Don't let the next step in your writing get lost in the bigger plan. Whether you're writing a blog post, an article, or a book chapter, it's likely part of something bigger. My clients tend to be small business owners or academics, so that larger plan is usually either a marketing strategy or a research plan or programme.

I've noticed in my own writing and in working with clients, that when things get tough (either with the writing itself or with things unrelated to our writing), we tend to lose sight of the next step (the small part we're writing) and get lost in the big plan.

Big plans, big excitement

It's all too easy to get caught up in the excitement of a big plan, especially if it's new or it will lead to something you really want (more sales or a promotion, for example). Big plans that cannot possibly be completed in a session or even a month can be exciting precisely because we don't feel pressured to complete them now. But working on the next step in your bigger project is less exciting because you can finish the piece you're writing, and that means focused work, not daydreaming and big plans.

You know you've fallen into this trap when instead of working on the small piece you've blocked time for in your diary, you spend long stretches of time thinking about the larger project. Does how your chapter relates to the rest of the book, for example, matter? Of course it does! But if you don't finish writing the chapter, you won't have a book.

Shiny object syndrome

Related to this is moving on to planning the next big project (shiny object) instead of finishing your current project. Over the last couple of years I've made a conscious effort to be aware of what I'm doing and why. I've noticed that when I'm stressed (whether over something work-related or not), I tend to focus on planning big new projects instead of on finishing what I'm working on.

Sometimes these big new projects turn out well - my Entrepreneurs' Blogging Club started out as just such a project. I planned and started it during a personally difficult year. In that instance, the getting lost in the plan was productive because the things I was stressed about were things I couldn't do anything to resolve, so a little distraction was called for.

Other times, plans for big new projects never see the light of day. And worse, they distract me from what I need to focus on and/or deal with. To prevent this from happening, I've started to keep a list of new projects that spring to mind at inopportune moments - most recently, in the middle of moving house. We moved in October, and I've put all those new ideas on hold until February to give us time to get settled.

Consider the big plan, but don't get lost in it

While you don't want to get lost in big plans, you do need to be aware of how each thing you write fits into the larger whole (whatever that whole is for you). If you're not aware of this, you risk writing lots of interesting but unrelated things that don't help you, your career/business, or your readers.

When we write this way, one thing just sort of leads to another, kind of like in the children's story by Laura Joffe Numeroff, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (do take 5 minutes to watch this reading of the story on YouTube). In Numeroff's story, a boy gives a mouse a cookie. The mouse asks for milk and then a straw (these all clearly go together). Things start to lose focus when the mouse asks for a napkin and mirror to make sure he doesn't have a milk moustache (fair enough), and then decides he needs a haircut. Cutting his hair leads to sweeping up his mess. And then we lose all connection to the initial cookie as the mouse sweeps the rest of the house and washes all the floors, wants a story before he has a nap, draws a picture, and then asks for more milk and another cookie.

Numeroff really likes this story structure - see also If You Give a Pig a Pancake, If You Give a Moose a Muffin, If You Give a Cat a Cupcake, and If You Give a Dog a Donut. Getting caught in one of these cycles of aimless activity is fine if you're a character in children's book, but it's often frustrating in your work.

Pay attention to what you're doing and why

With the benefit of hindsight, I can see that I've always had a tendency to get lost in (often overly elaborate) plans. Since making a point of noticing when I do this and stopping myself from getting distracted I've found it easier to consistently meet short- and medium-term goals.

How does this work? When you block time in your diary for something, take a minute to think about how it relates to your larger plan. If it helps you, make a short note of this right there in your diary. Then, when it's time to do the thing (whatever the thing is), try to just do it.

If you find that when it's time to do the thing, your mind wants to wander to the larger plan and get lost in excitement over the third (or twentieth) step down the line or the next big thing instead of focusing on the one in front of you, make a note of what excites you. Keep a document or notebook just for these notes so you'll have them where you work.

This takes practice and you won't always get it right. Be kind to and patient with yourself - you'll get there. It might help if you reward yourself for making an note of the exciting idea and then focusing on the task at hand.