Got Nothing.

I hit a bit of a roadblock today.
There were three blog post ideas bumping into eachther inside my head but none of them fully formed.
So, I grabbed a pencil and piece of paper and tried to work through the thoughts. A note here, a line there.
Nope. Nothing.
Basically, I was trying to force the issue...or 'Trying Too hard'.

Have you ever had one of those days on air when your brain seems to have decided to take the day off (rhetorical question)? When the ideas have gone on holiday and your usual spark has decided to have a lie in (lots of visuals there!).
The usual response is to try harder. Force the issue. Work at it.

Sometimes it's OK to just relax and let the format do the work for you. That's what it's there for. It's alright to not always be absolutely amazing and award winning on air every day.
The 'Try Too Hard' approach can make your listener feel uncomfortable because your pace and tone and delivery all change when you try too hard, so you no longer sound like 'you'. Your pace quickens and voice raises in pitch - which is exactly what it does when you are in panic mode. Your listener is a human being (usually) and human beings are hard wired to notice these changes and to react. Panic means out of control and needy...two traits the listener is NOT looking for!

You don't need to force a conversation with great friends...that's why silence was invented!
Take a deep breath, take the pressure to perform off your shoulders, don't think about what you feel is expected of you and allow yourself some space. Then, you gradually find your way again. Listeners won't miss what you haven't done.

See? - I just wrote a blog post about nothing!