Why Every Desire Needs a Deadline

Desires age and die too.

You might be itching to chase a dream, but there’s always that voice: “Why today? You’ve got tomorrow. And the day after.”

“You have time to do it.” — These sweet words are the chains keeping you grounded, to make sure you stuck with the current, safe, ordinary YOU.

- I want to change. - Does it matter? You have a lot of things to do today. - I want to improve. - Why such a big deal right now?

“Without a sense of urgency, desire loses its value.” — Jim Rohn

Wake up, your desire might soon be gone.

We all have wishes and goals. What’s yours?

Because you’re here on Medium, chances are you’re a bit like me, want to write, want to live and breath as a writer.

I’ve had this desire for a long time, but I let it slumber. Excuses I’ve made:

・I work 9–9, not 9–5. I’ll write when work eases up. ・Vacation’s coming up. I’ll focus on it after. ・Last time I wrote, I cringed for days. Maybe publishing isn’t for me. ・I’ve got a reading list on writing techniques. Better finish that first. ・What if my family reads it? They’re everywhere online.

I could extend the list to forever, but you get the idea. I’ve created tons of excuses to let my desires languish.

Desires initially burn like fireworks, sparkling intensely within you but dimming quickly. If you don't seize the opportunity, it will fade away. Wouldn't you be sad to see your dreams die just because you didn't push hard enough beyond your comfort zone?

We all know how New Year’s resolutions often end — unfinished, leading us to say, “Okay, maybe next year.” A familiar letdown.

The very first step in creating a sense of urgency is valuing your time.

We don’t have an unlimited lifespan; we’ve been losing time since the moment we were born. Once we realize we all have our own countdown timer, the concept of desire expiration sets in.

If you work on your dream without a deadline, you’re likely to take a lot more time to fulfill it.

“Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.” — Parkinson’s Law

A deadline serves as a container for your desire, helping you focus.

Break your deadline into smaller checkpoints to track your progress. This approach maintains a sense of urgency, ensuring your desire stays on track.

There are plenty of tips and advice from experienced writers on setting up writing schedules and routines. Here are some:

• Setting a publishing schedule — Kerin
• If You Only Have a Few Minutes to Write, Apply These 2 Strategies — Darius Foroux
• I Followed Tim Denning’s Writing Routine — and Created My Best Performing Article Yet — David Majister
• A Behind the Scenes Look at My Writing Schedule That’s Helped Write 5000+ Articles — Tim Denning
• My Radical Writing Routine That Helps Me Write An Article a Day (Whilst Working 9–5) — Eve Arnold
• How I Wrote 20 Articles a Month (With a Full-time Job) — Niharikaa Kaur Sodhi
• How to Develop a Writing Routine That Turns You from Novice to Paid Writer in Three Months — Jessica Lynn
• The Daily Routine of 20 Famous Writers (and How You Can Use Them to Succeed) — Mayo Oshin

If you don’t want to skim through all, or if you’re overwhelmed with advice, here’s a simpler plan:

• Aim to publish at least one story a week.
• Dedicate an hour each day to writing. Mornings usually work best.
• Focus on creating drafts quickly, then come back to edit them later.
• Clear your mind of daily tasks and to-dos, and …
• Just write. If you write today, it doesn’t guarantee you’ll write tomorrow. But if you don’t write today, you definitely won’t write tomorrow.

Happy writing.

Thank you for reading.