Battling Inertia? Me too. Here's what's helping me out.

It's been one heck of a long, hot summer. And surprisingly, rather than refreshed after a languid Labor Day weekend, the first few days of September find me feeling somewhat stagnant.

As a project manager and an all-around get-it-done girl, it's hard to admit that I'm not motivated all the time. But yesterday, I ground to a bit of a mental halt. Distractions were everywhere, it seemed. There was plenty of business to go after, plenty of organization, brainstorming and planning to do, and for freelance writers like me, the need to drum up and pitch new stories never goes away. Yet there I was, endlessly changing light bulbs, trail running, running the dog, running the vacuum, running to the fridge ... anything to justify not gluing myself to the computer and running what I should have been running: my good 'ol right brain and Microsoft Word.

At times like these, I often turn to blogs and books by other writers who can commiserate. I love reading stories of how small-business owners like me (especially sole proprietors) overcome the tendency to make like the hamster on the wheel. I found some great insight in a short, sweet but especially powerful book that I'm going to tell you all about tomorrow. (See, I'm still putting stuff off. I guess I haven't quite exited that wheel).

Until then, I want to share a couple of excerpts from two timely posts I received in my inbox yesterday.

From Jeff Goins, Writer:

"We get a great idea, think about it awhile, and then move on. Or we take the first step, maybe even a few and get distracted. And we move on or forget what we wanted in the first place. The point at which we make a difference is not during a brainstorming session; it's when we step out of the board room. When we decide to act and then start moving. Not recklessly, but intentionally."

Read the full post here.

From Linda Formichelli, of The Renegade Writer:

"We all make this huge mistake: We wait until we're in the mood to do something—until we feel divinely inspired-before we take action. That means we're often waiting a very, very long time ... Here's a secret I learned from interviewing a happiness expert several years ago:You don't take action because you're motivated-you're motivated when you take action."

The universe must have known I needed help. So thanks, Jeff and Linda, for your motivational words.

Have you ever experienced a professional slowdown? What got you moving again?