Dear Neophyte,
This Needs Edited In The Future to Half Word Count
I do get pretty talky when I'm passionate and on a daeadline
Staying motivated in our witchcraft studies can be daunting. All of us have a lot of life to live, a severe need for instant gratification, and almost no self-discipline. If you disagree this applies to you then answer me this: How much debt are you in that could have been avoided if you'd exercised more discipline? Not your fault? Well, if someone held a super soaker gun to your head and told you to find a way to get your needs met without going into debt you'd have found a way to do it. Firstly by prioritizing what was actually a need and then finding out how to get it on your income.
Time is income and the things that we want to accomplish in our magical studies are the "needs" we want to afford it. Instead of buckling down and fitting our studies into the time we have, we go into debt with ourselves saying "I'll owe a 20 min meditation tomorrow because I wanted to fit in another episode of Oran before bed." Then tomorrow you don't want to spend 20 min so you owe thirty for the next day. The time debt becomes overwhelming and you give up.
Stop that.
Stop time-debting to yourself. If you didn't meditate today for 10 min then tomorrow you only owe 10 min. That's it. The long-term effects of meditation cannot be gained in one 30 min sit if you skipped 10 min sits for three days in a row. Didn't meditate today? You missed out. Tomorrow is a new day and you start over from scratch. This is both refreshing and frustrating. You don't owe anything. You didn't gain anything either.
That's how it works.
My sister and I started a study group. This is month three and the topic is "Staying Motivated". Surprised? Don't be. It's been three months since the last meeting and we only had two before then since the group was founded. Oddly enough we chose this topic before we knew everyone was going to flake for three meetings in a row, though one was canceled due to illness and job loss on the parts of two members.
The study group meets on the waxing side of the full moon on the day that at least 75% of members can make it. This time is the first time we're actually able to meet ON the full moon (which is tomorrow). The three original members decided that when we get enough information and practical experience under our belts we'd like to form a working group. We all have Shamanism in common so reconnecting with my totems would not go amiss. In the meantime we gotta get back to that place, hence a study group.
Here are my notes for Staying Motivated in Magical Studies
These apply to members of the study group specifically, though they can be adapted for solitary use as individuals see fit.
1) Study Groups - Staying active in the study group is essential. Real work and dedication are required to incorporate witchcraft into your everyday life. We are a self-study group who come together to share ideas. We don't employ 'teachers', 'gurus', and certainly don't have 'mentors' who are already versed in their craft. We teach each other. That means everyone contributes.
Personally, if someone isn't contributing and is instead expecting to sit there absorbing everyone else's ideas then I plan a swift votekick from the group. I'm not playing high priestess to someone who thinks they don't have to do the work and can just leech off of me while in a circle. No.
2) Networking - Websites I recommend for general networking are Witchvox, Facebook, and Beliefnet. For specific traditions, there are always websites for you too. Kemeticism has the Kemetic Orthodox Church that supports the House of Netjer forums, amongst others. Search your tradition and join the forums. See if there are forums specifically for those in your area and start talking to people. Meetup is a great place to meet new people who share your interests in witchcraft. A while back I had a LOT of success using Yahoo Groups, though I can't tell you what they are like now. When I was just getting started they were a great place to give and get ideas, advice, and encouragement. Don't discount old-fashioned letter writing to people whose information you pull off the message boards of your local occult shop. These shops might also tell you where to find individuals in your area who don't advertise. That's how a member of my study group found out there was a sect of Odinist the next town over. She got in contact and went for a visit to say hello. Get out and meet other Witches!
3) Mentors - While I don't think that we're skilled enough in this group to be really mentoring each other, you may find a mentor in your networking whom you can go to for advice on certain areas. ASK this person if this is a role they want to play for you and lay down some ground rules. It is not ok to be calling someone before or after established hours for basic questions. I recommend meeting up once a week to discuss your progress. Even if this meeting is 10 min phone chat. Remember, it's not a social call so stick to relevant queries and remember to pay it forward for someone else once you've mastered an area enough to dispense some advice about it.
4) Weekly Check-Ins and Accountability - I want our study group to have weekly check-ins. Start a post on the Facebook page once a week and let us know how you're doing with the current topic. Each member will respond with either a bit of advice or encouragement to keep going. We don't encourage enabling of people not budgeting their time properly, nor are we going to allow co-dependence of agreeing with people's excuses not to do their homework.
As example:
Person A) "Sitting still is so BOOORING. I don't like meditation!"
Person B) responds with: "Dawg, have you heard of walking meditation? Google that sh*t!"
Person C) responds with: "I do tai chi meditation. That way I can move around while I zone out. Give it a try?"
Person D) responds with: "Stick with it. It's only been three days. Get back to me after a week and see if you still have so much trouble holding still. It could be that your body isn't used to being allowed to relax so give it a few more days and don't give up!"
Person A) responds with: "Yeah, I'll try sitting still for another few days and if it's still not working for me I'll look into moving meditations. I not into tai chi, but I'm sure I can do something else repetitive to help me let go mentally."
5) Why Witchcraft? - Knowing what you want out of your studies is key. It's surprising how a lot of people think witchcraft will replace therapy, hospitals, social skills, self-improvement needs, etc. When you get past all of that and the answer is you want these skills regardless of it not being a replacement for any of that then you just need to outline what those reasons are. Example: I want to honor the seasons with appropriate rituals, be able to journey to the spirit world with my totem for self-discovery, and walk the mazes in my head without fear of being lost. Then you're on the right path.
