Scared? Rise Above It

Because I have a number of web pages and write these entries about the Writing Life, many people figure I have the technology stuff licked. They aren't even close to the truth if that's what they think. I struggle with it as much as the next person. I am consistently working at improving and learning more about it. That desire doesn't always translate.

I have some areas like word processing which I do day in and day out so I'm pretty quick and effective in these areas. Other things I rarely handle and it’s always a bit frightening to work on them. For example, I have features on my cell phone which I rarely use. I could become more productive if I learned how to use these features. I fight my fears and move ahead determined to rise above it.

Some people don't know if they should reach me through my office phone or my cell phone. During the next few weeks this question is going to be an important one because of the large number of days I will be out of my office and away from my phone. I've taken the plunge into the technology area and learned how to use a feature called Call Forwarding.

There is an author I'm working with a great deal these days. Unlike many other people, he doesn't have a lot of different phone numbers in my Rolodex. He has one number. It's usually his cell phone but the other day we were talking and he put me on a speaker phone. It got me to thinking that he's probably using Call Forwarding. When I investigated, I learned I could forward my office phone to my cell phone. And when I'm in my office, I can forward my cell phone to my office phone. The technology works--if I learn how to use it. If I continue in my old patterns and never learn something new, then I'm doomed to flounder along with the methods of the past.

What are you putting off learning that could improve your writing life? Is there a new skill that would improve your work habits or enhance your prose? Can you plan to get to a writer's conference in the coming months and soak in the teaching from someone you want to hear? And not just soak in the information but make specific and measured steps in your own growth. I'm encouraging you to move through those nagging fears about some area and face it with confidence and courage. You will be surprised at the results.