Monday, December 12, 2011

My Brain's in a Battle with Itself


Seriously, the left and right sides of my brain are going toe to toe, and I'm not sure which one's going to come out on top. I've spent hours zoning in on numbers (you know, the new Accounting client I told you about), and I've spent hours crafting words. The two don't exactly mix.

My head is in an uproar, and I can't wait until it's quiet again. Don't get me wrong...I love both sides of my brain and I would never want to part with either of them, but really, something's gotta give.

In all honesty, I'm exaggerating a little. Things with the new client are going well, and I'm making progress on my WIP. But it's slow going on the writing front, and I think that side of my brain is ticked off. I can't help but wonder if it's not because the other side of my brain is in control right now.

What about you? Ever had your creativity squashed by the other side of the brain? How do you keep that side under control?

21 comments:

Stina said...

My two sides of the brain have learned to co-exist quite nicely when it comes to my writing. My left side loves to analyze what I wrote, to make it better. And my right side loves to take up the challenge. :D

Caryn Caldwell said...

Oh, I know what you mean! Whenever I'm working on something creative, my entire outlook becomes so much more right-brained, and when I'm working on something detail-oriented I start seeing the world through my left brain. Must be very hard to keep switching back and forth! Still, at least your balancing them, which is good. Much better than exclusively approaching the world from one extreme outlook.

Julie Dao said...

I hope the two sides of your brain agree with each other soon! I know what you mean. I used to do research and it was so painful, wanting to switch that side off and turn on the writing/creative side :)

Terri Tiffany said...

I'm not a number sort of person but often my emotions squash my ability to write and so I wait...

Jaime Wright said...

While I'm not much of a left-brainer - I do call my left brain my 'responsible' side. That's the side which says I HAVE to go to work and trust me, work SQUASHES the LIFE out of my creativity. I'm with you on the squashed writing time. Looking forward to getting some of it back!

Wendy Paine Miller said...

I'm pure right brain...through & through.

I get ya, though. My left brain likes to think its in charge when I edit. I feed it chocolate to fool it into thinking its boss.
~ Wendy

Shannon O'Donnell said...

I'm battling right now and haven't figured out yet how to get things under control. I'll let you know when I do, unless you figure it out first. LOL. :-)

Cindy R. Wilson said...

I know what you mean! I've definitely gone through times like that. I find when I'm over-stressed about one thing or another, that usually ends up taking over, so I keep trying to maintain a balance so I can feel productive in all areas of my life. Yeah, it's hard :)

Sharon K. Mayhew said...

It sounds like you are managing it very well, if the client and the wip are working out. :) Slow and steady when you are managing lots of things. :)

Unknown said...

My logic is severely inhibited by my creativity. I have yet to find a balance. ;__;

Patti said...

I don't know how you do it. Managing numbers and then words, I think my brain would have a melt down.

KC said...

I find myself having this same struggle, but pray that neither side gives me the pink slip and walk out of my life :)

Robyn Campbell said...

Take it easy and concentrate on one thing then the other. It is hard to keep control, my friend. If I figure it out, I'll make a zillion bucks. *wink*

Susan Fields said...

I used to work as an electrical engineer, but I didn't really write seriously until I'd quit to stay home wiht the kids, so I've never really had this problem. Good luck!

Ara Burklund said...

Yup. Back when I was working in publishing, doing editorial production, I could never write. After working on someone else's words all day, it was just too much to trying writing some of my own. Good luck getting untangled and back to the WIP!

Carol Riggs said...

Good luck with that accounting! It's actually nice to balance that out, and have a left-brained activity to swap out with the right-brained one. That way you're not exhausting one or the other. ;o)

Karen M. Peterson said...

I'm constantly in this battle. Unfortunately, only one side can win at a time.

Name: Holly Bowne said...

Oh most definitely! If I'm in full-blown organization mode, or with a huge "To Do" list lurking in the corner of my mind, I have an extra tough time (nearly impossible) focusing on my creative writing.

For me, the solution is to simply let it go. I do what I can--I don't give up completely on the creative stuff, but I must acknowledge that I may not be as productive in that area until the other side of my brain/life calms down a bit.

Soooo..."Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming..." (C'mon, call it! What's that quote from?)

Anonymous said...

I don't work with numbers, so I can't say this happens to me. Emotions and fatigue are usually what get in the way between me and my writing.

Nancy said...

I think it might be difficult to go from lots of numbers to being creative. I'd hate to go from messing with the tangle of my banking mess and try to write on the same day. I do feel for you. You need something to cleanse the palette of your mind, like a silly movie or music. Just a suggestion.

#167 Dad said...

I teld to get a little obsessed with my writing, causing me to lose focus on my responsibilities. That balance business is hard. I agree...Happy Holiday's, Susan!