Do you know this ?
One day, you have the energy of a lion – everything is flowing – your writing, your ideas and your networking. You feel unstoppable – ready to take the (online) world by storm.
A powerful Web Warrior with endless fire inside.
And then the next day comes.
You wake up, get back to your pc and wonder. It’s just a new day, but something’s missing, the magic – it’s gone.
What do you do ?
I’m sure you can relate. A rollercoaster ride of ups and downs. It sucks, but it’s probably part of being human. You wonder where all that shiny passion went. You know you have to keep working on your blog, but you somehow don’t feel like it.
It used to hit me much harder in the past, but I have found some ways of coping with the “lows” of your digital crusade.
• When your inner fire takes cover, back it up
Honestly, I used to be a preacher of self-discipline; it was my secret religion. But later on, I thought it was pathetic. If you are really passionate about your mission, self-discipline should be out of the question. Nevertheless, some mindtricks once in a while help you overcome the ebbs, and focus is my number one ally. I know, you probably heard this a gazillion times – but do you REALLY do it ?? It’s easy to focus when you’re feeling like a sunshine, but when energy’s low it’s an entirely different game.
As soon as negative thoughts start invading my inner kingdom, I simply ignore them by shifting my focus in a split second. The vital question here: What do I want ?
It starts from there.
• When the energy stream spits you out, find another way in
Flow is a mighty force, once you’re in it – things go pretty smoothly. Once you’re out, well, you are down ,)
There’s some kind of physical law I learned back in school (yikes!) – whatever is in motion tends to stay in motion. So whenever I don’t feel like doing anything, I start doing something that puts me straight into the action – dancing like a wild monkey to my favorite music (you should see my neighbours !), going out and running, and/or doing SOMETHING even entirely different ! The most important step here: moving your body in some way. Get the blood really pumping.
• Every digital devil has to return to the “other” world once in a time
I wish I could meditate in the traditional sense – but I’m too explosive for that. Standing still for longer than a minute makes me uncomfortable – I have to do something 
However, no matter how much I luv the digital life (a lot!), even the most obsessive fanatic has to go offline once in a while. Taking essential breaks where I let my braincells simply flow – dreaming about the future, concentrating on the relationships in my life (forgot about those etc.
I always believed that the longer you’re online the more you can accomplish, but I don’t think that’s the case anymore. The more creative and diverting the breaks, the better the digital work.
Wrap-up
Those are my trustworthy companions that guide me through the “darkness” of my blogging days. If you challenge yourself creating stuff on a consistent basis, if you strenghten your focus when the world seems crushing down – then you’re building real muscles.
After all, isn’t everything just a matter of perception ?
Those are my ways of coping with hang-downs and cur, I’m sure you have some awesome styles yourself, what are they ?
Mars Dorian is a child of the internet and in mad love with creative branding. If you want to create a kick-ass brand, make your blog stand out and simply rock the online galaxy with your essence, go check out his website marsdorian.com and grab his RSS feed today !
This is what habits are for.
For when you aren’t feeling it. When your habits are set, you don’t have to feel it, you do it and it gets done.
I’m gonna pump one of my staff authors here, Anna Williams, who has an *excellent* article publishing on Monday about persistence. Anna is worth paying attention to because she makes her living at this stuff.
.-= Dave Doolin´s last blog ..DIY WordPress: How To Add A Copyright Notice To A WordPress Theme =-.
Hey Dave, awesome, going to read that one by Anna.
And yeah, good habits can be a savior, but we’re still humans, and sometimes you can’t even follow your habits if the energy is low. It’s time for a creative break then, where I let my mind embrace different stuff !
.-= Mars Dorian´s last blog ..3 Tips on networking the amazing way (video) =-.
Anna’s article will post a little after midnight Pacific time.
.-= Dave Doolin´s last blog ..DIY WordPress: How To Add A Copyright Notice To A WordPress Theme =-.
Hi Mars,
Oh, man, can I ever relate to this. I have such ebbs and flows when it comes to my motivation and energy levels.
There’s plenty of times when I just don’t feel like doing anything. I try and take very easy steps when that happens and don’t beat myself up about it. At other times, I just force myself to have the self-discipline to follow-through on my actions.
Knowing that people are counting on me helps, too.
