Marcus Lopés

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Private: Writing Off the Grid

Get in the Habit of Doing What You Love

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write every dayI write every day. No matter where I am — in Toronto or London — I write. Some days writing isn’t easy, especially after a long flight when I’ve been up all night. Even as my eyelids sag, I’ll sit down at the desk in my hotel room and write. I might write 250 words or the first draft of a short story or blog post. But I write.

Showing up every day to do the one thing you’re most passionate about takes courage. It shows you’re committed, no matter what the odds. It’s the way to hone your skills and become better. It gets you excited and keeps the momentum going. Do it long enough, without fail, and it’ll show you who you really are.

It’s Not Easy

Nothing happens overnight. For habits to stick, it takes time and repetition. Believe in yourself, that you can, and will, succeed. Remain faithful to the cause. And remember … begin where you are. You’ll slip up and make mistakes, but you’ll survive.

Keep going. In the long-term, you’ll be better off for it.

Are you trying to create a new habit? How’s it working out? Click Reply or leave a comment in the section below. I’d love to hear from you.

Why the Rush? Or Why it’s Important to Go Slow

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Why the rush?

Some days I can’t help but rush, even though I know I need to go slow. It usually means that I’m trying to keep the momentum of a productive day going. But rushing doesn’t get me anywhere. It does the opposite. It trips me up, leaves me spinning. And then I’m always asking the question: why the rush?

Full Throttle

why the rushAs many of you know, I’m an early bird. On November 1, I’d been up since 4:15 am, and enjoyed a productive morning of writing and running before heading to the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre to visit a friend. On the way home from the hospital, I decided to pick up fresh burgers for dinner from the Healthy Butcher on Queen Street West. They also carry homemade buns, so I wanted a couple of them, too.

I was rushing. I wanted to be home to keep the momentum going on my writing. As I picked up a bun with the tongs, trying to shove it in the bag that wouldn’t stay open, it dropped to the floor. I looked around the store, hoping no one was watching, and scrambled to pick it up with the tongs. I couldn’t do it. Each time I almost had it in the bag it fell again. Inside my head, there was an explosion of expletives. I finally got it into the bag, then went for another one. Still rushing. And, Shazam! The second bun hit the floor, too. Three attempts later, it, too, was in the bag. I drew in a deep breath, headed for the counter to pay for my purchases and then, cursing under my breath, headed home.

Why? Why the Rush?

I needed to slow down. I needed to enjoy the moment.

Chasing down a big dream or goal, I get excited when I feel the end’s in sight. But there’s something to be said for slowing down and enjoying the process. It grounds me, let’s me see what’s working and what may need to be tweaked. Better than that, slowing down reveals what me and my project can become.

Life isn’t a race. It’s a journey. Take time to enjoy it!

Do you sometimes feel like you’re rushing? Can you recognize it and slow down? Click Reply or leave a comment in the section below. I’d love to hear from you.

People Who Change Our Lives

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I’ve learned to take nothing for granted. Each day brings new lessons, new insights … if we are open to life speaking to us. We are vulnerable, delicate and easily bruise. Among the billions of other humans inhabiting the planet, we’re hoping to make a mark, stand out from the crowd, leave a legacy to the generations that follow. And we meet people who change our lives.

This past Halloween, I spent the afternoon at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre visiting a friend. My friend is strong. She’s fighting hard to live, to get back to the people and things she loves. She’s not naïve, though. She admits that, right now, she’s not in a good state. Her breathing is laboured, and just repositioning herself in the bed leaves her winded.

I see the pain etched in her face, hear it in her voice. She’s in a fight for her life.

Serve a Greater Good

The visit with my friend reminded me of an expression I heard a long time ago. It went something like this: People come in and out of your life, to serve a greater good.

My friend only recently came into my life (in the last two years). And, no doubt, to serve a greater good.

Seeking to live a healthier lifestyle (in January 2018, I gave up alcohol, started paying closer attention to what I eat, and began exercising more), she shared her story. How she lost 80 lbs. Her breast cancer diagnosis. Through my ‘difficult’ period of change, she’s been an inspiration. Her knowledge, life experience and encouragement helped me get to, and stay, where I am.

At the end of the visit, I sat down on the edge of the bed and hugged her. I said, “Thank you. For being who you are, for inspiring me to do better and be better every day.”

Yes, there are people who change our lives.

Now my friend knows: she changed my life.

Is there someone in your life who’s had a major impact on your journey? Who are they? And have you told them lately what they mean to you? Click Reply or leave a comment in the section below. I’d love to hear from you.

How I Begin

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I don’t set an alarm. I don’t need to. I’m a light sleeper and wake up a couple of times during the night. But when my back starts to ache, when I’m just rolling from side to side, that’s when I know it’s time. It’s time to get to work. This is how I begin each day.

That’s sometime between 3:30 and 4:00 am. I don’t shower or brush my teeth. I put on my running gear (shorts and a T-shirt), prepare my Amino Energy drink, and sit down at my desk. Then I capture the moment — the sort of haggard, sleepy look — with the camera on my iPhone and post it to Instagram, and sometimes Twitter. Proof that I’m up writing. Proof that I’m sticking to my routine. Already, it’s taken fifteen minutes before my pen finally touches the page.

