“Squirrel!”

I posted this on Facebook the other day because it completely reflects what I’ve been struggling with for the last two weeks. Plus it made me laugh. However my issues are not with housekeeping…it’s with writing this blog.

Being easily distracted is something I’ve dealt with all my life, and I’m sure it’s not completely an introvert trait, but I do feel like it’s a lot more difficult for introverts to deal with.

When I sit down at my laptop, often times I don’t have a plan for what I’m going to write or what I want to say, which opens the door for anything and everything else to come barreling in to steal my attention. Actually, I already stopped four times to take care of some things before I could write just this much. It’s really a frustrating feeling that leaves me with horrible guilt over not being productive.

My day usually starts with me saying, “I have to write a blog post today”. But first, I need to have breakfast, then I’ll get the laptop out. When I’ve finished eating, I need to track my points on the WW app, so I pull out my phone and do that. Now, since I have my phone out, I need to check my email. Okay, that’s done, but I still have some of my morning energy drink to finish, so while I’m sipping on that, I’ll open up all the silly games I love to play and collect all the daily free stuff they give out. That doesn’t take long, so I’d better check my facebook. Aaaannnndddd, before you know it, I’ve fallen into the facebook rabbit hole. 30 minutes later, I’m late to meet my friend for our Couch-to-5K run….again! My blog will have to wait just a bit. Once I’m home, I’ll for sure grab my laptop. But now that I’m back, my hip is loudly protesting the exercise I just did (man, getting older sucks!), so I couldn’t possibly sit at the table in our hardwood dining room chairs to write until the ibuprofen kicks in. While I’m waiting on that, I’ll empty the diswasher and throw in a load of laundry. Maybe I’ll come up with an idea for my post while I’m doing that. Oh look! There’s my cat. He’s so cute and soft and fluffy that I have to stop and pet him. I wonder if his water needs filled. I’ll go check it.

This is typically how it goes, and before you know it, my day is gone and I haven’t written one word. Or, if I do manage to open up my computer, I stare at the screen and marvel at how it’s as blank as my mind. The longer I stare, the more pressure I feel to come up with something mindblowing. When that doesn’t happen, even writing something mediocre seems impossible and soon, I’m so overwhelmed that I slam the lid shut and retreat to the couch where doubt and negative thoughts creep in, convincing me that no one will ever want to read what I have to say. I have failed, yet again. Why is the bad stuff so easy to believe?

After a few days of repeating this, it gets easier to come up with excuses of why I’m not writing. If I’m not careful I’ll get stuck in a self-depracating rut and all that I’ve invested in this will have been for nothing. So far, I’ve been able to dig myself out and get back on track, with much effort, but not as quickly as I’d like. I’m working on it.

My goal is to be able to post twice a week with content that is both informative and entertaining, while leaving all of my “Squirrel!” moments behind. If anyone has tips on how to accomplish this, please share! I’d love to hear your suggestions!