I also agree with Dave’s point about making sure that we have habits in place so that we can go on ‘automatic pilot’ when our energy levels are low. It’s really important to get things done (in advance) when we are fired up, to account for when we’re not. Having good systems in place helps with this.
Karen
.-= Karen´s last blog ..Friday’s Links =-.
Hey Karen,
Forcing oneself can work – but it’s not a real guarantee for producing creative magic – sometimes baby steps are really all you need for getting back into the flow
.-= Mars Dorian´s last blog ..3 Tips on networking the amazing way (video) =-.
Sometimes I can’t get myself to get anything done either but realising that people are waiting for what I have coming to them next usually helps. I also find doing activities that I don’t do normally helps inspire me and get my creativity rolling so I can really push out something great.
.-= Eric´s last blog ..Why You Should Be Your Blog =-.
Heya Eric,
That’s a gooood idea – thinking about your readers which can be a grrreat incentive for keeping the flow. And the other thing: I tend to come up with awesome stuff after I did a lot of sport or communicated with my friends (in real life!!!).
.-= Mars Dorian´s last blog ..3 Tips on networking the amazing way (video) =-.
Persistence and determination is what I rely upon to keep moving forward. It seems that life’s circumstances are always getting in the way, but I continue to navigate around those things and move on. When you take this approach, allowing nothing to deter you from your mission, the road will some day be clear sailing.
.-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..Have No fear of Failure =-.
Yeah Jimi,
persistence and determination – the 2 powerhouses of the human mind. If you manage to keep those 2 strong – then you’re pretty much set for life – at least goal-wise !
.-= Mars Dorian´s last blog ..3 Tips on networking the amazing way (video) =-.
When I have lots of time before working, I exercise or take a long walk. If I have only a few minutes, I listen to music that uplifts my spirit (Nine Inch Nails, White Zombie, Rage Against the Machine)
.-= Julius´s last blog ..Rosa Parks Is Not Done Teaching Us =-.
Hi Mars,
I’m new to this but I write down all the ideas or tape myself when I hit a hot streak. This allows me to have a huge backlog of cool ideas to write about when I hit a dry spot. I also am trying to keep 3-4 posts in reserve so that I can still have great articles to publish through the down time.
I find that going out to meet new people, seeing friends, or challenge myself with physical activities or meetings rebuilds the energy reserves and always gets me restarted.
The other dependable for me is reading. I just added blog reading recently. Between reading blogs that are completely out of my normal range like surfing or books that are just totally different from my regular preferences, I get perspectives about my field that stretches me and wakes me up at 3AM to write.
.-= Kim @Money and Risk´s last blog ..Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin…oh my! Danger Ahead =-.
Finding another way in is a neat trick and is usually the first thing I do if I’m all blogged out, lacking inspiration or completely empty. I either do something completely different, like going for a pint with a mate, climbing, playing football or something, or I tuck in to a good book or failing that, flick through some of my favourite books. A change of environment usually stirs up the old creative juices and books do the same thing.
.-= Mo “Mad Dog” Stoneskin´s last blog ..Cheap Dutch Lager =-.
When I’m feeling the passion and feeling motivated, I try to crank out as many posts as I can and get them scheduled. That allows me some days to take a break and cruise.
.-= Mike Roosa´s last blog ..The Best Notetaker You’re Probably Not Using =-.
I love getting strength from others also. It is sort of like a weight loss plan. When you try to do it on your own, it usually just doesn’t work. But when you surround yourself by like minded individuals who are breaking down barriers daily…it just drives me onward and upward.
BrandonBurgh
.-= BrandonBurgh´s last blog ..Alexa, Traffic, and Blogging Story Mindmap =-.
Since all of my best ideas come to me when I’m not sitting in front of the computer, whenever I need to brainstorm, I do it away from the computer. So when I’m driving, standing in line, going for a walk – I keep my voice recorder or a notebook handy – then when I get back to the computer I have a fresh set of inspiration that I can turn to. That usually does the trick. However, if it doesn’t I don’t beat the dead horse. I move on to something else. I have to feel like writing – otherwise where’s the passion?
.-= Kiesha @ We Blog Better´s last blog ..Purpose Driven Life Book Drawing Results =-.
My best advice is just do. It just works. it’s like taking a step of faith. once you do, the energy to continue just begins to grow and before you know it, you up and doing.
Associating with a fired up crew also helps a lot.