6) Don't Overdo It - Have a plan for getting where you want to go and know how to pace yourself. You don't need to do 30 min of practice every single night, spending 10 min on three different exercises cause you want it all NOW. 10 min a night spend on nothing as simple as breathing is still Witchcraft. It counts. If you already know that your posture for meditation is fine then work on your breathing next. Then clearing headspace. Then the rest. Step by step. Figure out which exercises you want to get under your belt and in what order. Break them down into simple steps and learn each step in its turn.
7) Be Reasonable - Humans have ups and downs. Allow yourself ups and downs. You must fight giving into manic surges of want to study the same way you must fight depressed episodes of disinterest. The balance it brings will be well worth it. The Dark Night of the Soul happens to everyone. Some people more than once. The breakthrough is worth it as you're pushed to new levels. Be kind to yourself, but maintain discipline.
8) Study Guide – Write down what you want to learn. Write down the minimum level of proficiency you'll be ok with before adding another item to your repertoire. Don't think you have to master something before you can start learning something else. Most people never stop practicing to perfect their art. Be practical. Stick with ritual or skill basics such as grounding and centering before adding things like trance work. Break these items down to their simplest forms to see which steps you have to practice and in which order. Meditation as example: Posture > Comfort and Relaxation > Breathing > Visualization > Guided Meditations.
9). Achieve Goals and Debunking “Perfectionism” - Goal setting can be its own class. Take meditation as an example: "Each night at 5:30 pm I will meditate on my breathing for 10 min. By the end of the month, I will be able to keep my breathing strong and steady and will be able to move on to visualization exercises. By Lammastide I will be able to hold images in my head while maintaining strong breath for 20 min." Planning to master meditation in a month is bogus. Not letting yourself move on till you have mastered meditation is bogus. Once you can do the basics you can move on to other exercises, if that is your wish. If by Samhain you hope to have all ritual basics under your belt enough to do a solitary Ancestor Rite then break down your goals month by month and piece by piece.
10) Daily Practice – Having daily practice makes something far easier to do. Don't think of it as extra activities you're trying to squeeze into your day. This IS your day. Practicing your daily shielding to prevent physic plaque should be no different than brushing your teeth to prevent cavities. If you don't believe it's just as important than refer back to your reasons and your goals. Why do you want to do this?
11) Min/Max Limits - What is the minimum you'll do in a day and still consider it as crossed off your list? What is the maximum amount you'll do before cutting yourself off? Finding this middle ground and staying as true to center as you can is the best way to stay balanced and not risk burnout. However, use your support group when you need to. Minimum is better than nothing, so in order to avoid disappointment, you need know what that is.
12) Progress Report and Reward – After mastering the basics it's ok to give yourself a reward before moving on to deeper or different skills. Rewards could be anything from books specializing in a certain subject, an item that symbolizes that skill, a title to use as you please, or a new tool you didn't want to buy because you didn't know if you were that into this particular form of divination. Turns out you're really good at tea reading and want to bigger, fancier cup to use just for readings.
A Note On Your Role in Your Progress: Let it not be said that it is the group's responsibility to drag you along, spoon feed you answers, and be batteries for your own magical endeavors. Book learning does nothing without practical applications to back it up. We can't practice your grounding and centering for you. We aren't the dressing-up brigade and some of us have an ultimate goal of taking a few members of this group and forming a working circle. But that means enough members need to know what they're on about for this to happen.
13) Holy Days and Moons – Marking the seasons, your God's special days, and the phases of the moons help to incorporate your practices as part of your everyday life. At this point I don't consider someone a Witch if you don't any actual spellwork under their belt, don't mark particular points of the year, are oblivious to anything bigger than them, and just read books. Not good enough. Not nearly. It's what you do behind closed doors when no one is looking, that you aren't doing just to brag about it later, that counts. It's what people don't know you do because it's such a part of your life you can see the craft but not the separation of it from your daily life. The Egyptians didn't even have a word for 'religion' because what they did just WAS.
14) Art, Journals, Writing, Music, Videos, and Shopping – I've gone through my local craft store and dollar store and mentally figured out what kinds of observances and spells I could do with what is on hand. I do this to keep me inspired. I write myself into fictions of my own life where I am the witch/healer/priestess I want to be and this inspires me to make it so. Magical daydreaming is for real. I look to books for inspiration on deepening my understanding and practice beyond the basics. The Old Craft witches of St. Thomas on the Poke set a high bar, but one that I know I can reach if I dig a little deeper and reach a little higher. Music moves me. Especially Blackmore's Knight and Loreena McKennitt. If you don't feel like doing that moon ritual just put on Dark Lady by the former or All Soul's Night by the latter and – nevermind the one is a Samhain ballad – see if the Powers That Be can even STOP you from lighting those candle and casting that circle! There is YouTube and the plethora of advice and encouragement for the beginners. You can listen to a Ted Talk motivational speaker speaking about how to get on with what motivates you and 10 min in you'll be shutting it off to sit down for some meditations. Lastly I keep progress reports in my BoS/journal. If I don't feel like moving forward then I sometimes look back and see what motivated me to keep going last time I felt like stopping. Selina kicked my arse for almost three months AFTER she was gone. Just the idea that this woman was running around spreading her misinformation and bullshat all over the place made me desperate to feed myself correct information and practices just to balance out the crazy. Record your motivations in your journal and read back on your progress. This should help you want to move forward since stopping would naturally require you to start over from the beginning once you took it back up again.
Magic is a muscle: use it or lose it.
Salutations,
Sesh
