Are You a Worrier or a WARRIOR?

This question was dropped in my spirit last night as I lay in bed. As a writer, there are tons of things to worry about and consider on the road to publication and eventual "success" (a relative term at best). The myriad of questions for writers leads down a treacherous path of worry, stress, and even depression which all lead to apathy, inactivity, and the destruction of our dreams. The ultimate goal of worry is to destroy our faith--not just spiritual faith, but faith in ourselves or our own visions and goals. Some of those dream-killing questions include:

• How do I know if my work is any good?
• Why am I not seeing results in my writing like others?
• How can I market my writing when no one is interested in it or me?
• When is it time to quit on my dreams?

Any worrier can attest to the fact that worry leads to more worry. It doesn't stop unless we draw the line and make it stop! The solution is just moving forward. We can reach a destination if we are always stopping at rest spots along the way. We have to keep moving!

I submit to you these bullet points from motivational speaker Craig Harper about worriers and warriors.

Worriers:

• Find things to stress about
• Are generally reactive (not proactive)
• Over-think the shit out of everything
• Are people-pleasers (and not in a good way)
• Avoid the things they should address
• Allow fear to run their lives
• Don’t stand up for themselves
• Hope things will (magically) work out
• Love routine, predictability and familiarity
• Beat themselves up often
• Procrastinate
• Apologize unnecessarily
• Waste emotional energy on stuff they can’t change
• Waste time, talent and opportunities
• Are exhausting to be around

Warriors:

• Take chances
• Are prepared to get uncomfortable
• Make the tough decisions
• Persevere when most would give up
• Ask the hard questions
• Don’t look for permission, sympathy or approval
• Explore and exploit their potential
• Finish what they start
• Talk less and do more
• Are solution-focused not problem-obsessed
• Acknowledge their flaws without any hint of self-loathing
• Don’t shirk responsibility
• Are inspiring to be around
• Are adaptable and cope well with change
• Fight for what they believe in

(craigharper.com)

The only way to overcome the plague of worry is to cut it off, to slice it out of our minds, to burn it up from our psyche, to kill it--like a warrior would do. Whatever your worries are (and mine), let's agree to fight them today until the bitter end.

Whenever I think of warriors, I think of these two men: the iconic wrestler the Ultimate Warrior and the epic King Leonidas from the movie 300. These men personify the warrior spirit although they are fictional. Whoever is a warrior to you, I challenge you to get their picture in your mind when worry creeps upon you. What would they do? They would fight!

Therefore, I give a war cry to all my writers. Despite the many tough questions, obstacles, and shortcomings in this industry, don't throw in the towel. Embrace the warrior spirit and WRITE, WRITE, WRITE!