Everyone finds a different way to get through NaNoWriMo and it may take a few years to find that particular method.
As I close in on 50K words quickly, people think my method is crazy, but it works. I have a NaNoWriMo calendar (there’s a few different options to choose from online) that I keep track of my words everyday. This year, I ramped up my minimum daily goal to 2.5K (because I have this driving need to fill in ALL THE BOXES). A lot harder than last year’s 2K. That gave me a base and then suddenly a couple of my writing buddies started getting huge jumps and I’ve been pushing myself to stay ahead of them.
Why the competition? It helps me push through parts I’m struggling with. It also serves to remind me to stop trying to edit for now and just make a mess – I can clean it up later.
And I get some interesting twists this way. I’m not a planner and I’ve been griping at a side character I had thought about killing later on as she’s made herself likable and downright useful. Another side character I thought would stay mostly out of sight likes to keep popping up and freaking out one of my main characters.
So what am I going to do once I hit 50K? Keep going. I’ll finish the story and then I have a few side projects I wouldn’t mind getting a jump on.
If you’re participating in NaNoWriMo this year, wherever you are in your word count, keep going. Keep creating.
J.C. Jackson 
Yay for words! I’m squeezing in what I can on my lunch at work. Normally I take a week off to get words in, but that hasn’t been the case this year. As far as editing goes, well, I’ve already got over 3K of my 10K that’s going to get thrown out after November…
Do what you can. Getting words down is all that matters. And if it makes you feel better, I’m fairly certain I’ve got entire chapters to toss. x.x