Over the past couple of years, books on writing have become my reading life. Not only do these books offer advice on how to write but teachings on how to organize my thoughts in a way that is useful and productive. Recall the last time your thinking was scrambled: how did you unscramble your thoughts? What was the process you used to reorganize your thoughts in a way that assisted you in making the next decision?
For me, before I became serious about thinking and how to build my ideas the process was impulsive. Disorganized thinking led me to the steps of an ex-boyfriends house at 1:00 AM in my twenties, and it led me to leave a friend stranded at a concert because I was unsure how to tell her that I despised the music. Disorganized thinking led to low and uneventful points in my life.
Late last night after leaving the gym while listening to an interview with New York Times best-selling author, clinical psychologist, and tenured professor at the University of Toronto, Jordan Peterson. The interviewer asked Peterson about how he effectively learned to communicate hard and complicated topics with such ease and openness. Peterson mentioned a writing guide, listed on his website that he strongly recommends for his students. I have listed a link to the guide here.
After downloading and reading through the guide, I recognized areas where I could improve but also a chance to reevaluate the reason I not only write but make the choices I make. Peterson’s candid statement may also help you asses your actions and realign them with goals that are organized, relevant, and exciting to take on:
"Think of it this way: you get bored for a reason, and sometimes for a good reason. You may be bored while writing [or any other activity] because you are actually lying to yourself in a very deep way about what you are doing and why you are doing it. Your mind, independent of your ego, cannot be hoodwinked into attending to something that you think is uninteresting or useless. It will automatically regard such a thing as unworthy of attention, and make you bored by it."
The ability to organize your thoughts will not be a topic I go in-depth in The Bold Act of Becoming Yourself, but it may have much to do with how you and I have arrived at where we are and how to change course if necessary.
Yes, we could spend hours in conversation, writing about, and thinking about all the buzzwords of the day, why the last election was unfair, or what the moral panic of the moment is but if you find yourself bored during these pursuits could you be investing your energy in the wrong places?
Thank You For Reading:
I am working on another book. Each week I will blog topics, concepts, and themes from my third title “The Bold Act of Becoming Yourself.” If an idea, concept, or comment comes to your mind — let me know in the comment section below. My goal is to release this work in 2019. #TheBoldSelf