Write it. Read it. Do it.

You’ve heard the old saying: “If you can see it, you can do it.” Writing helps you see what’s in your head. So write it — and do it.

Just 5 minutes.

In just 5 minutes, you can write a lot.

Try it. Pull out a wafer-sliced piece of tree (A.K.A a piece of paper) and a pen — and write what’s in your head.

Don’t overthink it. Just write. Put the pen on the page and something will begin to appear there, if you move your hand and don’t overthink it.

Whatever is happening right now is a good place to start. You could write something as simple as “I am writing.” That would get the pen moving. Then, another thought might occur: “This is stupid.” Fine. Write that down. Voila! You are writing. Eventually, other stuff will come. “I need to pay that bill.” Or, “Call Mom.” Whatever. Just get the pen moving.

After 5 minutes, stop.

Look at what you’ve written. Underline the parts that stand out to you.

Get up from your desk. Walk around. Let what you’ve just underlined incubate for a moment in your subconscious. Then —

Go back to the page. 

What do you see?

There it is: your life, at the moment you wrote it. It’s solid; it’s real. Whether good or bad, happy or sad, it’s there in front of you. You can actually see what your challenges and opportunities are.

What will you do?

This is the main question. Now that you see your life in front of you, what will you do with it? For example, you might have written, “I hate it when she tries to control me.” Wow. That thought was rattling around in your head until the moment you wrote it down — and you might not have even realized it until you wrote it.

Now that you see it, you can do something about it. Let’s take the example, above:

I hate it when she tries to control me.

Ask yourself:

• Why do I hate that so much?
• What can I do about it?

And now, you’re on your way to actually doing something that will move the needle.

Start here.

Please listen to this short talk (about 17 minutes) by Jake Weidmann, about the importance of writing. Then come right back for today’s takeaway.

The takeaway:

Spend more time writing. Writing with your own hand can help you see what’s happening — so you can do something about it.

Read more.

I can help you clear your head — and get moving again.