Time Management – How to PART ONE

How do you manage your time as a freelance writer? PART ONE

When I was young, I used to fantasize about having a remote control that could pause time and freeze everyone (except me) in place. I’d imagine all the things I could do while the passage of time was on hold. Of course, an added advantage was having everyone else paused along with it. There’d be quiet and stillness as well as solitude. Think of all the books I could finish. Imagine all the projects I could get done. Oh, and all the sleeping-in and loafing about I could do instead of rushing around.

But that, of course, is fantasy. We cannot harness time. So the concept of time management is a misnomer. What we can do is manage our activities and work on forming a schedule. So, how do you structure that as a writer? How do you organize your workload and activities? And how do you ensure you’ll actually accomplish getting something done?

There is no one-size-fits-all response to this. And a technique that works for you now may not fit your lifestyle in five years. Everything is in-flux. You need to be able to adapt. So it’s always a work in progress, so to speak.

What I’m up to now is a combination of scheduled time and checklists. I find that scheduling all my activities in tight blocks does NOT work for me—especially if something comes up that is out of my control or urgent and needs my attention. It’s too stressful to re-prioritize and re-schedule the disrupted time blocks. It’s also important, nay imperative, to give myself some free-flowing time for imaginative exploration in my writing or visual art. Do you find you can get into a deep state of artistic expression with the pressure of getting it all wrapped-up by, say, exactly 4:59 p.m.? But then you can’t spend every single day without at least some structure.

So here are five techniques that work for me:

1. Scheduled time off
2. Daily checklist items
3. Regular physical activity
4. Consistent meal times
5. Consistent bedtime

You may be surprised that this list focuses less on worktime and revolves more around personal health, nourishment, and rest. That is by design and you’ll see why in my explanation for each. To sum it up, what works (for me) is to construct a plan that I’ll follow. So the focal point is to prioritize activities that build motivation and lessen the chance of feeling discouraged (which I express by procrastination).

I’ll unpack each item from the above list in my follow-up PART TWO to this post. In the meantime, comment below on your scheduling hang-ups or successes. How do you ensure you’ll get work done? How do you keep your writing on track instead of giving-in to procrastination? Stay tuned for my next blog post. Wanna get it in your email inbox? Subscribe to stay informed of my newest articles, story reviews, updates, and more.

Cover Image: Photo by Wallace Chuck on Pexels.com