Melissa Wiley
@melissawiley
Author of The Nerviest Girl in the World & other books for kids
Cohost of the Brave Writer Podcast with Julie Bogart
Melissa Wiley
Each of us has that do-nothing, watch-a-little-more-television place in our heart and that think-intensely and work-well place, but the latter is harder to engage. The life of your productive obsession depends on your constant recommitment to your ideals, intentions, and efforts.
from Brainstorm by Eric Maisel
- The idea of research as leisure activity has stayed with me because it seems to describe a kind of intellectual inquiry that comes from idiosyncratic passion and interest. It’s not about the formal credentials. It’s fundamentally about play . It seems to describe a life where it’s just fun to be reading, learning, writing, and collaborating on idea... See more
from research as leisure activity by Celine Nguyen
When, by contrast, you announce that you intend to productively obsess about the challenge at hand, your brain is alerted to the fact that you intend to operate differently. Your neurons stand at attention, and thinking commences.
from Brainstorm by Eric Maisel
But love and passion are not the criteria; good reasons are. A productive obsession is an idea that you have good reasons for pursuing. It is the way you use your brain to handle the business of life, do the next right thing, make meaning, and make yourself proud. If genuine love, passion, and interest are fueling the idea, consider them bonuses or
... See morefrom Brainstorm by Eric Maisel
The only sensible course, with respect to each new potential productive obsession that you field, is to pause and think.
from Brainstorm by Eric Maisel
Certain productive obsessions are bound to thread their way through your life, appearing here as a theme in the novel you write, there as the destination for a family vacation, and somewhere else as membership in a group or as an impulsive purchase.
from Brainstorm by Eric Maisel
Sometimes the source of frustration is external; sometimes it’s internal. The specifics change, but there will always be something.
I bet you wish there was a magic wand to fix things for you...
"Magic is using energy to intentionally
... See more
transform and affect outcomes."
I learned this from an author I support on Patreon (Rachael Herron) and thenfrom Magic by Jo Van Every
It is vital that a person who has decided to turn the seeds of interest into full-fledged productive obsessions learn to distinguish between those things that merely interest him and those things that really interest him. If he can’t make some sensible distinctions, he may try to build brainstorms in places of insufficient interest. If, say, his “l
... See morefrom Brainstorm by Eric Maisel
- He can look out the window or stand on his head or writhe on the floor. But he is not to do any other positive thing, not read, write letters, glance at magazines, or write checks. Write or nothing. . . . I find it works. Two very simple rules, a: you don’t have to write. b: you can’t do anything else. The rest comes of itself.
from The Dumbest and Best Productivity Trick