Two Traits Every Writer Needs

As a writer, you spend a lot of time thinking about character development. Perhaps you've even flipped through one of those books of character adjectives, such as The Positive Trait Thesaurus or its negative counterpart (both of which are excellent resources). But have you ever stopped to wonder what traits a writer should have?

Aside from all the human traits that make us the heroes and villains of our own stories, such as compassion (or, if you're the villainous type, cruelty), there are two traits that are vital to every writer, with sub-traits that naturally follow: open-mindedness and discipline.

Open-mindedness, simply put, is a genuine longing to understand others, which is essential in anyone interested in the humanities, especially writers. It has two vital sub-traits:

• Curiosity, the thirst for knowledge for knowledge's sake. Curious people love to learn and want to know everything they can. They seek new experiences and view the world with open eyes and ears. In other words, they love to explore. (If you want to practice curiosity, try people-watching, a new food, talking to a new person, etc.)
• Discernment, the ability to understand before you judge. This doesn't mean accepting every idea you come into contact with, but rather carefully considering new ideas (even ideas you disagree with) before coming to a conclusion. (Note: coming to a conclusion is still necessary if you want to form your own view of the world.)

Discipline, also known as self-control, is crucial to successful writing. As fun as gathering inspiration is, eventually you'll have to put that inspiration down on paper, or you're not a writer. Two key aspects of discipline are:

• Focus, the single-minded drive to complete your goals. Focused people avoid distractions, eschew temptation, and meditate on their dreams and goals. If you're focused, you know what you want and you have a plan for how to get it. You stick to that plan, but you're willing to change it if it doesn't work. The focused person's motto is "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again."
• Commitment, the practice of holding yourself accountable for your own behavior. If you are committed, you start with the intent to finish. You follow through. You work to always be better than you were yesterday. But you are also self-aware: You schedule downtime to prevent burnout. You take care of yourself.

With the help of these two traits and their respective sub-traits, writers will find themselves producing a greater volume of vibrant, well-rounded work. Not that it will be easy--discipline and open-mindedness are difficult to master and require the uncomfortable sacrifice of old thought-patterns and routines. But in the end, they are worth it.