Home
>
Writing
>
Water to Swim In

Water to Swim In

Not long ago, I took stock of my unrealized desire to be a published writer, or maybe I should I say ???Writer??? with a capital ???W.??? For some reason it always seemed a lofty goal, to want to see my byline in print. I found this trepidation totally uncharacteristic to every other area in my life. For twenty years, I have ministered to women both in small home group settings as well as conferences. Especially in conference settings, friends would ask, ???Are you nervous???? Almost every time I could answer truthfully that I was not. I could easily stand up in front of hundreds of faces and feel quite confident in my own abilities. Yet, to put an article or query in the mail, or to push the send button to some unknown editor elicited in me, absolute, consuming insecurity.

I looked at my collection of books and realized with a bit of a jolt that I bought my first ???Writer???s Marketplace??? in 1997, and have bought one every year since. Beside them stood as many consecutive volumes of Sally Stuart???s ???Christian Writers??? Market Guide??? Another shelf, is full to brimming over, with books discussing every facet of writing, from getting ideas, to setting up filing systems, to time management. I have a filing cabinet almost busting open with ideas, and research and possible markets.

In times gone by, I have looked at those shelves and filing cabinet and have seen the investment of time and money that they represent. They could easily have become a monument to my failure to accomplish my dream of being published. Or they could be testament to the time I have been educating myself and practicing my craft.

How many of us have dreams to accomplish bigger things but allow consuming insecurity to win over us? Let???s redefine past failure as learning, and unfinished projects as practice, and rejection as apprenticeship. Let???s take a step toward that thing that we want the most, whether it be writing, or starting a small business, or finishing a degree.

For years I have dipped my toe into the scary world of publication, like a swimmer testing new waters. Each time I came close, I backed off and settled back into my comfy chair to wait for warmer conditions. That day I decided, that things are going to be different I am going to dive in, sink or swim??? I shut my eyes and jumped.

Does anybody else want to go swimming?

1. Set a manageable goal-When trying to overcome fear, or insecurity or just looking at an overwhelming task, set a small bite-sized goal. This goal needs to be very specific. To set a goal to ???write??? for instance, can set us up for days of floundering. ???Write an article??? is still not specific enough. I can easily waste hours, or even days, perusing magazines and websites in search of an idea. My goal is to write a short article about overcoming insecurity targeted to beginning writers.

2. Determine the steps-Even small tasks can be broken down into their simpler components. List each one of these components on a sheet of paper, or wherever you make lists. Cross off each task at each stage of completion. This provides a strategy or roadmap to complete our goal, as well as a continued sense of accomplishment along the way. We especially need to do this in tasks that cause us anxiety or just seem overwhelming.

3. Set a deadline- The deadline for small goals needs to be sooner not later, you may want to put time limits on each component. For this article I set the deadline for writing it today, and actually sending it tomorrow. The reason for this is that I find I need my work to ???set??? before I give it a final proof. This is a trick I learned in university, every time I wrote a paper, off the cuff, it had glaring mistakes. I have learned that my best work needs to have a setting time.

4. Jump! This is the moment of truth: fear, insecurity, relief, and accomplishment. I remember the feeling the first time I jumped of the high diving board. Everything seemed to go in slow motion. On the way down, I wished I hadn???t taken that step. Although when I finally hit the surface of the water, it didn???t seem so bad. Wow, I did it!

5. Do the whole thing over again- Use this new gained confidence to start the whole process over again.

Pamela Hatheway has ministered in the United States and Canada, both through her writing, as well as teaching and facilitating workshops, speaking at regular services and conferences.

Pamela lives in Fredericton, New Brunswick Canada with her husband David and their two daughters Anna and Olivia. Email phatheway@rogers.com

best cleaning company Lincolnshire ..

In The News:

Medical history made as surgeons successfully restore sight to legally blind patient using world's first 3D printed corneal implant grown from human cells.

Data brokers aggressively collect your holiday shopping data to fuel scams and targeted ads. Learn how to delete your digital profile before 2025 starts.

Scammers are sending fake MetaMask wallet verification emails using official branding to steal crypto information through phishing links and fraudulent domains.

Learn what background permissions, push notifications, security updates, auto-join networks and app refresh mean to better manage your phone's privacy settings.

Criminals test stolen data by applying for deposit accounts in victims' names to prepare bigger attacks. Learn why banks won't share fraud details.

New study of 10,500+ kids reveals early smartphone ownership linked to depression, obesity, and poor sleep by age 12. Earlier phones mean higher risks.

A phone phishing attack compromised Harvard's alumni and donor database, marking the second security incident at the university in recent months.

AutoFlight's zero-carbon floating vertiport uses solar power to charge eVTOL aircraft while supporting emergency response, tourism, and marine energy maintenance.

A new phone return scam targets recent buyers with fake carrier calls. Learn how criminals steal devices and steps to protect yourself from this fraud.

New Anthropic research reveals how AI reward hacking leads to dangerous behaviors, including models giving harmful advice like drinking bleach to users seeking help.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Holiday email scams, including non-delivery fraud and gift card schemes, spike in November and December, costing victims hundreds of millions, the FBI says.

Holiday visits offer the perfect opportunity to help older parents with technology updates, scam protection and basic troubleshooting skills for safer digital experiences.

Swiss scientists create grain-sized robot that surgeons control with magnets to deliver medicine precisely through blood vessels in medical breakthrough.

Researchers exploited WhatsApp's API vulnerability to scrape 3.5 billion phone numbers. Learn how this massive data breach happened and protect yourself.

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.

iPhone and Android users can reduce battery drain and data usage by restricting Background App Refresh to Wi-Fi connections instead of mobile networks.

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.

FoloToy restored sales of its AI teddy bear Kumma after a weeklong suspension following safety group findings of risky and inappropriate responses to children.

Threat intelligence firm Synthient uncovers one of the largest password exposures ever, prompting immediate security recommendations.

Viral video shared by Elon Musk shows Tesla's Optimus humanoid robots performing tasks from cooking to construction, garnering over 58.5 million views on social media.

Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.

Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.

Water to Swim In

Writing