Statistics for NFTM so far 6/25-8/16 (1 month 23 days)
- 96 hours of time spent on writing
- 24,864 words written
- 1036 average words per article
- 259 words per hour
- 4.3 words per minute
- 7 weeks, 4 days
- 14.52% of 2021
- 1271 total elapsed hours since the first post of NTFM#1 on 6/25
The average self-help book is around 40,000 words. I find that interesting because on the same note, a page is about 250 words for your average novel. That means that I’m just under 100 pages, and in regards to writing a book, which is something I’ve always wanted to do, the average book is between 50-100,000 words, so I’m about halfway to that metric.
I know you’re not here to read about the numbers, I’ve just included them mainly because I was interested in knowing what I’d written. So let’s get to the point.
It’s been an interesting journey over the last 53 (including today) days that I started to write and publish these “Notes from the Morning.” Interesting because of what I’ve learned. Even more interesting are the connections I’ve made with people, new and old, through my writing during this time.
When looking over my physical handwritten journal, I find it fascinating and notable that in the weeks and days leading up to 6/25, I don’t see any note of starting to write these “articles.” In fact, I didn’t have any goals to write. I do see a note on 6/11 that simply states in a numbered list:
- I will become who I was meant to be.
- This time I will finish.
- I will master my life.
- Your commitment has to equal your goals.
I also have a note that I assume I wrote the next day, “6/12/2021 <– The day I changed” and below it I have the note: “Joesph Campbell, Hero’s Journey.”
A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero%27s_journey
Establish a Routine and Stick with It.
I’ve learned many, many things from these notes. Some of them are written in the notes so that I can reflect on them and some aren’t. I’ll read my notes over and over again sometimes after I’ve published them–and I realize that the time I spent reading, listening to audios, taking notes, watching (very few) videos, was time that I spent in deep work. Those times have helped me make myself a better person.
My writing routine:
My routine would begin with waking up, quietly sneaking out of my bedroom, and beginning my day:
Wake-Up. Most of the mornings I got up around 4 am, but some mornings a little earlier, and some later. But never later than 7 am, maybe there was one day in there I got up afterward–but I also think I was taking the day off specifically so maybe that doesn’t count. I usually eat a small bowl of oatmeal and drink a coffee.
Gratitude. Every day I start my day thinking about 3 things I’m grateful for–some of these things are just “my life”, “my family”, and other days I get very specific about an interaction with someone or something that someone did for me the day before.
The next thing I do is write something that I will do to make the day great. Most days I write, “Serve.”, “Have fun”, “Enjoy the day”, “Do a good turn”, but other days have other notes for this “step.”
After that, I send love. I think about specific people, I take deep breaths and imagine love coming from my heart and going to them. If you’re reading this, you likely had some love coming your way via these moments. I usually note your name down in my journal as well, alongside my name written in Korean next to it. I write my name in Korean each day out of respect for my natural mother, who I start with during each one of these sessions. Even though I don’t know her name, I just think of the word “Oma”, the Korean word for Mom and I tell her I love her. This has helped me mourn her loss and helps me connect with the memory of her in my life.
The next two hours I spend in deep work. I read articles, listen to audiobooks–all while taking very detailed notes about what I’m reading or listening to. I try to focus on the materials, and sometimes I re-listen or re-read things over and over again to make sure I understand them perfectly.
By this time, my wife is up and ready to get going, and I usually find her out with Bailey drinking a coffee. I like to spend 30 minutes just chatting with her, planning the day, talking about the day before–and then I’m back up in my office.
At this point, I’m ready to start writing. I am using a desk that I can stand at, so most of my writing is done while standing. Based on my numbers, I do about 3 hours on average of research for my writing, and then 1 hour of actually writing.
I’m stalling, here is the deal
As I write this, I know one thing. I’m stalling. I don’t want to write the things I’ve learned because they are personal. But I’m going to do my best. Here goes:
- Anger management: I can write as a channel for my anger issues. Leading up to the first article, I have weeks of notes on my adoption. I worked through an adoption healing program by Joe Soll, While doing his program I learned a new language to work through my adoption, I found the answers to many questions I had, and asked many of the questions I never asked in the past. I don’t want to get too deep into this here, but I learned a great deal about how to deal with my emotions and to grow from the whole experience. I was definitely stuck emotionally. I highly recommend his books if you were adopted or if you are a natural mother who for whatever reason had to give your child up for adoption. (I realize this is extremely abbreviated, but I promise I’ll write more on this later.)
- Control Issues and not finishing projects: I learned that I can write, and these 24 articles have boosted my confidence in my writing immensely. I used to be quite afraid to publish an article on the web–but I also learned why I was afraid. I was afraid because once I wrote something, I’d lose control of it. I couldn’t edit it anymore, and I was no longer responsible. I’ve realized now that finishing an article was something I needed to do each time–regardless of length, quality, or fear– I had to publish it. I’ve learned that finishing an article is like finishing a project. I have had a lot of unfinished projects in my life, I don’t intend on continuing that track record. I have learned that once I set a goal to write an article I can put myself through my routine and finish it. I feel stronger in regard to finishing projects as well.
- I am a prolific writer: My friend told me this–and now writing is something that I’ll add to the things that I want to hone and be excellent at. I’m not afraid to write anymore, and I know that I just need to follow my routine–load my brain with the info I want to write about, and then give myself the time. I now have a chart that I’ve modeled after Cal Newport’s Deep Work instructions, I put a tick for every hour that I spend in deep work for writing, and then I circle the hour that I published the article on. In my last article about the Poly Network Hack on my https://cryptocoinmentor.com, I have 7 tick marks for the seven hours I spent on it, with the seventh circled. That article took me considerably longer than most of my NFTM articles.
- I’m getting there: I don’t think this is the end of my writing. This is just the start. My next goal is to write 25 articles about cryptocurrencies and the cryptography industry. I already have one article. To produce these articles I’m teaming up with my business partner to answer questions in this area. If you have a question about Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, or any of the others, send it to me and I’ll see if I can add it to my list of questions.
That’s all I have for you for today. I’m calling it. Here’s #25, dedicated to you, my inner circle. Thank you for all the comments and compliments over the last couple of months. I’d love to hear from more of you. Let me know if one of the ideas I have written sparked something in you–no matter how small. I really do enjoy hearing from those of you who have connected with me, called me, or just sent me a short text. They help me know that I’m doing something productive. Thank you!
I love you all! Have a great week! I’ll still be writing these along with my crypto articles. Wish me luck. I’ll post another review when I hit #50.
Featured Photo by Tobias Keller on Unsplash
