Reflections on writing, loosing weight and 75 Hard

Repeated lessons

One of my early morning sunrises I saw at the river on 75 Hard - where one workout HAD to be outside. It didn’t feel like a ‘workout’ but rather a connection to Te Tai Ao

Mum would say to me, ‘the Universe keeps providing you with the same lessons until you learn and apply these lessons.’ If I am going to apply my life lessons from trying to loose weight, get fitter, stronger and healthier and from 75 Hard to my writing aspirations they would be:

Lesson 1: Organise your writing shit

75 Hard and loosing weight requires some organisation and planning. Fail to plan, plan to fail. A bit like planning your eating and exercise routine. Clearing out the house of junk food and alcohol.

I have so many folders of hand written stuff, which I still am trying to figure out how to organise or use in some way. I recently moved properly into my designated office (my son has moved out 2 years ago and I resisted making his room into my office). So I tried to start a system of organising all my bits and pieces sorted folders: Moe and Hine (the novel); Wairua’ed (the Christmas NZ film script); Substack pieces and ‘OTHER’.

Lesson 2: Accountability

75 Hard assisted with this as I posted every couple of days of photos I’d taken whilst doing the tasks required of me.

Substack has kept me more consistent with my shipping out my writing and it not sitting in a folder that I forget about. I also think about my paid subscribers who are supporting me in my journey to produce my writing – and at times I have felt guilty when I have not posted - with the novel or anything actually. But it keeps me turning up. Nga mihi ki a koutou. x

Lesson 3: Non-negotiable WRITING routine

75 Hard definitely taught me about the magic of consistency and discipline. I need a consistent routine for my writing – if I am actually going to finish the novel and write a film script for Christmas next year.

75 Hard taught me some lessons about having non-negotiables shit that one must do EVERY DAY. It stopped all the bullshit complaining and procrastination and pity party days. I had to do 2 workouts. I had to read 10 pages. I had to drink 4 liters of water.

I need a non-negotiable WRTING routine. I need to knuckle down and type all the pieces of paper I have been writing over the past few years. My Mum would say to me that ‘writing is all about bums on seats.’ She was pretty wise my Mama. And a great writer too.

So far this year, I have been ‘trying’ to do 10 minutes a day of ‘typing’ up my handwritten notes. Every day I do it, I feel like I have ‘won’ an important part of my day. That I have shown up for a dream of mine. I haven’t yet had it as a non-negotiable. Maybe when I do the second phase of Live Hard, it will be one of the essential tasks.

Lesson 4: Sustainability

This is perhaps the most important lesson. Whilst 75 Hard was the boot camp for a reset, it was not sustainable to do every day for the rest of my life, nor was it designed to be.

And so whilst I may consider in engaging in a boot camp writing programme to get me going with more then just 10 minutes a day, I still need to think about sustainability. What can I commit to over the year when the business of life hits?

Here’s to the kaituhituhi in all of us.

Arohanui

Lisa