HERE’S AN EMBARRASSING STORY

In my early 20s, I did my Masters in San Francisco, and one day toward the end of my degree, the urge to go for a run took over.

Let's be clear: athletic was not an adjective anyone had ever used about me. In gym class, I was always last when we ran the mile, with everyone forced by the teacher to clap until I reached the finish.

If anything could cement the story that running was not for me, it was struggling over that line just as the boys got out of class to witness my red-faced misery.

But, by the time more than a decade had passed, I had forgotten this humiliation and the idea of a run somehow sounded good, so I put on the only sneakers I had and burst out the front door, pounding down the sidewalk toward Mission.

I was going to make it happen this time. There was no stopping me. I was going to be an incredible powerhouse at last! I was -

Going to collapse.

Less than three blocks from my front door, I had nothing left.

Wheezing and humiliated, I shuffled back to my apartment, hoping to slip by my roommate unnoticed. I didn't run again for years.

Now, if we take out all references to running in this story and replace them with writing, I must ask...Have you ever started a project this way?

On fire, all your tools out and ready, despite not having achieved success before? Feeling like willpower was what you needed to get through to the other side, only to run out of gas and flop?

Years later, I transformed my relationship to running. I went from a frustrated and miserable runner to successfully complete a half marathon.

What made the difference? I switched to the Manageable yet Meaningful approach. I followed a plan made by an experienced runner, and which broke the process into small steps I could manage, even as a beginner.

A novel is much more like a marathon than a sprint.

If you've been hurling yourself into an intimidating word count and believing that the result is proof of whether or not you're a writer, please let that go.

If you're not achieving your writing goals, the structure of the goal needs to change, not you.

You won't finish your novel bursting out the door and running top speed without preparation. It doesn't have to be this painful and exhausting.

Going the Manageable yet Meaningful way means asking yourself, "What can I reasonably accomplish, given the schedule and commitments I have?"

"What can I say no to for the moment in favor of this goal?"

Build the writing plan into those windows.

Start small and greatness will follow.