds, selling or giving away collections of personal data, already exist, and this practice will only become more common as the demand for this information grows. One of the most interesting examples is that of advertisers and marketers who, by using sophisticated new research, have begun to target the rapidly growing numbers of users online. World Wide Web sites and other interactive online services are being designed to capture the loyalty and spending power of â€Å"the lucrative cyber tot category.† A variety of new interactive advertising and marketing techniques have been developed specifically for this new medium. The right to privacy in Internet activity, especially in creating databases out of personal information, is a serious issue facing society. As such it raises serious ethical issues. An additional example is of the people on the Internet who use anonymous servers as a way to avoid responsibility for controversial and inappropriate behavior. Cases of harassment and abuse have become increasingly frequent, aided by a cloak of anonymity. There are also problems with fraud and scam artists who elude law enforcement authorities through anonymous mailings and postings. These types of examples describe the ethical issues created by technology and the people or corporations that control them. In conclusion I believe that the global nature of the Internet makes addressing the ethical issues associated with Internet or information privacy daunting and complex. It is an arena without walls or physical boundaries, where the ethical values vary from country to country. Even within the United States there is dissent and disagreement about the definitions of â€Å"Internet Privacy,† who owns that information, and what constitutes appropriate or inappropriate use of that information. Perhaps the issues that have been unsuccessfully resolved through the law (or because of a lack of relevant laws) can be resolved through the creation of moral and ethical guidelines that will frame the issues, at which point legal protections can be put in place.