The last 12 months I have been the sole provider for our family. My husband has been taking time to evaluate his life, sit with his family and reconnect with the world (heâ€™s been a public school teacher). The money situation hasnâ€™t been perfect, but we havenâ€™t been worried either.
Yesterday I realized that I was writing everything based on a paycheck â€“ except this blog that is. And that is probably the main reason that this blog hasnâ€™t been any more consistent. The paycheck has been the driving force.
This morning I woke up with a whole new attitude. Even the â€œpaidâ€ writing can be joyful. It comes back to the attitude situation. If I have the right attitude then all of my writing will be creative and full of life. But I was also determined to make my creative writing a priority.
1.	Start the day with the blogs â€“ I can write in my own, read others or just see what is going on around the internet. My first hour of the day is for catching up.
2.	Tackle the easy stuff next â€“ during the morning I am helping the boys with school. Trying to do an article that is intense or difficult will only frustrate me and them. Instead I will use that time to research or write the lighter stuff on my schedule.
3.	Take one hour to write on my novel â€“ and this has to be new writing. I have scheduled time for editing (after the novel is complete) at a different time of the day.
4.	Continuing education â€“ thirty minutes a day should be enough for me to take a class or course to advance one area of my writing.
5.	Get my second wind â€“ just before dinner, when everyone else is out of the house on most days (or at least away doing their own projects) I need to tackle some of the heavier stuff.
6.	Call it a day â€“ I will stop working at 4:30 pm. If I donâ€™t set limits then I will â€œworkâ€ all hours of the day and still not get anything done.
Everything didnâ€™t go as planned today, but Iâ€™m sticking pretty close to the schedule. I know that by having certain things that need to be done at certain times I am getting more accomplished. If I let myself mess around then I will mess around all day and not have a thing to show for it.
With my new schedule in place, with creative writing getting an outlet and with my new attitude, I will be able to have more joy about all of my writing!
Time management is a horror for me. I’m running a small business, holding down a part-time job, and dealing with a house that needs a ton of work. Add church, writing, devotional time, basic needs like laundry and food, and I’m beyond maxed out. I don’t know how people with kids manage.
There’s no place I can cut back. In fact, I’m hoping to go full-time at my job in a few months. The only place I have any wiggle room is the time I spend online.
Any suggestions on how to get a handle on this endless to-do list?
The only thing I can tell you is to make a budget for your time just like you do for your money. Write down how you are currently spending every hour of each day. Then decide if you can cut something, delegate it to someone else, or if there is a better way to spend your time (or one that you would prefer).
I’m working on a post right now that will hopefully give you more tips and suggestions.
I never thought of writing down what I do hour by hour. I’ll have to give this a shot.
Wow, writing down what I do during the day is better than a task list. I could ignore the task list, but writing down what I’ve accomplished is holding me accountable.
Even though I slept a bit later yesterday than usual, I got tons of work done – including 3 hours of writing and ripping down half of the wallpaper in the back bedroom. In addition, I did all my normal Saturday errands and chores.
Two days does not change everything, but it’s a start. Most of today was spent at church, blog writing, and online. Let’s see how the rest of the week goes.
I’m so glad it’s going well for you. Things have been better for me too. I’m actually writing more fiction now, blogging more consistently and still getting my work done. Keep up the good work! And keep me up to date with your progress.