Making space for prosperity

One of my daily practices is to ensure I clear my desk at the end of the day, and write a few notes regarding the focus for the next day, celebrate my successes by writing them in my journal and acknowledging the things I’m grateful for.

This creates joy, and space in my mind, and enables me to approach the new day feeling inspired and focused—assuming I’ve also cleared my mind at the beginning of the day by meditating, completing my morning pages and walking in the morning too.

If Morning Pages are a new concept to you I explain this wonderful tool developed by Julia Cameron, author of The Artists Way, a little more in the chapter Journal Your Way to Success in my new book The Prosperous Author: How to Make a Living With Your Writing (Book One: Developing A Millionaire Mindset)

 Here’s a wee excerpt:

JOURNAL YOUR WAY TO SUCCESS

I love my writing journal. It’s my partner in writing, there for me whenever I need it, my confidant and my supporter and my record of where I’ve been

~ Anne Gracie, romance author

Recently, while tackling a mammoth writing project, I talked myself into a bit of a funk. I knew that what I really needed was some positive reminders of my intentions. Instead of saying, “I quit”, and “I am so over this,” and retelling the story that allowed for failure, I went online and purchased a beautiful black sketchbook. Prior to this, I had noticed anxiety building—as it always does when I don’t have a special book in which to purge and reshape my thoughts.

With my gold pen, I wrote some of the most empowering and encouraging quotes from other authors who have also struggled to maintain a prosperous mindset while writing an epic book.

Top of my list was Jessie Burton’s empowering words, “Always picture succeeding never let it let it fade. Always picture success, no matter how badly  things seem to be going in the moment.”

These words reminded me that I was picturing failure. I was telling myself messages of failure. I was feeling failure.

Jesse Burton, the author of The Muse and The Miniaturist is very inspiring to me because she is so honest about her own battles with mental health—including anxiety. “In February I was publicly honest about how difficult it had been to handle, process and assimilate in real time some of the changes in my life. Namely, the strange and wondrous effects of The Miniaturist. I wrote about anxiety, my first tentative foray into putting that mental morass into words,” she wrote in one of her newsletters.

As Jessie highlights blogging and sharing your thoughts with your fans is another form of cathartic journalling—as is writing a book like this. “You could have talked more about your personal experience so that other writers can more easily relate to you,” wrote an advance reader of this book. You’ll notice, in this chapter, and throughout this book that I’ve woven in more of my experiences, the highs and the lows, as a result.

To boost your success mindset another form of journalling is writing Morning Pages, a strategy developed by Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way.

The writing is just a stream of consciousness, writing out whatever you are feeling—good  (or what one of my clients calls the “sunnies”) or not so good (“the uglies”). 

“It’s a way of clearing the mind—a farewell to what has been and a hello to what will be,” Julia says.

“Write down just what is crossing your consciousness. Cloud thoughts that move across consciousness. Meeting your shadow and taking it out for a cup of coffee so it doesn’t eddy your consciousness during the day.”

The point of this writing is to work with your subconscious and let it work its magic in the creative, healing process.

Mining for Gold

Keep a writing journal for specific writing projects. It may not work for you, but you will never know until you try

Start where you are—commit to a daily practice of writing morning pages and journal for self-exploration

Dive Deeper. . .

You can find our more about morning pages here http://juliacameronlive.com/basic-tools/morning-pages/

This is an edited extract from The Prosperous Author: How to Make a Living With Your Writing (Book One: Developing A Millionaire Mindset)

by Cassandra Gaisford. To purchase your copy and learn how to follow your passion to prosperity, click here to go to your online bookshop.

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