1. I don’t have time.
2. I’m too tired.
3. I’m too busy. (See above.)
4. There are other things I need to do.
5. I’m not feeling inspired today.
6. It’ll never amount to anything.
7. It’s too big for me.
8. No one will want to read it.
9. I’m scared.
10. I’m afraid of failure.
They all really come down to #10.
cakes, tea and dreams 
If this were facebook, I would just keep clicking “like” over and over again so I could “like” this a hundred times. I know this feeling (these feelings?) far too well!
Number 10 nailed it, Katie.
In my February 8 blog post, I commented on a New Yorker article about procrastination. This sentence hit me hardest:
“Lack of confidence, sometimes alternating with dreams of heroic success, often leads to procrastination, and many studies suggest that procrastinators are self handicappers: rather than risk failure, they prefer to create conditions that make success impossible, a reflex that of course creates a vicious cycle.”
Ouch.
I’d vote for number 8 as well. I find it much easier to write stuff I know will be published. Writing on-spec is a bit like shouting into an empty room, the process can be satisfying but ultimatly it’s pointless.
I guess this is why blogs are so popular. You can write and at least pretend that someone out there is going to read the result of your efforts.
Of course, if you consider “failure” to be no-one reading your work, then numbers 8 & 10 are very much related.
That list is so true. I guess the important thing is to be aware of that progression and try to put a stop to it!
One of my favorite sayings is, “You can’t fail if you don’t try, but if you don’t try, you never succeed.”
I would rather be a failure if it means that I’ve at least pushed myself…generally.
All too true for me as well. It’s what I’m trying to change about myself every day. Good luck to you:)
Sigh. I know this list all too well. It all comes down to #10 for many people I think. And then I think of the quote, “And who are you NOT to be (brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous)? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world.” ~Marianne Williamson
Your playing small does not serve the world.
When I read that, I think maybe my excuses don’t amount to much and I might just get writing those stories and taking those photographs.
Even as I write that, I’m trying to tell myself it’s true. Days like today, the list wins. Argh. The list so wins today.
Sometimes, unfortunately, the list does win. Here’s hoping for fewer of those days as we move toward spring.