It might not be that dramatic, but as a writer just sitting down and writing a blog, I often think of the idea of a blank page. It is intimidating. Focus is needed to fetch the confidence to fight through the 'whiteness' of an empty page. Reliance on what I know, what I've learned, and how I want to express it, helps me write my first word and fill in the blankness.
I know students get anxious staring at a blank page because what is expected is an easy flow of thoughts transmitted through words and written down. Many times we can't pull out of our memory banks or knowledge base what is necessary to compete with a blank page. We should ask ourselves if we have properly prepared, or studied, or zeroed in on actually learning something permanent so when we do 'draw a blank' we know we have the educated capacity to eventually meet the challenge.
Ultimately Germanic in origin, the word "blank" comes from the concept of 'white' from the Old French, 'blanc'--in Middle English it meant colorless. We use the word as an adjective, noun, and as a verb. Most of us have heard it within an idiom: "Drawing a blank."
This phrase has been around since the 16th century. Some scholars believe it stems from old lotteries where there were two containers. One container had lottery tickets which had the names of those who were 'in the game.' When the contest began, one name would be drawn from the first container, and then another from the second container which had tickets of various prizes. However, some tickets in the prize box had blank prize notes. The person would then win nothing. The feeling of coming up empty-handed or 'drawing a blank' is what we can relate to when, figuratively, we try to think of something but our minds go blank!
I ended up having a spontaneous conversation with a colleague of mine this week. When I approached her with a light, fun spirit, I said: "Quick, Janis, what's the first word that comes to your mind!?" Her face and thought process was engulfed with anxiety..."Ah, ah...I can't think of one, my mind is blank." It was unfair, perhaps, to place her in a reactive state without much time to be reflective, and that 'blankness' of the moment was sure to build an instantaneous wall to the conscious flow of her thoughts. We ended up talking about the significance of knowing something but temporarily coming up 'empty.'
Any pressure situation, emotional or mental, can lead to self-doubt because we are unsure that what we want to say or write will be met with disapproval or even rejection. Sometimes going 'blank' allows us to gather our mental energy so we can then proceed. Sure it can be embarrassing in conversations, but laugh about it. We all have been in those socially awkward situations. Recover and move on.
What is most important is that even though we have those "blank" moments we should be ready to have plenty of 'full notes' of secured and learned answers in the container. We should garner a well of ever-flowing knowledge and wisdom --to not just respond at a given time but to be reflective in a depth of insight.