How I Developed Newfound Confidence Through 82 Days of Consecutive Writing
An incredibly worthwhile journey.
On June 14th, I set myself the challenge of writing 90 posts, in 90 days. Tonight, I’m writing my 82nd consecutive post, so I’m pretty close to completing the task.
When I started, my sole aim was to improve my writing. The writing has undoubtedly improved but what I didn’t consider was how many other areas of my life it would improve too.
Unintentional Development
For a moment, imagine that there’s a piece of fabric lying on the table. Now pinch the centre of the cloth and gradually lift it. What happens to the cloth?
You’ll quickly notice that it’s impossible to lift only the material between our thumb and index finger, without raising a larger area of the cloth.
This is what happens when we focus on developing an existing skill. We raise the standard of the one skill, and in doing so, we increase the level of the connected skills too.
Through regular writing, I unintentionally developed in other areas, some expected, some not.
Regular Writing Improves Much More than Just Your Writing
To understand how I developed in certain areas, I think it’s worth taking a quick look at how I approach not all, but most of my writing sessions.
The process starts even before I sit down at the laptop to write.
I listen to podcasts, watch TED talks, read regularly (Curiosity) while jotting ideas down in a notepad or the notes app on my phone (Idea Generation).
Once something has piqued my interest, I’ll explore the idea further (Research) and make notes on anything that might support my topic.
It’s at this point that I’ll sit down to write (Commitment). I’ll stick some music on and flick the Pomodoro timer on (Focus) and continue to write (Creativity) until the first buzz where I’ll take five to stretch, go outside, or re-focus (Mindfulness).
Once the five minutes are up, I’ll get back to writing, and I’ll repeat the process until the piece is complete (Persistence).
Every Sunday (Consistency) I write a reflection post (Analysis) and so far I’ve written 80+ posts (Persistence), and I know I will continue until the 90 days are complete (Determination).
It’s a watered-down version of the process, but if we list the skills involved we get:
- Curiosity
- Idea Generation
- Research
- Commitment
- Focus
- Creativity
- Mindfulness
- Persistence
- Consistency
- Analysis
- Determination
Not to mention a host of other skills that we’d develop through a 90-day writing challenge.
So What About Confidence?
The skills listed above, for the most part, were to be expected because of my writing process. There’s one more skill which has developed hugely since the start of the journey though, and this is confidence.
It didn’t even cross my mind that by writing more, I’d become a more confident person, but through the benefit of hindsight, it makes sense.
I wouldn’t say I’m an introvert, but I wouldn’t call myself extroverted either. I’m quietly confident, I enjoy socialising, but I don’t always like being centre of attention (although sometimes I do) and that’s fine.
I find 1-to-1 I’m very comfortable, I’m fine in groups of four or five if I know the circle, but any more than that and I sometimes tend to let others take the lead. The reason for it is a kind of anxiety from thinking that I’ll say the wrong thing or come across as looking foolish. Silly, I know.
However, over the last month or so, I’ve found a real shift in mindset and my interactions feel a lot more natural and above all else, enjoyable.
I put this down to several things. Firstly, I think writing is my way to organise the jumble of ideas in my mind into a coherent and structured argument or opinion, and this gives confidence in knowing that it’s reliable.
The other reason is that through the challenge, I’m consistently pitching new ideas and thoughts. I’m exposing my ideas to the public and making myself vulnerable to criticism or negativity.
I haven’t had a negative response yet, but I’m sure it’ll come sooner or later, and when it does, it will be another skill I’ll be able to develop.
Final Thoughts
I’m proud of how far I’ve come and how close I already I am to the finish line, but I know this is only the start.
There’s no doubt about it that writing, and writing as part of a public challenge, has been hugely beneficial to me, and I’m confident that you’d enjoy the same rewards for your efforts if you set yourself a similar challenge.
When I think of what I have learned and how I’ve developed not just as a writer but as a person, it makes me realise how incredibly worthwhile the journey has been.
Thanks for reading.
— Dave
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