There is so much I could be writing about right now. There is so much I should be writing about right now. The NFL lockout is all but over. The most chaotic 72 hours of free agency is about to begin. The Reds are starting to look like a competitor again (for now). Oh yeah, and Brett Favre (an evergreen topic if I've ever seen one).
But I don't feel like doing any of that.
What can you do when you just don't feel like writing? Especially when writing is your job? For so long, writing was the main thing in my life that mattered. That was back in the homeschooling days of 24/7 sports. Back when I could rattle off the names of every quarterback on every NFL roster. Back when I was doing radio interviews because of my insane amount of NFL Draft preparation. Back when I had my own mathematical system to help calculate my weekly power rankings.
That was so long ago, and so much has changed in my life since then. Especially my priorities. Back then I would have dropped everything to be on top of a story like this historic lockout. But right now my mind is elsewhere. It's not that I don't have that same passion for sports and journalism that I always have, but I'm realizing that there are things in life that are much more important than my career.
For a long time, I thought that I wouldn't be happy unless I ended up as a nationally-renowned sports writer, and that is partially true. But there are other things I want to have; other things I want to be that need to take precedence over that dream. I'll still try to be the hardest worker and best writer no matter where I'm at. But I won't let my laptop consume me any longer.
Who knows? Maybe this means settling for a job that isn't as glamorous as what I hope for. Maybe this field requires me to be a shameless workaholic. And I've already proven I'm willing to sacrifice for my goal. I've written for free. I've worked myself sleepless. I've taken stepping stool jobs. I've done some dirty work. I'm paying my dues. However, I'm not willing to give up what matters most just for a bigger byline.
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