I have forgotten about the simple importance of practice. If you want to get better at something, improve your skills, become a natural etc., you must practice. I have lost sight of that.
A few weeks ago I wrote about how my lack of practice in writing caused me to not do so well on a writing test for a potential job.
As much as I do enjoy watching TV, I think my TV watching has gotten the best of me. Glazing over the TV has been my way to relax and unwind, yet I hardly feel relaxed. All the while I am complaining about how I never read anymore, how my writing isn’t as good as it once was, how I used to draw all the time, how I haven’t been making time for God…
It is so much easier after a long day to just turn on the TV and let the screen takeover. I think my TV watching has also contributed to my laziness. I am even a lazy TV watcher! Instead of actively pursuing new shows or movies to watch (at least??) you can find me re watching episodes of Friends over and over and over again. Why? I don’t have to think too hard or concentrate to watch a show I have already seen.
Question: If you’re watching a show you’ve seen a billion times while you’re browsing the internet or social media, it is essentially background noise why can’t you read, draw or write at the same time?
Answer: TV is too big a distraction for me to be able to do other things that do require more concentration simultaneously. This is precisely why I cannot work from home and have the TV on in the background. I have tried. If a TV is on, I will watch it no matter what is playing. Whenever my mom works from home and has HGTV on during the day, I cannot be anywhere around her.
Solution: I prefer to read, write, draw, or “work from home” with music playing in the background. The type of music I listen to also depends on the activity. For example, if I’m reading I will listen to my jazz playlist on Spotify because I do not have to focus on words in the songs while I’m trying to focus on the words in my book. And I usually have the music down low when I read; I’m not a fan of the stark quiet. But I digress…
So how do I get into the swing of these creative activities that I miss so much? The simple answer is to just do it. Instead of getting so caught up in “being in the right mood” or spending so much time thinking about the “hows” and “whys”, I need to just dive in. Overthinking will take me right back to the TV.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not about to renounce TV all together. Making any changes cold turkey never works for me (does it really work for anyone?). No, I have just recognized that I need to take a break from the mindless TV watching when there are other ways I can relax and unwind. I am a creature of habit naturally, so taking daily time out to these creative activities will soon become routine. I just need to start!
howimetaraya 