Just write something. Write anything. Better than writing nothing.
Start with a sketchbook, no lines, no constraints, no limits. Open space. Blank.
Write whatever pops into your head. Doesn’t have to be a complete thought. Maybe it’s just a word, phrase, a scribble, scrabble.
It’s your scratch pad, it will never judge you, criticize you, question you, talk behind your back, think you’re stupid or even think you’re amazing.
Then, when your scratch pad really can’t contain the thoughts that are starting to take root, start to grow bigger than the four sides of the sheet of paper. Take your thoughts to a keyboard and screen. Start with a minute or start with a phrase or an idea. The thoughts aren’t fully developed yet, they need to nurtured. Yet be vigilant, keep judgment out of the room, out of your head.
Only a minute or two. Only a sentence or two. You wouldn’t run a marathon after having only taken brief walks around the block.
Let the phrases, sentences, thoughts and ideas sit in your hard drive, sit in your head. Like a seed planted under the soil, be okay with not seeing anything sprout right away. Know the seed is working, growing, your mind is creating connections, even in your sleep, even in the shower, even when you’re driving, when you see a story, when you meet someone, when you have a conversation that seed is growing.
But it all starts with just writing. Reserving a space for that seed to be, grow and take root. Your ideas and thoughts, your dreams and passions are gifts, it is who you are. Not giving them a space to exist is not giving them an opportunity to grow, develop and become a reality.