By Marilyn Forsyth
Am I a Productive Writer?
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| Image courtesy of giphy |
Short answer: NO.
It’s why I’ve been researching articles that outline simple steps used by ‘Super Productive People’ to be…well, productive; developing habits like rising early, planning each day, incorporating exercise, etc. So, if what I've read is right, that something like 40% of our daily actions are driven by our habits, then it should be doable to create a new daily routine incorporating these steps, right?
To that end, I’ve taken a few of these suggested habits
and looked into how I might actually do just that.
1. Plan
Your Day the Night Before
Knowing what your goals are for the day gets the ball rolling straight away
in the morning. Setting 3 goals is
manageable - you can always do more. Be sure to prioritise your writing.
Makes sense.
2. Get Up Earlier
Gives you more time (everyone’s most
limited resource) in the day. Works best by being consistent with a wake-up
time. Might mean going to bed a bit earlier to get 7-9 hours’ sleep.
I can do that.
3. Tackle
Your (Writing) Goals First Thing
Skip the emails, social media and other
distractions and get straight to work when your energy is at its highest.
Hmm. I’m not really a morning person; I’ve found my creative energy peaks later in the day so I do my social media stuff when I first get up. Might be worth a try if I’m going to commit to this, though. (Unfortunately, scrolling is not productive.)
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4. Create ‘Office Hours’ (for social media/email interactions)
Social media sucks so much time. Set a hard limit for time spent on it.
Good idea. I really do need to do this if I want to get more done.
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| Image courtesy of giphy |
5. Do
NOT Multitask
Do one task at a time and see it through
to completion.
Oh crikey! Is that even possible??
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| Image courtesy of giphy |
6. Schedule
Breaks
Get out of that chair! Not only does it
give your eyes a rest but 20 minutes of exercise a day is good for your health
and general well-being. And always have a glass of water handy.
I’ll see how I go with this. When I’m in the zone I find it hard to take time out.
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| Image courtesy of giphy |
7. Perfection
is Unrealistic
Yes, we all want our work to be the best
it can be, but don’t give in to the temptation of constantly revising and
tweaking your writing. Set a time limit to finish your final edit and stick to
it.
I’m already working hard on this as I am a bit of a perfectionist.
8. Outsource
I wish! Realistically, unless
you’re making money from your writing, this isn’t an option for most of us.
It’s obvious that just because these
‘habits’ work for other people, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll work for me
and, reading back over this, I’ve realised I’m not going to be able to incorporate
all the ‘habits’ (at one time) to increase my productivity.
So, maybe I’ll start with one. What’s that
old saying? The longest journey begins with the first step? Wish me luck!
Love to Love: my new lifestyle. Living in an apartment in the city is fantastic!
Love to Laugh: at the Graham Norton Show. Love his interviewing technique. 😂
Love to Learn: anything and everything
about ancient Egypt, which is why I bought tickets to the Horizon of Khufu experience. It was sensational! Here’s the link if you’d
like to know more: