Before You Write Anything - 5 Tips That Help Create the Best Newsletters

Things To Do Before You Write Anything

 The first thing is to be fully rested. Creativity uses up a lot of energy in your brain for some reason. After being creative for more than four hours, you start to become tired and you start to crave a left brain activity like washing the pots or something. If you're not fully rested when you sit down to write, three things will happen.

1. Your work will be mediocre.

2. You'll start to think that you're not as good as you are. This may put you onto a downward spiral of doubt. If you think you are experiencing this downward spiral then take a few days off from writing and get some rest.

3. You'll get stressed out because of writer's block. When your mind is tired and you ask it to create something, it will simply say, "Bog off, I'm still tired. Leave me alone." So make sure you have a good nights sleep and make sure you take a regular break from writing.

 The second thing is to cut off the telephone and put up a 'do not disturb sign'. When you are writing creatively and something interrupts you, it's extremely difficult to get back what it was you were getting at in your work. You do not want any distractions. You want peace and quiet for at least two hours in one sitting, so try to arrange this time with anyone else who lives with you.

 The third thing is to count your blessings. A remarkable technique this. I was astonished by the effect this had on my ability. All you do is start thinking about all the good things in your life. Forget the bad things. Everyone has had bad experiences of some sort, but also everyone has a lot of nice experiences too. Call all of these experiences up in your mind, whether they are from the present or from the past it doesn't matter, just recall them. Think to yourself how good things really are. Choose to feel good about yourself.

 Now, sometimes this technique is difficult. Sometimes there are experiences that need to be sorted out. There may be a quarrel within your family that's bothering you or something. Something like this will be quite difficult to not think about. All I can suggest is that you talk with a friend about any unpleasant situations and aim to solve the problem as quickly as possible.

 Second to last is eat sparingly. Digesting food requires energy. The more we eat the more energy is required to digest it. If we overeat then the digestive system needs more energy than has been assigned to it and therefore takes it from you by force and makes you tired. As you know, you cannot churn out good work when you're tired. It's almost impossible.

 So...a small bowl of cereal with a tiny bit of sugar is all you should put inside you before writing. Toast is okay but watch the butter or marg. Fatty foods require more energy to break down and take longer to get into the system. You want complex carbohydrates which are found in cereals. These provide you with a constant energy for a few hours. The tiny bit of sugar compensates for the energy used to digest the food.

 Lastly, go for a walk round the block. Light exercise and fresh air stimulate the brain DRAMATICALLY! Take a pen and some paper with you because you're bound to start having ideas. What you're doing is placing the brain in its favourite environment. There's plenty of oxygen, plenty of blood being pumped into it and you're engaged in a left brain activity which relaxes the brain. Place anything in its favourite environment and it will function at its peak. So...go for an early morning stroll in the park, round the block or even just to the shops for a pint of milk. It'll do you the world of good, if nothing else...