MINDSET, MOTIVATION, AND WELL-BEING A TO Z FOR WRITERS WORKSHOP
BY JOY E. HELD
Hi, everyone!
I’m really looking forward to leading the online workshop “Mindset, Motivation, and Well-being A to Z for Writers” for AGED TO PERFECTION RWA November 1-26. As an author, educator, speaker, and dedicated journal keeper, the idea for this course came to me after reading Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth. I was also inspired by The Willpower Instinct: How Self-Control Works. Why It Matters, and What You Can Do to Get More of It by Kelly McGonigal, Ph. D.
These topics readily apply to the writing life, and I’m always on the lookout for ways to keep myself and my clients motivated, healthy, positive, and forward moving. Both books mention the stick-to-ive-tive-ness of several famous authors, and I started to collect a list of all the modes and methods suggested by Duckworth and McGonigal. The list was long. To make it manageable, I alphabetized each idea and POOF! This workshop blossomed from there.
As a lifelong learner, I put the ideas into practice and recognized immediately how practical and accessible the techniques are. I decided to share my experience in a workshop in the hopes of helping others achieve their dreams, goals, and aspirations. Besides alphabetizing the tips, the workshop demonstrates the specific ways writers can make use of them in daily life and work.
What Is Mindset, Motivation, and Well-Being?
Here’s the workshop description:
“Mindset, Motivation & Well-being A to Z for Writers” presents a host of suggestions for overhauling your writing life inside and out. Some of the topics will resonate and some will need to percolate for a while, but everything from coping with anxiety to applying zero-based thinking can potentially recharge your existence until you are unstoppable in every aspect. These premises apply to more than just writers, but the creative juices needed to produce stories is more draining than it looks. These concepts could be the missing ingredient you’ve been searching for.
The course will present the ideas and offer outside readings or internet links to explain each one. Course participants will be encouraged to post experiences and thoughts.
Mindset
I like how psychology researcher Carol S. Dweck, Ph. D. of Stanford University describes mindset:
“Mindsets are just beliefs. They’re powerful beliefs, but they’re just something in your mind, and you can change your mind.” (16)
There are basically two mindsets: fixed and growth. In the workshop, we’ll tinker with what this means to writers.
Motivation
Of course, motivation means how much horsepower or get-up-and-go you have to accomplish a task. Looking at motivation from a writer’s perspective, we’ll take a peek at the consequences, competence, choice, and community aspects involved in being motivated.
Well-being
Although the term wellbeing is typically associated with emotional stability in psychological circles, I look at it with a wider lens that includes the areas of physical, emotional, spiritual, and communal strength. For my purposes, the hyphenated version well-being is more accurate because I’m a writer and because ‘well’ is an adjective and ‘being’ is a verb and such things require the punctuation. The workshop will present a myriad of ways you can choose from to improve your personal well-being.
From Action to Zero-based thinking, I’m sure you’ll discover something new in this workshop that can be added to your personal tool kit to move you from confused to confident when it comes to your writing career. Writing is not just about arranging the twenty-six letters of the alphabet over and over. Writing success depends on the writer/operator maintaining a good attitude and making the best choices. Please join me in the workshop to learn how the right mindset, motivation, and well-being attitudes can support your health and career.
Questions? Love ‘em!
writerwellness at gmail dot com
Be well, write well!
All good things,
Joy
Women with clean houses do not have finished books! ~Joy E. Held
Works Cited
Dweck, Carol. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Ballentine Books, 2016.
Registration link:
https://agedtoperfectionromancewriters.com/workshops/
