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When your client feels stuck, you don’t panic. You get curious.

So why don’t we get curious when our writing stalls?

If the words aren't flowing, we think something must be wrong with us.

But that’s like assuming something’s wrong with your client the second a session goes sideways.

Yes, there may be a moment of panic, but not blame. You reorient and may gently run through your internal checklist:

• Hmmm, what did I miss?
• Can I try a different approach?
• What's happening underneath?

Why is it so dang hard to soften like that toward our writing?

Here's why:

We're tired. We have way too much sh*t on our plates these days.

In my case: I've been stalled getting my August newsletters out because I just returned from a trip home to Alaska.

While it was wildly nourishing, I’m processing what the future holds with my aging parents 2,000+ miles away.

Most days, my head is flooded with half-created emails I can't wait to send.

Since returning, I couldn’t think of a single thing I wanted to write.

But then I remembered:

...I'm not here to be "clever." I'm here to be real with you.

So, here’s what helped me get back to writing and might help you, too:

🌱 Step away and regulate. Take the time you need to care for yourself and get back to center. Your writing will be there when you return, and you'll feel clearer on the next steps.

🧁 Start where it's easiest. Do not start at the top of the page. Start wherever the flow feels easiest, and work your way outward in a spiralic fashion. Think of it like eating a cinnamon roll* from the center. It's the only way I write now.​

🙈 Notice perfectionism. The next thing you write doesn’t need to be as instantly popular as Taylor Jenkins Reid's novels.** My mantra when stuck is "nobody cares."

What’s one gentle thing that helps when you feel stuck?

I'd love to add it to my list.

xo Ari

P.S. I'm working my way through Feel-Good Productivity (aff link), and learning about the play personalities has made it a worthy read. Do you know yours?

P.P.S. *Normally, my allergy-friendly bakery options are a day-old peanut butter cookie or tasteless macarons. Then I discovered this bakery. If you're in Denver and have food sensitivities and a sweet tooth, check it out—and invite me when you do.

P.P.P.S. **I read The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo on the flight from Anchorage to Denver. I see what the fuss is about.

What did you think of this edition of The Weekly Wordsmith?

🌻🌻🌻 Great! I needed to hear this. ​

🌻🌻 Good, but I'm craving more.​

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