How I Begin

A small sample of my journal collection.

I take my latest notebook (I try not to use the same one twice, so I have a diverse collection) and begin with my Morning Pages. Afterwards, I start the first draft of a blog post. By this point, I’ve been up for an hour and a half to two hours. The blog post isn’t done, but it’s time to get out for a run. I run under the veil of darkness, and when I see another runner it does feel like two ships passing in the night. The cool, crisp morning air fills my lungs and, running, I’ve gone into ‘the zone.’ I quiet my mind. I try to hear life speaking to me. Now I’m ready to take on whatever the day throws at me.

Back home, I peel off my sweaty running gear, throw on one of the ratty, fraying yet comfy ringer T-shirts I bought from Old Navy ten years ago and just can’t throw away, and finish the blog post. It’s a draft. Is it any good? Will people find value in it? I don’t know. I’ll come back to it in a few days to tweak it, rewrite it … maybe even chuck it out and start again. All that matters is that I’ve written something without letting procrastination have dominion over me.

Keep it Going

Even though I’m a morning person, getting up early every day isn’t easy. Some mornings, my energy dips low around 8:00 am. As a result, I crawl back into bed for forty-five minutes to an hour. I don’t sleep. I just lay there, let my body rest. Afterwards, I get up, shower, have breakfast, and park myself at my desk. I work on my primary writing project, which is either writing the first draft of a book or rewriting one. When I’m just staring at the spines of the dictionaries and thesauruses on my desk, I know I’m no longer being productive. The writing day is over, usually around 1:30 pm. I step out of my writing world and into another.

I don’t worry any more about how many words I’ve written, how many pages I produced, or how good the writing may or may not be. I’ve shown up and done the work. That’s what counts for me.

This is how I begin. This is how I make it over.

How do you begin each day? At what point do you know that you’re no longer being productive and must step away from the work? Hit Reply or leave a comment in the section below. I’d love to hear from you.

When is Your Most Productive Time to Create?

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The ticking of the wall clock in the living room. Outside, the rumble of cars on the nearby Gardiner expressway. The staggered snore crashing through the bedroom wall into my office space. Apart from those noises, it’s quiet as I sit down to write. Of course, it’s 4:00 am and most normal people are in bed. But I’m not ‘normal’ … don’t really think I’ve ever been. Being up in the early morning hours for me is perfect, though. It’s an awesome time of the day when I can hear myself think. It’s just me and the words flowing through me. It’s a little slice of heaven here on earth. It’s my most productive time to create.

My Most Productive Time to Create

While I’ve always been a morning person, it took time to figure out when I did my best creative thinking. I had established a writing routine, which always started early in the morning. But I also had to learn to write anywhere and at any time if I wanted to finish a project. I didn’t want to be the author who took ten years to write one book. So, when I was trapped in the nine-to-five world, I wrote on my lunch hour and again after work, holing myself up in a local coffee shop. I wrote in airport lounges and on the train. I didn’t have any more excuses. I wasn’t waiting for inspiration.

What I’ve learned over the years is that the early morning, as the rest of the world is still lost in their dreams, is my most productive time to create. It’s the time when I can quickly produce a draft, hold my focus as I rewrite a challenging scene, see what’s working in a piece and what’s not. It’s when I’m at my best, when there’s clarity in all things.

Find Your Rhythm

We’re not all same. And we’ll find our most productive time to create at different points throughout the day. Maya Angelou wrote early in the morning … in a hotel room. For Stephen King, “Mornings belong to whatever is new—the current composition. […] Basically, mornings are my prime writing time.”[note]Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Scribner, 2000, p. 152[/note]

Take a moment to look at your day — the moments when you’re creating and see if you can pull out when you’ve been the most prolific, the most juiced. Was it in the evening, the afternoon or at one o’clock in the morning? Where were you? In your home office? At the local coffee shop? In bed? When you’re able to pinpoint that moment in your day when you’re doing your best work, and then stick to it, you’ll feel like providence just moved. You’ll feel like Stella, and you’ll get your groove back.

Be Open to Change

Things change. When I first found my most productive time to create, it was in the morning, between nine and noon. I don’t know why, but after a while that period became less productive for me. It was too easy to be pulled away. If it was sunny, I’d go for a run. The traffic noise seeping into the condo frustrated me. Friends who had the day off would text, “Let’s grab lunch,” and I’d bolt out the door. Learning to focus on what matters most, I started getting up earlier. Nowadays, I’m up around 3:30 or 4:00 am, and quickly get into the ‘zone’ that has my pen gliding across the page or my fingers dancing across the keyboard.

If you see your creative production slide, maybe it’s time to re-examine your schedule and change things up. It may help you get back to basics, help you to push on and finish something.

When is your most productive time to create? Hit Reply or leave a comment in the section below. I’d love to hear from you.