Stop beating yourself up. Try this instead.

Every Friday I meet with two different writing cohorts. It’s not unusual for someone to show up, apologizing for their lack of progress since our last meeting. I’m always quick to nip that in the bud—there’s no room for blame or shame here. Often, after a question or two, we discover that they HAVE been writing. Just not in the way writing is “supposed to” look.

I’m the first one to admit that a lot of times writing doesn’t look like writing. In fact I wrote a whole list of things that I do when I’m writing that don’t look like writing at all, including staring at a wall, going for walks, and lying on the couch.

To an outsider, it probably looks like I am doing absolutely f*** all 😂

But what they don’t understand is that’s where the magic happens.

For me anyway, the miracle, the downloads, and the epiphanies do not start at the keyboard.

And I’m not the only one. In fact, Aaron Sorkin, whom everybody seems to agree is the TV genius of the world, admits that 80% of writing is banging his head against the wall.

I’m sharing this because the dreaming part is critical.

And lest you think I’m only talking to the writers here and you’re off the hook—not so fast.

When it comes to creating the life of your dreams, a life you love, a key component is the dreaming part. When was the last time you allowed yourself that much?

Because it’s not gonna happen when you’re going through bills, distracted by your kids or under pressure at work.

You get to protect your creativity by dedicating time to dream. Even if that means waking up at 5 AM to give yourself a little blank space.

Space to imagine. To explore possibility. To create into the future.

Because dreaming isn’t something we earn after we’ve done the work. Dreaming IS the work.

So what part of your day can you reclaim to dream? And what do you want to dream about anyway? That may be as valuable as anything.

Cat xo