A content development challenge | #anhouraday

in anhouraday •  6 years ago 

Everyone wants something in this world and it is increasingly seen as the sooner the better, a life of instant gratification. The problem with this of course is that some things can't be rushed, like baking a cake, it isn't going to be cooked through if it is taken out of the oven too early.

This is what it is like with skill development or, investing into the future. It is very difficult to do what is necessary very fast to have the level required for what is needed in the long-term. Sure, you can win the lottery and be born talented in some way but even then, talent doesn't translate into return unless the talent is nurtured and grown until it is valuable.

What I find often these days is that many people are unwilling to go very deep when it comes to their talents and if they can't pick it up quickly, they drop it fast. I am trying to help my daughter break this process in herself now so that in the future, she will stick through something for long enough to really know if she doesn't want to continue.

There is the 30 hours a month idea where people should give themselves an hour a day of conscientious practice at a new hobby. The reason is that for many skills, improvement at the start is very fast and with consistency, one can cover a lot of ground and get relatively proficient enough that there is enough feedback to know whether continuing is on the cards.

Getting started is of course the hardest part when it comes to starting something new but, getting started isn't actually so difficult, once started... oh. You get the idea. Get over that first hurdle and things will flow.

At Steem, I have no problem creating content but many do struggle however, I am pretty sure it is because they do not conscientiously and consistently try. I know many people in chat who think they should be spending more time developing their content but, there they are in chat... writing. Why not write some content instead?

So, here is the challenge for people that will have absolutely no one supporting it and no prizes other than the satisfaction of doing something for yourself. Incentivized?

TAG: #anhouraday

It is pretty easy really.

  • spend at least one hour every day developing and posting content.
  • time yourself if you must
  • do it attentively, try
  • do not shitpost, create
  • pay attention to yourself
  • do it regardless of whether you feel like it
  • no excuse

I am pretty sure that if people spent a little bit of time (and 30 hours is very little considering the average American watches on average ~5 hours of TV a day / 7 days a week) they would very quickly find that they have a lot more content inside them than they thought and, they are much more interesting and talented than they thought. Humans are all very creative if, they actually look to be so but most are becoming consumers of creations instead (like watching 5 hours of TV a day).

At the end of the 30 days, if you are still struggling with the type of content you think you want to produce, perhaps you might consider a new type for next month. This is about personal development and investing into oneself which is what anyone does when they try to learn a new skill. Yes, there might be reward but, even if there isn't, there is value.

Have fun.

Taraz
[ a Steem original ]

Oh, currently:

Which means the first people in will automatically make it to Trending!!

Authors get paid when people like you upvote their post.
If you enjoyed what you read here, create your account today and start earning FREE STEEM!
Sort Order:  

Seriously Americans watch 5 hours of TV a day? Who has the time for that, unless you are sick and you have already slept for 10 hours and all you can do now is lay down and watch TV? I do not watch that much in a week.

Besides that, this seems like a really good idea. No matter what you want to develop this is a really good way of investigating good ways of learning.
Maybe I will try this with something.
Could work well when giving yourself a target of something for the first 30 days, and then for the next 30 days the target could be a deeper target of the first one and so on.

Crazy amount isn't it?

Could work well when giving yourself a target of something for the first 30 days, and then for the next 30 days the target could be a deeper target of the first one and so on.

This is a really good way to use it especially if at each point you evaluate and identify the next skull areas to build.

You are right - once I get started it flows out. However, I think the best stuff takes a little passion, so some days it's worth skipping a day if I'm not feeling it. Yesterday was a skip kind of day, or maybe that is procrastination talking...

Excuses! You actually might find that on those off days, you will produce some of your best content as you dig a little deeper.

Hmm I agree with both of you here!

Dang it, I think he's right. I just dug deeper when I thought the well was dry.

Given how much I'll be driving over the next week, as I relocate, I'm not sure I can actually manage every single day, but we'll see. I normally post 2-3 times a week, but daily has always been a gently held aim of mine.

I have made some more 'in depthy' posts recently (nazi, serbis ,a syria series)and really enjoyed doing them.
And yesterday I did a long critical piece - and really enjoyed doing that also..

https://steemit.com/blog/@lucylin/anarcho-communism-a-decent-into-the-ridiculous-and-i-haven-t-even-started-chapter-1-yet

but that being said, sometimes my mood is just not serious enough to do serious pieces...(at detriment to myself I think, but I post according to my mood...)

I'm not beating myself up - I have only been doing this for 9 months - after 30 years of doing nothing like it, so I realize I'm still in a 'first steps' stage..

I think mood comes into it if trying to focus but, any mood can support some kind of content.

..any mood can support some kind of content.

I agree with you on that...The conflict for me arises when my mood can dictate my focus...
(for the more undisciplined types like me, not you! lol)

I made it, finally!

To be honest I don't believe that you never have made in into trending!

once upon a time before the bots took over, I managed a few posts somewhere up there.

Incredible, imagine the satisfaction ... Congratulations!

Oh I am definitely in. I need the motivation. #anhouraday is on.


This will definitely encourage folks who are not motivated presently.

There are people who have the gift of writing and open easily to the world ... In your articles I see that something that happens to you can develop great content. For me that is a gift, it is not something that is learned is something natural, something that is born.

not at all. there is no gift in writing, it is a skill that anyone can learn. even the ideas are thinking skills, exposure and, a lot of work. talent is a worthless thing to have if it isn't developed.

Funny thing is creating quality content isn't difficult. All that's needed is a passion and dedication to put in the work

Yep. if one has something on mind, creativity isn't the issue. The issue is when what is on the mind doesn't require thought at all.

Thanks mate, this is it.

What a great way to develop talent deposited in us.

I'm in already, this is going to help me to be focus. I am a kind of person that want to explore many things at a time. Though, I don't struggle with what to post
,but I want to learn how to be focused. I will try and be focus on a particular part of me during this challenge.

Thanks once more.

Maybe I will try it. I need to spend more time creating and thinking about what I am going to write. It is easier said than done. One gets so caught up on here that time seems to just disappear.

lol, yeah.... Steemit is the example of time as a relative component.

Currently, as a personal goal, I have decided to post every day for fourteen days. But maybe I can jump on the #anhouraday challenge, although I spend more than an hour each day writing. Sometimes I come up with two or three things to write per day, mostly personal stuff and I'm trying to broaden my horizon by diversifying my content. Hopefully, with time this will be a reality. I believe I still have much to offer.

Thank you for telling me this. I'm in for the challenge! It might be just what I need!

  • do it regardless of whether you feel like it
  • no excuse
It's a perfect challenge to get out of our comfort and excuses zone to develop ourselves as content creators instead of being just consumers. I'm in.

A dollar a day - that is what started with on steemit. I set that as my goal - that I will at least try to earn $1 every day in steemit.
Obviously that took more than one hour each day but within a few days I noticed that it became easier and easier to approach the $1 target. I know a lot of encouraging advice tends to sound a little boring but perhaps patience and persistence are the the very underrated keys that we need to get something done.

the easier and easier is when one has to get deeper and deeper. This is where expertise are made.

This is great innovation brough to us, thanks Sir @tarazkp