Dream, then Finish
If you’ve ever done a visualization exercise, where you imagine in sweet detail how excellent your speech, performance, workshop, article or book will be, good for you. In your mind’s eye, you see the stage, the audience, the lights. You hear the music and the murmur of the crowd, and feel the heat of the lights.
Although visualization doesn’t always appeal to the predominantly logical among us, it has great power. It can create anxiety and apprehension as well as eager expectation of success. Whatever happens to you as you anticipate a good outcome, it is much, much better than expecting the worst!
What can you expect when you’ve finished your book? Here’s a bit of what’s happened to me so far:
- People congratulate you. They can’t believe someone could do that!
- People congratulate you. They’ve written 29 books already.
- Your family is wowed—they are so proud of you.
- Your family is underwhelmed—they had other designs for your attention these last few months or years, and wish you were really finished. (These two reactions co-exist.)
- Book sales happen. You casually carry a book with you, and mention it when someone asks what’s new. If there are more than 10 people in a room for whom your book is news, one will buy it.
- Book sales don’t happen. You search Amazon for the title and get a list of 40 books, most of which aren’t even close to your topic. “Exotic Paint Finish for your Décor, anyone?” Yours is not (yet) on the list.
I didn’t really know what to expect, so my image of success re-forms itself daily.
I can tell you this though: It is much, much better to have finished your book than to be still dreaming about it.
Gotta go. Book launch party next week. Imagine that!
Lorette Pruden, Finishyourbook.biz