Next Practices

When I made the commitment at the start of the year to blog a daily lesson learned for all 366 days of this leap year, I knew I was embarking into the unknown for me. Following yesterday’s lesson #100, it’s time for some reflection on the challenge…

I had two goals for blogging daily – to develop the discipline of daily writing and to improve my ability to be concise. The self-imposed limit of 366 words per post enforces the latter goal.

Several have asked me if I write multiple posts ahead of time and then publish them on a schedule. The answer is no, I write at least 95% of them at the end of each day. This is due in part to the “My Three Words” topic I posted about earlier where my three words for how I structure each day are “ground,” “stretch” and “reflect.” The idea is to ground each day in what strengthens the core of who I am. I then stretch myself throughout the day to do more than is required. Then I close the day by reflecting on that day’s experiences, writing one lesson learned. On the days when the seeds of more than one lesson are planted, I may jot down a phrase or two about it to help jog my memory for a future topic, but that is rare.

Writing is fun for me. It is therapeutic and clarifying. The consistency of the daily lessons has been a good experience for me whether anyone else reads them or not.

As for brevity and being concise, I usually have to edit my first draft because I write more than my 366 word limit. I have to cut out extraneous information, choose better words and phrases and communicate the main idea without going on too many tangents. That is a very good discipline for anyone who has to write – even if all you write are emails and Facebook posts.

We’re not quite one third of the way through the year, but so far the challenge is worthwhile, forcing me to grow in some areas of interest. I hope a few others are benefiting as well.

Leap year lesson #101 is Challenging yourself is healthy.