How to succeed in business? Well, it depends on what success means to you?

And if you have ADHD, you know how difficult it is to finish what you start. And so how do you measure success?

Here’s a fan in a window.

Happy August! It’s hot here in the Greater KC Metro Area. I feel lucky I can pull the shades down, turn a fan on, and sip iced coffee.

I started my writing business somewhat impulsively about 7 years ago. I studied a bunch of writing programs that I hoped would make me a successful, working writer.

Back then, I never finished those programs (they were for the most part, self-paced) and I felt bad about myself and the money I’d spent. Many of the programs were geared toward writing sales copy, and I just didn’t get it.

None of my fellow travelers in these programs seemed to be people I could relate to. I probably was not someone they could relate to either.

I stopped trying. I quit trying to find a niche, find clients, and write for them.

I thought I’d made a big mistake trying to write for a living. Then for a while, I felt like everything I did was a mistake. That’s just the way my brain worked then.

Meditation helps:

I bought one more program, a program of meditation for writers.

And while meditating, I let go of feeling I had to make a living writing.¹

What I liked to write were stories.

I started writing stories for myself.

The Story:

During NaNoWriMo that year, I wrote a novel, mostly autobiographical, but I told it from the point of view of the antagonist. The villain.

And when I was finished, got my 50K+ Words certificate from theand NaNo people, and I tried some editing and rewriting.

One problem with this almost biographical story was that I kept bumping up against its timeline as it happened in real life. I was not sure if I wanted to put my own life in there.

In real life, I never knew exactly what the antagonist did with his life. I had to imagine a lot of it.

As I wrote from his point of view, I began to wonder… what would other people like his spouses, colleagues, and his children say about him? So I wrote another story about his daughter was a millenial, so I had to learn a lot. She was a digital native. That was fun. Completely fictional.

Then I wondered what if that’s not the way it happened, what if it happened in a completely different way? I put new people in the way of this “villain.” In this timeline, he had children.

What if an orphaned girl meets one of his sons and they fall in love?

Each time I reworked this story, I took more of myself out of it and enjoyed the writing even more.

Success?

Writing is hard, and I like doing it. I learned how to tell a story in many different ways, trying to make it fun for readers (and myself) and not trying to pound them with my opinions and politics.

I still haven’t rewritten these stories or submitted them.

I’m hoping to rewrite and polish them, maybe here… in serial form… who knows?

I started taking writing programs again.

That’s why I started this newsletter.

I wanted to learn how.

In previous issues, I’ve shared how I’ve struggled with time management and planning in general. Below the picture of Hector, I’ve listed what’s working for me.

Hector would like me to plan my day around him.

1. To-do list. Sometimes all I can do is write a list of things that must be done on a certain day. Sometimes I can check them off and that feels good.

2. Planner: Currently using the Seeing My Time Planner from Executive Function Success. I like the big page format. I tend to plan very loosely.

3. Accountability Group: A group of fellow writers who have ADHD. We meet weekly (via video chat) and we hold each other accountable.

4. Using a timer: Timed work sessions, and timed breaks. I may have planned for a 4-hour block of time for working on my newsletter, but I can assure you, I am not sitting here for 4 hours. Who can do that? Unless they’re binge-watching something… I usually plan work time for 12-18 minute increments, sometimes longer, especially in the morning. Then I get up, stretch, get some water or coffee, ooh it’s time for lunch now….

5. Timed app usage and blocking: If I’m on Amazon, for instance, (I spend too much time looking at office supplies) the app turns off and I can’t use it until the next day. Thank you, app blocker for being stronger than my brain!

I feel successful when I’ve managed my time well, and have a newsletter to send you!

What about you?

Answer in the comments. The funniest (or most or least useful) answer will get a special prize from me.

…Just one more thing! It’s the first full moon of August today. There will be another one on August 30th.

A blue moon…

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1. I used the guided meditation program from AWAI. It’s called Accessing The Writer Within: Meditation for Writers. It may not be your thing, but it validated my intuition about myself.