Writing and accountability

No one may have known or not but this site was under major technical difficulties. No hacks or denial of service attack’s (I’m not that popular) but my access to blog via the WordPress App was denied. Not going to recant the problems but due to a clean wipe reinstall of WordPress disabling plugins magic and duct tape the issue is solved. Yes, I could have blogged via directly logging into my WP but they make apps for reason—convenience. Plus the lack of connecting via third party app was killing my new’ish affair with Ulysses app. The writing app is minimal and my new home to organize my thoughts. Shout out to the Sweetsetup for their course on using Ulysses. It requires third party access to WordPress to work so it was a double blow having that feature broken.

While I was fighting my website subsequently I was learning to fix something that I had deemed super problematic in my life. The last two years I’ve felt frozen in moving out on fun lofty personal goals like starting a YouTube channel or writing books. I’m very self aware and have a strong penchant for all things productivity hence my 5 year affliction with the Washington DC (unofficial) chapter of getting things done (a meetup inspired by the David Allen book). At this meet up we open with a challenge forum a timed round of 5 mins or so to get help on where you are stuck.

Goals like starting a YouTube doing more on this site seems easy as I had classified them as hobbies. Mind you I’m the type of person since high school who’s always had a side gig business fixing computer or doing something technical. My last gig of teaching computer courses ended and my friend and I built an app; stuff like that was easy but yet i couldn’t understand why i couldn’t move out on projects that were supposed to feel joyful. That was the extent of the question I proposed at GTD DC challenge forum and one lady suggested a book by Gretchen Rubin “Better than Before” within this book she proposed 4 types of personalities (read more here).

I am classified as the obliger type which means I need external accountability to meet inner goals. In plain English things involving a dependency to others makes it easier for me to succeed but things involving me alone present a motivational challenge. It made sense why teaching (accountability to students); app (accountable towards partner/customers) were easy commitments. I have a regular accountability partner but that wasn’t helping move my projects forward however has with other personal changes. I set out to research other type of accountability to help as I realized developing a writing habit is the keystone habit for blogging and having scripts to support my YouTube ambitions. The pickings were underwhelming which led me to testing coach.me — affordable and simple support.

Sidebar the services from focus mate are pretty cool; you get assigned a random partner meet them online for a 50 min focus session. Watching each other “work” pins you to your seat and this site can be used for a lot studying creative work as long as you are muted and still present on the screen. Note they just switched to a subscription model but the free model is decent I think you can get 3 session a week.

Back to coach.me The external accountability worked very quickly as I rung up two writing streaks even continuing the habit while on vacation. Hello Chicago – Lake Michigan.

Very pleased to have my site working and taking the next steps with the coaching as I still need to master being organized (I have writing all over – Apple notes, Evernote, paper drafts) and developing skills editorial calendar planning (I have lots of things to write about need to get them out my head)