Finding the words

I originally planned on this post for Sunday. I started it—twice—but abandoned it; I just couldn’t find the words.

That’s not unusual for me, of course: I always have posts that never emerge from the draft stage. So far, the number of these ill-fated drafts over the year-to-date is running about the same as last year, but that’s up 65% on 2010. Not that it matters.

We all get tongue-tied sometimes, or decide against saying what we’re thinking. It’s no different for me and this blog. In fact, they’re the main reasons that my drafts don’t become posts. Well, some don’t, others do.

And thinking about that today led to a realisation. It’s not that I have trouble finding words, or trouble finding the right ones that say what I mean. No, the main reason for posting less, and leaving so many posts unfinished, is much simpler: Lack of time.

Time is the great enabler AND killer of creativity. It stifles creativity when we either don’t have enough time to do the job right, or when we have too much time so that it prevents focus. For me, it’s usually the first.

And this is why I don’t worry any more about missing days. Out of 22 Sundays so far in 2012, I’ve only posted on 10 of them. Not that this matters, either.

The point is, this blog is here for me whenever I want it. I have my podcast, though the lack of time has affected that, too, this year. I have my other podcast (ditto). I even have a YouTube Channel, though I haven’t posted anything to it in nearly 2½ years. So, when I have the time and something to say, I have a medium.

I think more people should take advantage of the many opportunities for self-expression, using whatever medium works best for them. The expression is, in my opinion, justification for itself.

Sometimes, though, we all find we get stuck, or, maybe, just slowed down. It usually passes, eventually. It does for me. Sooner or later I always find the words again—and realise that they were never lost in the first place.

Photo is my own.