Asking These 4 Questions Helps Me Focus On What Really Mattersrs

As a writer, I tend to give myself excuses when I don't get things done:

“My time has been consumed by other things.”
“I went out too much and glugged one too many beers.”
“I need to feel great to write a great article.”
“I got a migraine.”

I took my eye off the prize, and I lost that excitement I had for my daily practice. When that happens, I ask myself specific questions.

Here are 5 questions that help me focus on what matters:

1. What is the one thing that must happen within five years that matters more than anything, and how will I do it?

2. What is the one thing that must happen within one year, that matters more than anything, and how will I do it?

3. What is the one thing that must happen within thirty days, which matters more than anything?

4. What one thing that must happen every day to take me a step closer to making the above happen, which matters more than anything?

Bonus questions for extra hardcore daily butt-kicking:

5. When will this daily thing be done today?

The article will be written today (and every day), between 9 a.m. and 12 p.m. I will write the article from scratch no matter what, with some music and a cup of coffee, no other distractions; phone off. The drawings for the article will be done between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m.

6. What will be your work process for that daily thing? Describe the outline:

I brainstorm at least five hundred words of free flow.
I find the nugget — the central idea — and continue exploring everything I can think about that thing through writing, including the problems and the solutions.
I order the main points in the text according to one of my ‘writing ladders,’ starting, for example, with establishing the problem, disproving the alternatives, and showing the solution.
I write out the first draft.
I edited and tightened up draft two.
I add color, detail, extra research, and any humor or voice that might have been lacking in earlier iterations.

7. What things can I incorporate into the day that can 10X the results of this one daily process?

Meditate for ten minutes before writing.
Write notes with a notebook throughout the day and take the best for the next day.
Exercise daily and eat better.
Reach out to at least three influential people to tell them about the post.
Use the Pomodoro Technique to work more intensely and more quickly, in 20-minute sprints, with breaks.
Study the top 1% of best article writers out there, and put my twist on what is successful.

8. Which of these matters the most, that I make sure gets done every day?

The Pomodoro Technique, because it means that I get more done, in a more intense flow, more quickly, and I gain the skill of speed. I can, therefore, spend the rest of the day doing other things — in my case, writing a fiction novel. Just by asking myself these questions and writing them down physically, I feel better. All it takes is the commitment to do something and the clarity of how it breaks down. When that’s there, you just do the thing.

Will I miss days doing this? Very likely. Will I allow myself some days off for breaks, holidays, and adventures? Of course. But the focus — both long-term and short-term — is established in a short exercise that shows me what is important right now. And doing what is important every day is a game-changer.

Asking These 4 Questions Helps Me Focus On What Really Matters

Asking yourself these questions and writing them down can work wonders.