Plowing Through

     Have you ever had one of those days where you felt like you couldn't get anything significant done no matter how hard you tried? I think I'm having one of those days right now. I've been working on the drafts of this entry for the whole day and it's not going anywhere fast. That dreaded phantom known as writer's block is looming its eerie head over my keyboard.

     I can't say I have any particularly deep insight into what to do when this kind of thing strikes. I haven't been afflicted with it very much. That's probably a sign I'm not working hard enough. All I can say is what I've been trying to do. Keep going.

     That's the typical, used up, trite, bland, hackneyed, cliché, boring, stale, worn out, same old, same old answer. I know. But I don't know of any better method. It certainly hasn't helped to sit out on the back patio and meditate. A quick break is helpful, sure. But before and after that break there have to be periods of significant struggle toward the goal. Plow through the valley, and eventually you'll make it to another hill.

     All last week, I was struggling to produce a remotely acceptable draft of a short story. I likened doing so to pulling down a great white mountain (the blank page) and replacing it with a vast black valley. By days 3-5, I could barely get my pickaxe swinging in the right direction. But I kept chipping away at the rocks as best I could, hoping for that moment when I would get a big breakthrough and half the mountain would just fall. It happened, but not until after two days of trying to work and feeling useless and hopeless.

     What am I trying to say here? Stick with it. I know it's tough. You don't have to tell me twice. I believe you. But, if you really want to succeed, to achieve your goals in whatever field you experience difficulty in, you need to keep going. Yes, it's hard. But that's what makes it worthwhile.

     So my word of encouragement for you is that I know to some extent how you feel, and that if you keep plowing through, you will succeed. The mountain will fall if you keep on swinging.

Escape from Mindset Traps

     Chances are, if you live in the present culture, you have fallen into one of two insidious traps in what you believe about yourself. Two prevalent mindsets that are cultivated among people these days are either 1) that you in particular are in some way inferior or inadequate compared to others; or 2) that you are superior to other people, perfect just the way you are. You're either better than others, or worse.

     Lies, I say! All vicious, horrible, evil lies! One is self-deprecation, the other is arrogance.

     Both these beliefs function on the denial of a basic truth, one of the most basic truths that there is. All men are created equal. The mindsets above deny this. They say either that some people are worse than others (and I'm one of them), or that some people are better than others (and I'm one of them). How do people fall into these mindset traps? It's all because of  a misunderstanding regarding equality.

     People have come to assume that "equal" is synonymous with "the same." So people are not equal if they are not the same as everyone else. The effect this has on our beliefs about ourselves is that we tend to look at our weaknesses or flaws, and say that if we don't have the same ability as another, we're inferior. Or if we see that we have a strength that another doesn't have we say we're superior. In the school system, if you're great in English, but poor at science, the usual assumption is that you're not as good as the person who does well in both, and the person who does well in both is better than others who don't.

     I've got news for you: that ain't right. The only place "equal" also means "the same as" is in mathematics.

     All people are not the same. Anyone who says different needs their eyes checked. No two human beings are the same. But all human beings are equal. My point is this: You are no better or worse than anyone because you have any advantages or disadvantages that others do or don't. So you were born into a good family. That is an immense blessing, but it doesn't make you any better than the person who was born into a family torn apart by poverty and violence. So you have trouble speaking in public. So do most other people in the world. You're still no worse than the couple of folks who face their fears long enough to deliver a speech. We're all different people on even ground.

     Allow me to propose a new belief to adopt. It's my way to escape these mindset traps.

     You are a human being. That means that you have been born both with advantages and disadvantages. You are no better and no worse than anyone else because of that fact. Rather, you are unique, in a class all your own. You are equal with everyone else out there, but you are not the same as everyone else out there. You are an individual.

     From this line of thinking, there come certain responsibilities, if you truly believe this. First, you will humbly accept the duty that comes with being you. You will be honest with yourself about your strengths and weaknesses, realizing that they don't make you better or worse than anyone else. You will work to maximize your strengths and minimize your weaknesses, to be the best that you can be. And you'll rest assured in the fact that you don't have to be like everyone else because you are you.

     This entry in my log is as much directed to myself as to you, my readers. I'm trying to answer my own challenge and work to become the best, the strongest person I can be. I hope you will join me.

Dear Readers,
            I recently found this book discarded and abandoned under my bed. It’s been lost for many months now. I’m sorry to say that a number of its pages have been torn out and the rest are blank.

            I return to the log a much different person, a more sobered author, to be sure. The naïve aspirations of youth have begun to give way to a more realistic, disciplined view of the trade. I’ve realized that to do well, I need to write, and I need to do it a lot. I return to this book with that very purpose in mind.

            While I began this log before with the thought that I would only use it for stories and the occasional poem, it now becomes clear to me that that was an immensely poor idea, and I would do much better to include my thoughts and opinions, reports on things I’ve read or seen, and possibly to insert an essay or two. I hope that these will not overcome my output of stories, but I do think that in favor of quality, the number of stories I do write here will be fewer, but better.

            It’s a great privilege and responsibility to hold the power of words. This book will be my tool for improving my skill using such power. I also hope it will provide enjoyment and provoke thought for you, for that is the greatest measure of my ability.

                        Thank You Very Much

                                    Regards,
                                                --R. D.