Concentration and "Keeping Your Eye on the Prize"

As I have written about previously, the fact that I have a short little span of attention has always been a challenge, particularly when it comes to such things as writing.

In many ways, the advent of blogging — which I first got involved in 25 years ago — was a godsend for me because it allowed me to capture relatively fleeting thoughts and express them in relatively condensed ”chapters.”

I have often said that the primary reason for why I have never been able to write a book isn't that I lack ideas, but I lack the ability to sit down and hold a continuous stream of thought for 200 or more pages.

The irony in the words I'm writing right here is that even though I claim I don't have the focus to sit down and write a book I have actually been consistently keeping up with this blog here on Steemit for almost 6 1/2 years!

That, incidentally, is longer than any other single writing "exercise," other than my personal private journal which I have been keeping up with since I was 13. That's almost 50 years!

But personal musings are a little different from a public blog... at least in the sense that personal musings seldom have a "goal" they are striving to reach. Keeping up with my Steemit blog is perhaps testament to the power of the "gamification factor" that is inherent within a system that rewards people for creating content.

I have never operated under the illusion that I was going to "make money" here in any meaningful sense... but the ongoing challenge of building Steem Power is very appealing and often keeps me coming back. And don't get me wrong, I am grateful for the rewards!

The "prize" I am talking about in the title is always the next small goal of staked Steem... whether it is reachable next week or next year, it is a powerful "carrot" that inspires me to keep going... even though my concentration is often scattered and missing.

Thanks for visiting, and have great rest of your week!

How about you? What inspires you to "keep up" with your blog? Would you still have a public blog, even if you were not rewarded for it? Did you keep a blog before coming to Steemit? Do leave a comment if you feel so inclined — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!

(All text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is ORIGINAL CONTENT, created expressly for this platform — Not posted elsewhere!)
Created at 2023.05.10 23:54 PST
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