Nicolas Cole argues that skipping a task isn't neutral. Every day you don't write, you're practicing not writing, building a habit of avoidance. Consistency creates momentum that makes the next day easier; absence does the opposite.
Chapters
Whenever I hear people explain why they can't or they're afraid to do something, but especially with something as simple as writing on the internet, the big reframe that I would encourage is to simplify the task in front of you to such a degree that every time you think about it, you only have two options. And your only two options are this: every day you are practicing something. Every day that you write, you are practicing writing. Every day that you don't write— I think this is a really important nuance— people think, "Oh, I didn't do it today, so that's just a zero. It's just a wash." It's not a wash. It's negative because every day you don't write, you are practicing the skill of not writing. We can prove this with a really simple example. Has anyone ever felt the feeling where every day that goes by, the feeling of starting feels harder? It feels like you have a bigger mountain to climb. It's almost like you have to climb out of a deficit. The gym is a great example. It's like, "Oh, I didn't go today, and then I didn't go for 2 days, and I didn't go for a week, and then I didn't go for a month." And all of a sudden, so much time goes by that you can't even fathom starting again. That is proof that every day you don't do something, it's not a zero, it's a negative, and you are digging that hole deeper and deeper and deeper. Conversely, the same thing is true on the positive side. Every day that you do something, it becomes easier to do that thing again the next day. That is called momentum.