Talk to any group of aspiring bloggers and one of the comments you will frequently hear is that they do not have as much time for blogging as they would like.
Maintaining a blog does take up a lot of time. Even if you only write once or twice a week there are lots of other tasks that you also need to spend time on, such as maintaining your WordPress software, configuring plugins, moderating and responding to comments, promoting your blog on social networks, and much more.
Every blogger has their own time management strategy that works best for them. Personally I find that there are certain times of day that I can come up with blog post ideas and write good quality content, and other times of the day when I am still awake but starting to get too tired to output any decent quality work.
I try to make the best possible use of those “quality hours” by doing as much writing as possible during those times, and leave other less mind-taxing activities such as sorting through email, reading and tagging interesting news, forums, and social networking for later in the evening when I’m getting more tired.
I asked several other bloggers if they had any time management and productivity tips. Here are their answers.
My best productivity tip is to stop reading and start writing. One of the biggest time wasters is reading and learning, but you will stand still is you don’t implement the stuff you learn.
- Marko Saric, How To Make My Blog (@HowToMakeMyBlog)
I use a technique know as “Activity Analysis” with my own added twist… Create a new Twitter account and change the settings to make it private. Then, all you need to do is make a tweet every 15 minutes that describes exactly what you are doing at that specific time.
After at least a week, review all your tweets and you’ll begin to see a picture of where your time goes. Then you can eliminate those things that are not taking you towards achieving your goals and spend more time on the important tasks.
- John Taylor, John Taylor’s Blog (@John_Taylor)
For me, turning off the distractions and just getting down to business is the best way for me to get things done. Exit Twitter. Sign off Skype. Close email.
- Erica Mueller, Erica Says (@ericamueller)
I usually use the batch process system where I do things in batches…For example I batch all my e-mails for a specific time where I read them and reply to each and everyone one in a certain point of the day. I read all my RSS feeds for the day during a certain point of day. I visit all my social media networks during a certain time of day.
- Tanner Maluchnik, Life Destiny (@tmalucknik)
As someone who has been a features journalist in the past here are a few tips from me.
* Always carry a pen and paper. Jot down ideas as they arise.
* Write drafts on your Blog as soon as the words come together. Don’t worry about honing things just yet.
* Look for inspiration from every day things. Sometimes the short post can be more effective than long, involved ones.
* Write often because then it gets easier
* Be yourself in your writing, that makes it a lot easier as well.
* Read the drafts out aloud to simply word flow and spot errors.
* Maintain a small backlog of Posts ready for publication so you can take a day off if the brain is on strike. You will more than make up for that when you are in the mood and feel as though you could write for ever!Applying formal, or even informal, time management practices has the risk of putting one’s brain into left-side thinking. That won’t achieve creativity.
- Paul Handover, Learning from Dogs (@learningfrmdogs)
Once I get in the right headspace, I write batches of informative “micro-posts” that all belong to one series. Different series are programmed for specific days of the week and I prepare about 8 weeks worth at a time.
I find that this then takes the pressure off and allows me to write about 2 timely and more detailed posts each week.- Evelyn, A Canadian Family
One great time management tip is to “time box” activities that have the potential for distraction and taking up too much time. Whether you’re surfing YouTube, exploring Twitter, or even participating in a blogging forum, set a time limit as you start the activity and when you reach that limit, move on.
- Aaron B. Hockley, Social Photo Talk (@ahockley)
I use the reward and punishment system :-)
When I don’t feel like writing, I tell myself that I can have a reward after I complete an article. It’s usually something really small, but is motivating to me.
In dire situations, I have to use the punishment system when I’m not motivated or productive. That usually means that I can’t leave the computer without writing an article no matter how long it takes. Or, I can’t buy that book I’ve been wanting to buy without having 7 articles written.
We have to trick ourselves sometimes to get what we want :-)
- Karen, A Meaningful Existence (@kruby)
My tip is really easy. I set 15 minutes aside to write everyday.
During those 15 minutes, I shut down all distractions and concentrate exclusively on writing. Not editing or researching, just writing.
15 minutes really isn’t a lot in a day, but when I get going I usually end up writing for 30 minutes to 1 hour non-stop. That’s pretty productive time and it really adds up over the days.
