Consistency

If we want to create a habit or make an improvement, consistency is important. This isn’t a groundbreaking idea. It is something that is subject to interference, such as distraction and procrastination. What makes something consistent? How many days or hours or weeks in a row do we do or say something for it to be considered consistent? I’ve written pages in The Lost Gift, the holiday novella I temporarily abandoned in October, for the past two days. Is that consistent?

I laugh at myself. One of my goals this year is to write daily. So far, I’ve only had streaks that last between three and ten days. I have other priorities. I’m not making excuses or coming up with reasons. These are choices I consciously make as to where I put my time and energy. Those other things I do that are more consistent than my writing streak have improved, or at least haven’t gotten worse. But when it comes to writing, I actually look at my to-do list, glance around my desk, then settle for my spiral and the story. When I turn away from distraction and stop procrastinating, I get words on the page.

Consistency can also birth momentum. If we walk a mile every day, after a while we notice we’re not breathing as hard, that our clothes are a little looser, we sleep better, and we feel energized. Then it’s not such a disliked chore to take a walk. I know that when I write consistently, it builds muscle. Not just the physical muscle in my forearm since I hand write (I used to get cramps in my forearm when I didn’t write for long periods of time), but the muscle of storytelling, of habit, of routine, of momentum. The story builds, and I don’t have to work so hard to return to the page every day. I don’t give in to distraction (email, household chores, etc.) or procrastination (another project, an admin task, etc.). The further along in the story I get, the closer to the end. Finishing energy (which I wrote about previously) pushes me to complete a project.

After two days, I see progress in the LG story line. Momentum is building to keep me coming back to the page, to put down the next word, to turn the page and keep going until the story ends. Perhaps the consistency I develop to finish this project will propel me into the next one. Where are you consistent? Where do you think consistency helps momentum?