So this morning, before writing this little post, I wrote the latest El Post letter. I’d done my usual trick of giving myself a deadline and then pushing up next to said deadline, so close they totally need to get a room! 😉

Ironically, this edition is all about stories and how the stories we tell ourselves (either consciously but, more often sub-consciously) impact day to day life. I say ‘ironically’ because one of the stories I seem to have sub-consciously told myself is that writing anything of length is hard. I write these missives to you easily, they are fun, but longer form stuff is a whole other ballgame.

The reality is that this is totally not true!

Once I actually got started I had a blast writing that letter. I need to go back and edit it a little ahead of tomorrow’s printing and posting of course, but the piece I’d been putting off as tricky? Anything but! If I wasn’t British and totally rubbish at tooting my own trumpet, I’d even go so far as to say it’s actually really good stuff and I wish I could send it to more people because it could be really helpful.

So why all the drama around starting? Because of that stupid story of course!

What if it wasn’t difficult? What if we told ourselves it was easy?

That reminds me of the time I cut up a whole chicken. I don’t remember why I was doing it (I usually go to great lengths to avoid touching raw meat!) but I remember that the instructions I found from Delia Smith told me that it was easy. I simply followed the steps and bingo, it actually was easy! I didn’t know it at the time but I was totally living a story (even if that story came disguised as cooking instructions!) The story was it was easy, and so it was.

What things have you been putting off, holding back on or just plain refused to do because of rubbish story telling?

What if you changed the story and decided it would be easy?

Give it a try and let me know how you get on.