When Consistency is Key

For two years, I’ve written and published a new blog post every two weeks on this site. There have been weeks when I really didn’t want to do it. There have also been weeks when I’ve felt so creatively tapped out that I just didn’t feel like I had anything new or interesting to say.

But that’s not really the point.

I write, edit, publish, and repeat. I’ve written about a variety of topics: creativity, LinkedIn, movies, vulnerability, marching band… I share what’s on my mind, things I’m working on, and topics that matter to me. Some posts get more interest than others; some posts go largely unnoticed.

Before I launched this blog for my business, I wrote on my personal blog for almost 10 years. Before that, I was writing for school: academic research and writing was an altogether different exercise, but I now see how it helped the writing I do now.

Consistency is the key to success in any venture. From accounting to psychology, consistency is the underlying principle for predictable results. As a writer, I can’t expect my work to improve if I’m not creating on a regular basis. Whenever I’m worried that I might exhaust everything I’ve got with the copy project I’m doing for my full-time job, I lean on the Maya Angelou quote that’s motivated creative-types for years:

“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.”

If I’m consistent—if I show up, do the work, and do it again the next time—creativity will always follow. Consistency can help you become a better writer, and as you build a body of work, you can see an improvement in quality. Read and write on a regular basis, and you’ll become a better thinker, reader, and writer.

By now, we’ve all heard that 21 days is the magic number (or not-so-magic, as it turns out) to successfully build or break a habit. From eating patterns to exercise regimens, results don’t come from inconsistent effort, and as someone who has experienced long-term weight loss, I can confirm as much.

But let’s not conflate consistency with perfection: this only invites discouragement and saps motivation, particularly when it comes to diet and physical activity. Imperfect progress is how big changes happen, and holding ourselves to unreasonable standards only sets us up for failure.

‘Consistency’ doesn’t have to mean perfect; it just has to mean ‘consistent’. Skipping one or two days out of a seven-day week doesn’t nullify the good work you put in the other five or six days. We have to be our own cheering section to stay motivated, and thinking long-term, staying positive, and being a friend to ourselves is how we can be successful.

As for me, I want to be intrinsically motivated by my pursuits so that writing becomes its own reward. When I’m consistent, I get better; when I improve, I want to do it. Suddenly, something that could be classified as “work” doesn’t feel like work at all—and I will have achieved my own professional and creative dream.

What area(s) of your life do you lack consistency and want to improve? What’s something you’re unfailingly consistent at?

(The image for this post is of a mural I captured on a recent weekend getaway to San Antonio. My love for travel has remained consistent for as long as I can remember, and I can’t wait until it’s safe to hop on a plane and go places again!)