Fueled by Panic
Deadlines are my favorite form of threat-based productivity!
I’m back with another summer quick hit! Last week was about rewards (the carrot), but this week let’s address consequences (the stick).
Eagle-eyed readers might notice I’m off my usual schedule. Can I be honest? I completely forgot to post last week. I taught my usual class on Thursday morning. We discussed this very topic that I was already planning to write about. I thought I was going to do so directly after class. And then it just flew out of my brain entirely! Blame it on ADHD, other work, or my pool (you know she calls to me daily)—but my deadline and my consequences clearly weren’t strong enough!
The good news is, I’m betting you don’t really care! So I’m taking this as a lesson in flexibility and letting myself off the hook. Also a reminder to put things in my calendar and update my to-do list, even in the sunny days of summer!
Anyway…let’s talk deadlines!
In the past few weeks I’ve submitted different portions of my work-in-progress (a contemporary romance novel) to a few fellowships and competitions and it reminded me how much I LOVE a deadline!
Although I do value space and flexibility in my creative process, a deadline does a few very important things for me:
1) Induces mild panic
If I’ve been struggling to carve out time and actually put pen to paper (or music to mic or scene to tape) the adrenaline that hits when a deadline approaches solves all my problems! I might neglect household duties and personal hygiene for a few days, but I will power through and produce a big spurt of creative output in a short amount of time.
2) Forces me to make decisions
If I’ve already been diligently and conscientiously chipping away at my work, a deadline can offer me the kick in the pants I need in order to make some final decisions. Last week, I was forced to fill in every bit of placeholder text in my opening manuscript pages. Anywhere that I left an option on word choice for me to decide later was suddenly unacceptable. Sometimes we need a push to actually make those final choices.
3) Gives me perspective
I also found myself reading through those opening pages with a new set of eyes. When I thought about an honest-to-god stranger/industry professional reading my words for the first time, I saw little mistakes or places that lacked clarity that I hadn’t caught on dozens of previous passes. Sometimes we need to observe our work from a new vantage point before it’s truly ready to be shared.
4) Pushes me out of my comfort zone
Speaking of sharing…a deadline can help you find the courage to actually send your work out into the world! Maybe it’s the cash prize attached to the fellowship or the prestige of the competition. Maybe it’s the person who is waiting to read/watch/listen and you are going to feel SO embarrassed if you let them down! If I have a vague goal of “Oh, I’ll send this out to folks when it’s ready,” it may NEVER feel ready.
Some of you may have deadlines built into your creative work, especially if you’re actively working in your industry (i.e. in a writer’s room, for an audition or shoot, delivery for a client). But many of us struggle most when it’s a project that’s personal and doesn’t have a built-in deadline or assured money attached.
Time to find a deadline!
Would I have ever finished that pilot about a group of millennial witches who accidentally kill the worst president ever if I didn’t decide to submit it to a script competition? Probably not! Now, was the version I banged out over a single weekend the perfect final draft? No. It still needed work, but I would never have gotten there without that deadline.
So pick a competition, a fellowship, a residency, or even a friend/mentor/teacher who will hold you accountable. Pick a date and then HOLD YOURSELF TO IT. No matter how rushed or imperfect your final product might be, I guarantee you it will be better than not doing it at all!
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