Most people think of procrastination as a simple bad habit, but it's often much more than that: it's a strategy we employ when we're afraid of the outcome of an activity or project. So, someone who hates his job might procrastinate on looking for a new one because he's afraid ...

Many times, I'll advise someone to clear their schedule so they can focus on their writing or another priority, and they'll trim a bit here and there and then come back and say, “I followed your advice and it helped some, but not much.” I have to remind them that ...

Prolific writers resource themselves abundantly. They invest in themselves and their writing. They work on great-functioning equipment, and in the best environment they can. This not only directly aids their productivity but sends an important message to themselves and others that their writing is important. Underproductive ones, in contrast, are ...

Deadline for preordering discounted copies of the Seven Secrets of the Prolific is Monday, August 15! Order yours now! Discounting coaching also available. This great cartoon by the great Barry Deutsch from my new book The Seven Secrets of the Prolific illustrates the central challenge of productivity. Everyone encounters obstacles ...

Below is a summary of the major points of my new book The Seven Secrets of the Prolific: The Definitive Guide to Overcoming Procrastination, Perfectionism, and Writer's Block, which you can preorder at a discount until August 15. Yup, it's a book-in-a-blog-post! Before I get to the Seven Secrets themselves, ...

Excerpted from Hillary Rettig’s book The Seven Secrets of the Prolific: The Definitive Guide to Overcoming Procrastination, Perfectionism and Writer’s Block. From now through August 15, you can preorder it at a huge discount! Click here. Grandiosity, or the delusion that you’re special and/or don’t have to follow the normal ...

Excerpted from Hillary Rettig's book The Seven Secrets of the Prolific: The Definitive Guide to Overcoming Procrastination, Perfectionism and Writer's Block. From now through August 15, you can preorder it at a huge discount! Click here. You'd think that having people ask questions about what you do wouldn't be such ...

"To accuse others of one's own misfortune is a sign of want of education. To accuse oneself shows that one's education has begun. To accuse neither oneself nor others shows that one's education is complete." - Epictetus, a Stoic, A.D. 55 -135 (Thanks CT!)