I've been on Steemit for a week now, with some modest success. I've found my downfall is being able to stay focused long enough to write that solid beginning-to-end article. As I progress, the quality of my paragraphs slightly drop as it goes on. Pretty normal for an everyday person that doesn't write for a hobby. In fact, I equate it to writing my English reports when I was a freshman in high school.
I've developed a couple tools to help me personally stay focused from beginning to end. It's the same tools I coach the local high school trap shooting team with. We all get a case of mind wandering, but it can be controlled through a few simple excercise to help teach your mind. Just like a baseball player hitting in the batting cage to get better, we can train our minds to be exceptional at mental tasks. Here's 5 tools I use to try and help catch me a whale.
Excercise 1. Fixed Focus
Pick an object somewhere around you that is visible easily. Focus both eyes on it and stare at it until everything else around it fades away. What should remain is only the object. This took me a few times to do, but once I got it, it became fairly easy to dial in. This excercise will help teach your mind to stay on track, and keep clear any mechanisms from distraction. Very handy in getting ready to perform a task.
Excercise 2. Create a pathway
Before our kids shoot a round of clay pigeons, we have them follow a couple with their fingers, help them learn to track the path of the bird. When I wrote my last article, I did pretty much the same. I had all my ideas on a piece of paper, and used my mind to form a "path" from title to ending. What this left me with was a clear, easy to follow track of ideas that made sense all the way to the end of the article. It creates a map of sorts to help write that blockbuster.
Excercise 3. How to Reboot
If you get lost, or have trouble finishing a sentence or paragraph, stop. I do a physical motion to take my mind off what I'm doing and restart. I wipe my hand across my chest like a baseball coach calling off signs. I call it "wiping it off". It's a soft reboot for your brain, you could find some other mechanism that you may be more in tune with, maybe just get up and get a drink of water, or for others a short jog around the block will help clear their mind. But breaking your brain away from the battle your currently in is the key to overcome that issue you're facing.
Excercise 4. The Checklist
Make sure you come in ready for the challenge. Have all other stuff cleared off your plate. If you're anything like me, you have 27 different projects all half finished going on at once. This is normal. To write that money catching article, it's hard to succeed when you're constantly thinking about something you didn't take care of. It also trains your brain to finish the job you're currently working on. Consistently finishing everything helps garner confidence and makes writing a breeze because you "know" you can "finish the job".
Excercise 5. A Routine
Form a writing routine. I have our kids start the night with same routine every time they get to the trap range. Whatever routine it is, they stay with it every time. Much like baseball pitchers, desire for that perfect game needs a consistent routine to help build comfort and stamina. Eventually, the repeated acts lead to having no nerves or butterflies, and sets up a complete system with a pattern of success. There's a reason few professional athletes get nervous in any situation, they put themselves in those situations so many times that they remain calm and comfortable. For writing, this is just as important!!
There you have it, my 5 tools to help you write that blockbusting whale catching article. I included some other links below if you need more ideas. Good luck!!
http://www.dailywritingtips.com/6-tips-for-focusing-when-writing/
http://thewritepractice.com/focus-on-writing/
http://www.stepbystep.com/how-to-focus-on-your-writing-85178/
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