{"id":9613,"date":"2012-07-16T03:18:11","date_gmt":"2012-07-16T08:18:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/?p=9613"},"modified":"2012-07-16T11:44:49","modified_gmt":"2012-07-16T16:44:49","slug":"huge-creativity-booster-dont-read-cranky-bloggers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/huge-creativity-booster-dont-read-cranky-bloggers\/","title":{"rendered":"Huge Creativity Booster: Don’t Read Cranky Bloggers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

So, I have this story to tell you…<\/p>\n

I enjoy reading blogs. I read dozens regularly, and this summer I stumbled on a discovery that has really changed how my day goes.<\/p>\n

I stopped reading cranky bloggers.<\/strong>\u00a0It sounds simple, right?<\/p>\n

Hang in here with me for a moment, because there’s more.<\/p>\n

I didn’t set out to read cranky bloggers, but since I’ve subtracted them from my reading diet things have improved in amazing ways.<\/p>\n

\u2022 For one, I \u00a0feel more hopeful on many levels.<\/p>\n

\u2022 I have more creative energy.<\/p>\n

\u2022 I can think more clearly about my goals.<\/p>\n

\u2022 And, best of all I don’t feel so dragged down, overall, you know in that way that’s hard to pinpoint what exactly what could be wrong. You just feel restless or bothered on an emotional subterranean level.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Granted, lots of cranky bloggers can be interesting, entertaining, or provocative, and I have<\/em> enjoyed reading them … but I also discovered that more is at stake as I write, create, and interact.<\/p>\n

Grouchy people<\/strong> (bloggers or whoever) stifle my creative energy flow<\/strong>:
\nThe fall out comes in terms of…<\/p>\n

\u2022 problem solving,<\/p>\n

\u2022 idea generation,<\/p>\n

\u2022 interpersonal interaction,<\/p>\n

\u2022 and the resolve to finish ideas all the way through.<\/p>\n

It’s all become the higher priority for me rather than staying with the latest controversy or who-done-it tongue wagging.<\/p>\n

A captive no more!<\/p>\n

So, I unsubscribed<\/strong> to a bunch of writers who were routinely griping or negative. Sadly, I’ve found a number of Christian bloggers had to be cut from my list. They’re just not the cheery bunch you’d expect really. Some of them are quite popular, but oh well. It was a tough decision actually, but a good one…for me. Life-giving really.<\/p>\n

I realize that maybe you’re different. Maybe the tit-for-tat cranky bloggers complete with their fiery commenters spark<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0and enthuse your creative Muse. Do they? Maybe it’s their passion gives you a boost that you need to problem solve or unearth new ideas and projects, and carry them out.<\/em><\/p>\n

But, does it? Really think about it:<\/strong>
\nAfter you read a rant post, or someone’s beef or complaint, and the string of ensuing comments, do you feel energized for your own<\/span> work or creating your own<\/span>\u00a0unique art, or do you feel drained<\/strong>?<\/em><\/p>\n

See, my creative Muse gets peeved. She distances herself from me, it seems. She finds a huff and leaves in it. Maybe out of embarrassment? Maybe out of frustration frustration? Maybe because it’s all so empty to be even a small part of what is ultimately fleeting and hallow. It’s beneath her.<\/strong>\u00a0“She”…yeah sure…I suppose that might seem silly to personify my creativity… (and pull a classic Steven Pressfield).<\/em><\/p>\n

Nevertheless, I just know full well now that a diet of reading that includes grouchiness creates a dead weight I’m not willing to drag along anymore.<\/p>\n

Incidentally, I’ve found the same thing holds true regarding viewing cable news shows (humorous, provocative, or otherwise), political pundits, or too many advertisements. Again, that’s my experience. The return on investment (of my time) doesn’t warrant a close tie.<\/em><\/p>\n

Cynicism puts a machete to the roots of your creative Source.\u00a0<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

<\/em>Here’s the surprise ending:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Originally, I thought to myself,<\/p>\n

“Okay. I’ll just unsubscribe to this and that, and then in the mornings when I read my email I won’t see the latest and I won’t get sucked in to read them. Sure, that’s the ticket. Then I won’t creatively derail. Yeah! I’ll just find them later<\/span>, or check after a week, and see what I missed, if anything.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

You know what happened?<\/p>\n

I didn’t even miss it. I stopped caring about the hype. I hardly ever went back. I stopped wondering if I was missing a controversy or some buzz about the interwebs. It didn’t matter. It was chaff. I just felt better and<\/span> had more to give. Perhaps I felt “cured” of that honey trap.<\/p>\n

TRY THIS:
\nTry a diet of without<\/em> cranky bloggers for just one week<\/span>. Don’t open the email, or unsubscribe for just a week<\/span>, and see if it makes a difference in your life. See if it increases your ability to be creative and amazing.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I think it will, and I wish you all the best!<\/p>\n

Thanks for reading.<\/p>\n

I’d love to hear from you on the topic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A diet of reading grouchy authors creates a dead weight I’m not willing to drag along anymore.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,5,9,5335,5626],"tags":[439,5846,5842,5843,859,976,5810,1616,5744,5844,5845,2782,5686,5847,3768],"class_list":["post-9613","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-art","category-authors","category-books","category-creativity","category-spark-my-muse","tag-bloggers","tag-boost","tag-cable-news","tag-cranky","tag-creativity","tag-diet","tag-energy","tag-help","tag-muse","tag-negative","tag-positive","tag-reading","tag-steven-pressfield","tag-tip","tag-writing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9613","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9613"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9613\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9616,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9613\/revisions\/9616"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9613"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9613"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lisadelay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9613"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}