What To Do When You Have Nothing To Write About

The Coffee Shop Exercise

Today was one of those rare days. I recorded the daily highlights in my personal journal. As I looked over the entries, something occurred to me.

My day was super boring.

I couldn’t point to one interesting thing that happened the entire day. It’s a rare occurrence. Even when my day is mundane I almost always observe something interesting.

That did not happen. A noreaster kept me indoors almost the entire day. The weather event was interesting but not worth writing about.

I managed to make a quick run to the supermarket but that was it. I spent the rest of the day sitting at home. Heck, even work was uneventful. Super storms dampen everyone’s day.

Days like this do not cause alarm. They do not signify a wasted life. They serve as a reminder. It reminds me to get off my butt the next day and interact with the world.

It’s an unexpected but crucial benefit of journaling. It’s a friendly reminder, a tap on the shoulder to let you know to get back into the swing of life.

With awareness I get antsy. I follow up the next day with a flurry of activity.

When I’m strapped for a quick, interesting experience I do my coffee shop exercise. If you only have an hour to spare, it’s a great way to find interesting ideas and stories to write about.

Go to any “comfort” coffee shop like a Starbucks or any place where people congregate and talk. Sit at a table. Take out your laptop. Pretend to work on something while you observe and listen to the conversations of others.

Don’t be too obvious about it. That creeps people out. Stare at your laptop and pretend to work. Take an occasional glance over to the people you observe. Focus your listening on their conversation. Try to answer these questions:

What are they doing?
What is their body language?
What are they talking about?
What emotions can you detect?

Take some notes. Fill in the blanks with your best guesses. Next, try to connect what you saw with your own life.

Have you experienced something similar?
Have you witnessed something like this before? What were the similarities?
Does it prove or confirm something you believed about human behavior?What life lesson does it prove or confirm?
What surprised you about the interaction?
How does what you witnessed apply to other areas of life? What is the connection?

The coffee shop exercise is a great way to both study human behavior and find interesting story ideas.

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