I’ve recently changed something about how I start my working day. It’s proving to be quite transformative for my productivity, my wellbeing, and my creativity. Consequently, I want to share what I’ve changed because I think it might help you as well.
As you may know, I’m a writer. I enjoy writing, and not a working week goes by where I don’t write something. Blog posts. Two-Hundred-Word-Tuesday articles. Engage articles. Reports. Even emails. So I’m always on the lookout for how I can write better. That’s how I discovered The Morning Pages.
They originate with Julia Cameron, the author of The Artists’ Way. This is a twelve-week programme to help anyone delve into their creativity and free it from the shackles we knowingly — and unknowingly — put around it. I’ve found the course interesting, but The Morning Pages were the most powerful element for me. Probably because I am a writer, but they can be transformative for anyone.
So, what are these Morning pages? It’s simple really.
Before you do anything else in the morning, write three pages longhand in a notebook.
Write about anything. Whatever comes to mind. Your hopes and fears. Your anxieties. What you had to eat the day before and what you want to eat today. Your challenges at work. The frustration with any troublemaking volunteers. The joy at the transformation volunteering has brought to a volunteer’s life. The music you love. The music you hate. A great new TV show, or play, or film. A wonderful book. Your relationship, or absence of one. Anything.
Whatever you write, write in a notebook, using a pen. Don’t use a keyboard and a computer, tablet or smartphone. As Julia Cameron points out, there is something different and vital about using a pen and paper compared to the click-click of a keyboard.
You don’t need a fancy notebook or pen but, if like me, you love a bit of stationery, then knock yourself out.
Don’t stop writing until you have filled three pages. I know, it sounds terrifying, but it is possible. I find that if I grab a coffee and put some music on, then it helps me, but you do you.
If you don’t think you’ll have time to do this everyone morning, then set your alarm a little earlier and get it done before the rest of your day gets going. The Morning Pages usually take me no more than twenty minutes, and they are so worth it.
I’ve been doing The Morning Pages for about four months now, and I love it. If I have to skip a day, then I miss not having written. And then I curse having to fill three pages when I get back to my notebook, but I do it and always feel better for it.
It’s like a form of meditation for me. I’ve tried all the usual meditation stuff, all the apps, and it just hasn’t worked for me, but The Morning Pages does. I’m present, pouring out my mind into a notebook that nobody else will see. It declutters my brain before the day starts. I can scream and shout, or reflect and contemplate.
The Morning Pages are helping my work too. I can play around with thoughts and ideas for articles, presentations, and workshops without the structure software like PowerPoint or Word focus on us. I can push through moments when my writing and / or thinking seems stuck. I can do my thinking with my silent notebook friend who never judges my thoughts but always helps me clarify them, event if this takes a bit of time.
You don’t need to buy Julia Cameron’s book to try The Morning Pages. Just grab a pen and some paper and make a start. Do it tomorrow morning. Then the next day, and the next.
Please let me know how you get on.
I hope you find The Morning Pages as valuable as I do.
If you already do The Morning Pages then let me know, I’d love to hear how they work for you.
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