The vast majority of people either have a day job or have had one in the past. So we’re all well aware that we have to get up and go to work whether we feel like it or not. After all, we have rent and mortgage payments to make, food to buy, and families to take care of.

It is obvious to everyone that you can’t just skip work whenever you’re not in the mood. If we did that, many people would skip work altogether.

When it comes to writing or any other side hustle, why do we think we need to be motivated before we do our work? It seems odd. We can do our day jobs whether we’re motivated or not. So why can’t we write unless we’re motivated? Why do we find it necessary to need that motivation before we start?

I have identified two main reasons. Reasons that will hold us back in the long run.

Reason 1 – Writing is not our main income

In this case, we don’t rely on the money we earn from our writing. It’s just a nice extra to have. That means can not bother writing if we’re not motivated. We can just take the day off and try again tomorrow.

Reason 2 – We don’t treat our writing like a real job

Regardless of the money, many don’t treat their writing like a job. It’s why so many on here say to write for the love of writing not for the money. If you’re doing that then it won’t matter if you take the day off when you’re feeling unmotivated. This is understandable.

If someone enjoys playing football as a hobby they won’t play if they don’t feel like it. That is understandable.

But if we keep skipping days because we’re not motivated enough to write, it is bound to affect our writing over the long term.

If we’re only motivated 50% of the time we’ll get 50% less practice than someone that writes every day.

If we keep skipping days it’s also teaching our brain that discipline isn’t important. As well as affecting our writing it can spill over into other areas of our life. If we don’t write because we’re not motivated, maybe we’ll not bother cooking healthy food when we’re not motivated. That may lead to buying junk takeaway food instead. That can be a very slippery slope.

For the last few months, I’ve been writing every day. What I found is that on days when I’m not motivated I still manage to get into the groove once I force myself to start. It teaches me discipline. It gives me more practice writing. It earns me more money.

For those that write more for a hobby maybe this isn’t so important. Maybe you’re happy enough just writing when you’re in the mood. After all, you don’t want to turn a passion into a chore.

For those to whom money is an important factor, I’d suggest pushing yourself to write even if not motivated. If you skip days you’ll lose discipline and lose money. That will affect a lot more than just your writing.

Do you write on days when you’re not motivated? Why or why not?