At the start of a yoga class, my yoga teacher always says, “Congratulations! You’ve already done the hardest part, which is showing up on your mat.” I think the same sentiment applies to writers. Often, for us, the hardest part is just showing up. Sitting down and opening that Word doc and tolerating the anxiety that hits when we realize we don’t quite know what we’re doing with this latest work-in-progress. 

I watched John Cleese's talk on creativity about a decade ago, and it had a long-lasting effect on me. Not because it’s an especially hilarious video (fans of the parrot sketch will be disappointed to find Cleese being relatively serious here), but because it permanently changed the way I approach my daily writing practice.