MURI always had a dream of becoming an author and touching the lives of people through my writing. But I never gathered the courage to write because of the massive effort I had to put in. It was like taking a major chunk of my time and keeping it aside for this purpose. I procrastinated for so long, but during my post grad, I learned that “If you have a story it has to come out,” so I began thinking seriously about the idea of writing.
On the first day, I set a goal of writing one page a day, which I accomplished for the next three days, post which I lost the motivation to write. After all, things are not as easy as they look. Here’s what I learned –
1. Stick-to-itness:
To accomplish a goal, you can’t leave things half way, you have to stick to your goals no matter what. Whenever I missed a target, I would open the word document and stare at the screen until I wrote a minimum of half a page. During the start it was difficult, but soon my mind got the message that sticking to your goal makes you go beyond your excuses.
I continued writing every day for eight months and I was getting bored of it. Doing a task every day without taking a break can reduce your creative drive. I wasn’t getting unique ideas. Everything looked repetitive. I learned my next lesson –
2. Take a break, have a kit-kat:
When we are in a flow experience where ideas flow freely, you love what you are doing, but a time comes when the fun of doing the task reduces and you feel fatigued. Do not ignore the message – refuel yourself by taking a break and doing something you like to do.
After completing my manuscript, I knew it was time for me to send it to publishers, but I was just whiling my time and ignoring this last step. After two months of inaction I realized I couldn’t accomplish my goal if I sit on my goal doing nothing. I learned –
3. Finish what you start:
I need to take the task to a successful end. A good start will never be noticed until you learn to finish it well. I Googled a list of publishers and began sending my manuscript to them for review.
The waiting period started and I was waiting for the publisher’s assessment of the script. Within a month I began receiving rejection letters. I tell you, the publishers have a very nice way to reject manuscripts. You don’t feel rejected yet you know they didn’t like your stuff.
4. Learn to face rejections:
What’s the point in tasting success without tasting a bit of failure. Failures help you realise the importance of success. You begin valuing your efforts more than ever. You begin to train your mind for success, and you learn to shut out that inner voice that asks you to give up.
Finally the time came and I received my first letter of acceptance. I confirmed it with them ASAP, without delay. I sent all the information by FedEx to the publishing agency. And I learned another lesson –
A memory to share – At the book launch
5. Persistence pays:
A stonecutter keeps hitting the stone and nothing happens until the hundredth blow, but on the 101th blow the stone breaks. The question is whether the stone broke in 101th blow or the hundred blows prior to it. When I received a confirmation from the publishing agency, my dream of becoming an author came to life.
This wasn’t the end. I wrote two more success books which gave me major life lessons that transformed my life. These life lessons made it possible for me reach out to thousands of people across the country with my message of hope and success.