- Phil Starn, PhilStarn.com
Do you have a time management or productivity tip you’d like to share? If so please leave a comment below.
Image Credit: Flickr
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{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
I wrote an article “how to write an article in 20 minutes” that applies well to blogging.
One tip was Bullet Points work and make for fast writing.
Another thing to consider – brevity is good.
Great ideas! Esp the “doing things in batches” part. As I type this right now I’m supposed to be responding to blog comments but instead I am here writing one ;) SO hard to stick with it at times! haha…really enjoyed this, thanks.
I use the pomodoro technique, and only write/read/surf for more than 25 minutes at a time. Then pause, and do another 25 minutes. I also do things in batches, and try to check my email three times a day, not whenever I receive an email. And check my rss feed once a day and so on.
Distraction free writing is important to me, and I use WriteRoom for all my writing. WriteRoom makes the screen all black, and nothing comes through, I only see the text I’m writing. If I receive a new email or a tweet, I won’t see it :)
As a college student, devoting a fair amount of time to producing quality blog posts is often a rare opportunity. Sometimes, I even have to unplug my ethernet cable to discourage myself from jumping onto Twitter or Facebook, where I drown away hours in a heartbeat. I really enjoyed the tips you brought up. I’ll take them into account.
Wonderful compilation of ideas. I think the best approach for anyone is to take a little from each, or find something that works for you. We are all different and programmed different. Some people like it hectic, some love organization. Pick out whatever works for you from the above bloggers and combine them into your own system of getting things done.
Thanks Paul for including me!
Very useful actionable productivity tips you’ve compiled here. Making productive use of time is on top of things that bedevil me in my blogging. Gosh, too much distraction once you plug into the internet. :)
This post turned out fantastic! Everyone’s ideas are great. Having more than one opinion or style for productivity is helpful, as all of us have different personalities.
Thanks for including me in the list!!
I especially agree with the first point from Marko Saric. I could read blogs all day but that does nothing for my productivity. Also, I stopped trying to multitask, and force myself to focus on one thing at a time. Finally, I only check my email, Twitter and Facebook twice a day, and limit myself to 30 minutes total.
I love Marko’s point! Sometimes we do read so much that we forget (or feel we don’t have time) to post!
Thanks for the including me in your selection, Paul
It’s really interesting to read others’ responses and how they approach productivity. While there are so many different ways to be productive, not everything will work for everyone, in every situation.
It’s important to try different methods to see which will stick with you.
Blogging indeed takes a lot of time. In my case I am blessed to have lots of time to attend unto my blog, but still I have problems with time management. At the moment, I’m still formulating a good time management system which will allow me to maximize my productivity. :-)
I guess I’m kind of old school. I grab a pen and paper and make a list of things I want to get done, then I work at whittling the list down one by one. If it weren’t for my list, I would forget half of what I planned on doing, lol.
http://businessmomblog.com/home-papers-receipts/unsubscribe-from-overwhelm/
My wife writes a lot about how BusinessMoms can manage their time. One of the best suggestions she has is to purge paper from your life – gett off mailing lists (epaper), drop magazines, throw away catalogs, and more. The link above takes you to an audio she recorderd about the topic which you can listen to or download.
I think everyone finds their own path when it comes to writing new content. When they find something that works they strive to push it through and share it with others.
What works for me is just deciding if once I have an idea if I should take the time to sit down at the computer and hammer it out in Open Office or not. The reason for this is I think if the idea is worth it. Some may argue it’s one more idea for a post – and they would be right.
I, however, do this because I then open my mind to think with new possibilities in store. Could I think of a better idea or is this the safe route to go for the time being? Once I decide I act. It’s just that simple. If I don’t write it down I’ll forget it and a new idea will of course come to mind at another time.
This is just how I go about it and so far it’s working well for my case.
I like the “time box” idea here though. I also agree with forcing yourself to write and with the reward system. Something like I’ll treat myself to a movie if I get just one more article written.
Great stuff here! :)
I made a habit of writing a blog post first thing in the morning and creating a draft for tomorrow. This has helped me tremendously. After that I can do all my other tasks as I planned or as I feel to.
Stella, isn’t it great when you find that time of day when you are most productive!
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