You’ve just caught yourself saying, “I should write a book.” Now what?
Don’t leave your book in your “should” file. Should, like someday, never happens. With homage to Yoda, “There is no should, there is only do.”
Write the book.
Get started. Today would be a good time.
Carve out the time and get to work. I suggest starting with a zero draft.
Decide not to write the book.
Maybe you don’t really need to write a book. Or maybe you really don’t want to do the work. Or maybe you’d rather do something else.
There are dozens of solid, legitimate reasons not to start that book today. Just don’t keep telling yourself that you “should” or “will” or that you’ll do it “someday.”
Decide to re-evaluate your decision in 90 days.
Follow the advice of David Allen in Getting Things Done. If you’re not going to write a book now, get the issue out of your head so there’s room for other things. Mark your follow-up to revisit the “write a book” decision in ninety days.