This article is now a podcast episode! The moment Charlie pulls that golden ticket from the chocolate bar in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is incredible, isn’t it? We know he’s going to find one, but still that scene strikes deep. Somewhere in all of us is that little kid…

If you’re feeling unmotivated, fear not! Sometimes what you need to do is nothing at all. Some years ago, a friend sent me a children’s book called What Do You Do With An Idea? I was excited to read it, because I’m an idea person. I have lots of them, all the time. But at the time this book appeared in my life, I was feeling…

Gentle souls have personality traits that are counterintuitively adaptive in times of crisis. During tumultuous times like those we’re all experiencing right now, it would be easy to assume that gentle souls are at a disadvantage. When you are an introverted, sensitive type living in a society that values extraversion and bold aggressiveness, you grow up feeling maladapted to your environment in general…

Figuring out why you write can point you toward your method. In December last year I wrote a blog post about discovery writing that got a positive response. I realized it’s a topic people want to read more about. There isn’t much good information out there about discovery writing, and I’d like to change that. …

Feeling good about your life isn’t out of reach. A problem I ran into when I was trying to figure out how to make my life one I was enthused to live was that I didn’t know what that actually felt like. I’d been denying my true desires for so long that I had no context for judging whether…

Imposed identities can constrain us, but chosen identities can free us. Nothing has helped me find fulfillment as a creative person more than deciding to view myself as a creative. Being a creative means more than just being involved in creative activities. It’s a particular way of experiencing and perceiving the world. I’ve always been a creative, but claiming that identity…

If you’re struggling to connect with your creativity as a writer, discovery writing may be worth a try. Intuitive writers, often known as “pantsers,” face some unique challenges. Most writing advice is created by and for rational writers, aka plotters, and intuitive writers can struggle for years, if not decades, trying to follow it without much success. One reason for this unfortunate situation is that most intuitive writers…

The counterintuitive practice of wasting time can help you overcome time-related anxiety. For many years of my life, I was in thrall of the doctrine of wise time usage. My major daily goal was to account for the majority of my minutes and hours with productive activities that showed results. Anything I did for enjoyment had to either have a dual usefulness…

The reason changing your life is so hard is because it always involves a loss of some kind. Have you ever tried to empty a full dryer in one go, and every time you lean over to pick up a dropped sock or washcloth, you lose another? Not only are you trying to hold everything together, but you’re struggling to scoop up all the items falling to the…