First, a little background. I was a college professor for almost two decades before becoming a ghostwriter, author, and writing coach. Every day, I commuted 25 minutes to school and 25 minutes back home in the afternoon.

That commute, as well as having an office outside the home, was so baked into my life that I didn’t realize how much I’d miss it when I started working in my business full-time a couple of years ago.

Working from home was fun at first. I’m saving money on gas! I can work whenever I want! I can work in my pajama pants if I choose! (Except for Zoom calls, when I would frequently have a dress shirt on top… and pajama pants on the bottom.)

But over time, especially in the last six months, I started to feel like a prisoner in my own home. Even introverts like me can only be cooped up for so long before you start to lose a sense of reality.

I had been looking for an office outside the home for a while. Then a few weeks ago, I came across a listing on Facebook marketplace for an office just down the road from my house. It was exactly what I had been looking for, so I signed a lease and moved in immediately.

Since getting a separate office, I have felt a real breath of fresh air in my mental health and mindset. I’m more focused and productive, and I’ve been able to set better boundaries on my work time.

In this short series, I want to share my experience in getting an outside office and help you think through five important factors to consider when upgrading your current home office, or getting one outside the home.

Just so you know where I’m coming from, let me shoot straight with you. I believe the idea of a bohemian “laptop lifestyle” for writers is highly overrated. Yes, you can skirt around to different coffee shops all day long, getting a little writing done here and there, but that’s not how most true professionals work. You need to have a time and place to write, as well as a routine to help you get the work done.

Your writing doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It takes place in real time and space, and within the context of your busy life. The area where you work matters greatly.

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s episode, where we’ll dive into the most obvious factor you need to consider when thinking about an office space.

Today’s Challenge: Ask yourself whether you’re really content in your current writing space. Is it time to consider an upgrade or a move?

The post Office Space: Why Your Work Area Matters appeared first on Daily Writer | Essential Habits for Impact & Influence.

Today, we’re diving into practice #3:

Build anchor rituals to develop your routine.

“Anchor rituals” are just what they sound like. They are anchors to help signal to your heart, mind, and body that it’s time to write. Anchor rituals can be very simple acts that help you stay grounded and locked into production mode.

Your rituals might be very different than your other friends who are also writers. That is OK. You don’t need to copy anybody else.

Just choose a couple of meaningful anchors that work for you. It might be rituals such as making coffee, playing specific music, or other things that are a signal to your brain that it’s time to write.

Stephen King said this:

There are certain things I do if I sit down to write. I have a glass of water or a cup of tea. There’s a certain time I sit down, from 8:00 to 8:30, somewhere within that half hour every morning. I have my vitamin pill and my music, sit in the same seat, and the papers are all arranged in the same places. 

The cumulative purpose of doing these things the same way every day seems to be a way of saying to the mind, you’re going to be dreaming soon. It’s not any different than a bedtime routine. Do you go to bed a different way every night?

Currently, I have two main anchor rituals: a music playlist, and two drinks, usually a diet soda with ice and a big container of water to keep me hydrated.

With the music playlist, I alternate between movie scores and a Lo-Fi Beats playlist, both on Spotify. I purposefully don’t listen to music with words because I find that distracting while I’m trying to write.

But again, I want emphasize: do what works for YOU. Experiment but don’t over-complicate it. When you have one or two meaningful anchor rituals, it will help signal to your heart and mind that it’s time to write, and the whole process will be easier.

Question: What are some anchor rituals you already use, or would like to use?

The post Writing Habits Practice #3: Build Anchor Rituals to Develop Your Routine appeared first on Daily Writer | Essential Habits for Impact & Influence.