4 Time-Saving Productivity Hacks to Keep You Sane
As an online writer, you’re probably familiar with at least one of these scenarios: Oh no (or expletive of choice)! I only have 30 minutes to get this blog post written… or, I need to come up with at least 10 blog topics for this month’s editorial calendar, but my brain is drained… or, I want to get to my own writing project, but I have no time… or, I am stuck in writer’s block hell…
Whether you’re a “newbie” or veteran copywriter, you’ll face a few of these challenges in your career, and likely more than once. With that in mind, here are four productivity hacks from Heather to help you meet your deadlines, make progress with your own writing projects, conjure creative blog ideas, save precious time…and keep your sanity!
5 Weird Writing Productivity Hacks That Work
Heather starts out by asking: “Do you feel burned out and brain dead after a full day of writing?”
Drawing on her own experience, she then shares five time- and sanity-saving tips that are “a little weird” to help you recoup your writing mojo:
- Chart your writing rhythms
- Limit your writing time
- The five minute brainstorm technique
- Wear different hats (literally)
- The two minute trick
Do you have any of your own weird ways of keeping the creative writing juices flowing? Please share them with us!
How to Generate 3,640 Blog Post Ideas in 12 Months
Sounds over the top, doesn’t it? But it really isn’t.
Heather writes that she borrowed the idea from James Altrucher, who recommends writers to exercise their “idea muscle” each day by selecting a topic and then jotting down ten (or more) ideas – whether good or mediocre, no matter. The goal is to simply get them written down.
She confides: “This tip changed my life.”
It can change yours, too! Heather shares her step-by-step process for capturing blog post ideas that fleshes out her editorial calendar, and shares her favorite tools for assistance when it’s needed.
How to Write a Killer Blog Post in 30 Minutes or Less
Need to write up a quick and dirty blog post?
Heather writes that while she’s not a fan of super-fast writing, there are times (i.e., imminent deadlines) when it’s required. And while it won’t be your best work, it will suffice.
The process she shares covers what to do before you begin, after you start writing, and when you finish.
Some key takeaways include:
- As a bare-minimum guide, give yourself at least five minutes to plan and outline your post, 20 minutes to write it and five minutes to proof and tweak.
- Keep your inner Web writing editor at bay.
- Always proof your work. Always.
Achieve Your Writing Dream in Just 25 Minutes A Day
Heather begins by asking: “What’s your writing dream?”
Perhaps it’s a book in your back pocket that you can’t seem to get around to actually writing? Or perhaps an idea for an online course that takes a back seat to work priorities? Or maybe you’re just too overwhelmed to write “just for fun”.
She then shares her experience about wanting to write a book about SEO copywriting in the mid-2000’s that she was excited about, but found herself stuck.
Through much trial and error – “either working too hard and burning out, or procrastinating and feeling guilty” — she found how to get her writing groove back! She outlines her simple 2-step process and discusses the reasons why she thinks it works.
What say you? Any productivity hacks you’d like to share? Please do in the comments below!
Quite an obvious one – ask someone else! Just talking to a friend or partner for a few minutes about a project can get your brain firing in different directions. For writer’s block on a blog, I often think going back to ‘what question is the blog answering?’ can help you get back to the basics of the purpose of the piece and the questions that reader’s may ask. Sometimes I get bogged down in the detail and it takes the piece off-course.