Less is more. It really is.

I have the tendency to pour all of my mind, heart, and soul in to anything I do. Whether it’s a freelance project, a blog post, making a smoothie, or even a grocery list – I obsess over every detail.

Every day, I spend a huge chunk of hours on the computer. Even if I’m not connected to the Internet (I’ll be honest, most of the time, I am) I have several files open and am jumping back-and-forth between them, working on this article or that blog post.

I write and rewrite, proofread, and move paragraphs around until I have it just the way I want it.

This can be a good thing. Most of the time, it is. But it can also be a bad thing.

I’m working on a new approach to my freelance lifestyle: less is more.

I’ve noticed that when I unplug and shake loose all the words that are floating around in my head, I’m actually MORE inspired and write even better.

Who says you have to spend 15 hours glued to the computer daily to have a freelance writing business? I’ve become so engulfed in writing, blogging, answering comments, responding to emails, querying, marketing, promoting, chatting – when really I need to take a step back.

Like everything else in life, too much of anything isn’t really good for us. Food is good, but in moderation. Exercise is good, but overdoing it does harm. Reading is awesome, but not if we never do anything else in life.

So, here I am. Realizing that if I spend less time on the computer, I’ll be more inspired, healthier, happier, and more at peace with my life overall.

Social media can wait. Emails will sit patiently in my inbox. Blog posts can be scheduled and comments will await my return.

Am I leaving the freelance world. No, absolutely not! Will I still be writing? Yes! Blogging? Yes! Fluttering through social media sites like the butterfly I am? Yes!

But I’ll also be:

• Stopping to smell the roses
• Getting fresh air
• Going for walks
• Dedicating time to enhancing my yoga practice
• Spending precious time with family and friends
• Just being still in the moment
• Clearing my mind
• Recharging
• Having some fun
• Reading
• Experimenting with recipes
• Playing with the farm critters
• And more…

This is my prediction: You’ll begin to see my writing become more prolific. My social media posts will be even more inspiring, uplifting, and encouraging than ever before – because I will be. My writing won’t suffer – it will soar higher than ever before. My freelance writing business will flourish more than I ever dreamed. This is just the beginning.

Why will all these things happen? Because I’ll be nurturing the most significant writing relationship I have – the one with myself.

I’m choosing quality over quantity. Spending almost every waking hour of the day – every single day – working on reaching all of our writing goals and dreams may not be what it takes to achieve the success we desire.

The past few days, I’ve made a point to turn the computer off, go outside, spend time with the animals, take long walks, and just enjoy the sunshine, fresh air, and flowers. It’s so nice to just be. To soak up nature’s beauty and enjoy life in that moment, that still, quiet moment.

And when I come back inside and crank the old laptop back up, words purge from my soul like a raging river. There’s no . There’s no wondering what I’m going to write next. There’s no lack of inspiration.

How do you feel about the “less is more” approach? How many hours do you spend a day writing, or surfing the cyber waves? Is life passing you by? Do you keep pushing yourself until you’re burnt out, or do you stop to smell the roses?

Photo Credit: 10-03-09 © Sculpies