A lot of us bloggers are busy gals – we have a 9-5 job, families and to top it off – we are bloggers and writers. How do we do it?! I don’t know… I really don’t know. But in order to try to untangle what has become of my life, I decided to finally figure out the best way to organize and handle my own schedule. Hopefully, it can inspire other bloggers, and maybe you could give me some pointers on how you do it.
Here is my personal breakdown of how I’m going to try to handle my own currently busy lifestyle!
1) Calculate the available hours for freelancing & blogging
During the week, I have no available hours in the morning – I wake up, shower, eat breakfast and then take one hour of transportation to work. I arrive home at 6:00 pm, usually exhausted because the bus systems here are overburdened and I’m a sardine in a stuffy, sweaty bus. To be honest, I need an hour of just relaxing, snacking and watching a TV show.
That means I have from 7:00 pm to about 11 pm to work. 11 pm is shut off time… I need some rest after all! That makes for four hours. However, during these four hours, I also need to eat dinner and ideally, work out. So that leaves me with potentially 2-3 daily hours that I could use productively on freelance work every day.
Weekends are easier – unless there’s something going on, I have a lot of time available.
2) Let’s map out a calendar!
I estimate that I can write 1 full article with photographs and be creating Pinnable pictures per day. I’m ready to organize myself on Google calendar, which already has holidays and previous engagements marked on it. I added all the blog +freelance work I need to get done November & December: from publishing posts to creating Pinterest boards, to hosting giveaways and writing articles for pay. Phew! It’s a lot of work – no wonder I feel overwhelmed!
3) Make a plan that works
My plan is to pre-write a bunch of articles during the weekend. I would LOVE to have my blog posts already written and ready for publication throughout the week. It would make me feel a lot less stressed to know that I can come home from work and do something more relaxing. Plus, if I get hired for freelance work on top of that, I don’t have to worry about writing those articles + the posts… it’s a win-win situation for me.
4) Do one thing at a time
I tend to do three things at once, and I’ll make myself dizzy. No longer! If I just sit and focus on one thing, I can do it well and productively. That’s the plan from now on: no distractions, no getting myself confused… only proper focus on the blog posts and work!
5) Don’t get overwhelmed
Most importantly: I need to remember that nothing is life or death. I’ve worked in an Emergency Room and ironically, I kept my cool very well there. But with deadlines of having to write a post for my blog my heart is pumping! I just need to remember: it’s okay if I don’t publish an article today, or even this week. The blog and I will survive just fine!
6) Consider a VA or paying for content
I’m part of this amazing Facebook group of bloggers who also happen to double as writers on anything that has to do with home life, be it cooking, health, fitness, crafts, budget articles… you name it, you’ll see someone there with the skill and interest. They also write Pinnable and share-worthy posts that are always relevant to the upcoming holidays and prices are very fair.
When I’m feeling overburdened and can’t write posts, I will be considerate to myself, give myself a break and head to this group. I can just buy great ready-for-publication posts from a writer. Best $15-20 I will ever spend!
