Time Management Tips – 5 Ways Writers Can Beat Time-Eating Zombies

I’ll bet you’re thinking, “Time management tips?  Who needs them?” am I right?

Have you ever considered the fact that you’re wasting the most precious resource in the world?

This resource is so valuable and sought after it rivals the most precious jewels and piles of gold on the planet.

Yep, we’re talking about time, and if you’re a wannabe writer, you better pay close attention to this post, because it could change your life.

Because TIME is the most valuable thing on the planet and once it is gone it is gone forever.  So learning time management skills are extremely important.

And believe it or not, there are Time-Eating Zombies in your everyday life, just waiting to devour your precious seconds, minutes, hours, and days.

 

via GIPHY

In this post, I’m going to give you time management tips you’re going to need to ward off these beasts and help you create a more productive life.

How to Cheat Yourself Out of Time… Every Time

Usually, when writers or entrepreneurs think about time, they look at the whole picture the wrong way.  They think in terms of how much they’re making an hour.

Wrong!

If you’re making $50,000 a year and you are dividing that all that up by an 8 hour day 52 weeks a year scenario, you’ll be way off.

Why?  Because the eight-hour workday will give you a false reading every time.

NOBODY ON THE PLANET CAN WORK FOR 8 SOLID HOURS A DAY!

In each hour there is always time wasted, and it’s especially easy to waste when you’re a writer. If you don’t believe me take a look at the list below and tell me this isn’t so:

Ways Bloggers and Copywriters Lose Time While “Working”

• Playing with their pets
• Answering the phone
• Checking email
• Getting coffee
• Checking social media sites
• Commenting on social media sites
• Getting more coffee
• Interruptions from family members
• Interruptions from coworkers
• Snacking
• Looking for resource info on the Internet and getting sidetracked
• Trying to locate misplaced resources like books
• Fighting to stay awake because you didn’t get enough sleep
• Worrying over personal problems
• Not having a set schedule and keeping it
• Bathroom breaks
• Checking your site’s stats
• Clearing clutter off of your work area

(I don’t want to waste any more of your time with this, but you get the picture.)

You need to get to the place where you’re not doing this stuff anymore.  So below are my quick and handy methods for overcoming most of these obstacles.

Time Management Tips for Beating Time-Eating Zombies

I just want to remind you that you’re setting goals based on WRITING.   I’m not talking about all other areas of your life – I’m talking about getting words on paper.  (However, you could apply this to other areas of your life if you wanted to. Wink-wink.)

Usually, when I’m writing I have a goal of getting at least 500 words down per session.

On the ultimate side – 1500 good words a day is what I would like to do.

So here are some time management tips on how you can be a more productive writer using time management techniques.

Email Address Submit

Time Management Tips for Killing Time Eating Zombie #1 Use a List

Creating “To-Do” lists is the cornerstone of almost all time management systems. I ought to know – I rebuilt an entire house using this tactic.

You want to use a whiteboard or something that you can put in plain view of where you’re working. (I talked about this technique in my Beginner’s Guide to Blogging for Money.)

 

Make a detailed list of everything you need to do on one particular project and put it right where you can see it.  As you go through each task simply cross it off.

So, if I’m writing a post I’ll make a quick list that looks something like this:

• Do front end research on topics
• Keyword research for post ideas
• Outline idea and gather resources (Sites, books, etc.)
• Write out subheads based on an outline
• Write the introduction
• Section 1 through how many you need…
• Conclusion
• Create pictures using PaintShop Pro
• Write a call to action
• Proofread
• Polish
• Promote

Once you’ve crossed off all of the tasks that are on your whiteboard, make sure you treat yourself to something special.  In my case, I’m just happy to get ‘er done, but if you want to treat yourself to something it’s up to you.

Time Management Tips for Killing Time Eating Zombie #2 Avoid Electronic Devices

One of the biggest interrupters of time is your cell phone.  It has everything on it; the Internet, email, social media apps, games, etc.

Not only that, but everyone under the sun can call you at a moment’s notice now.

The famous marketer and copywriter, Dan Kennedy, has a great story about a flip phone that someone bought him a long time ago.

He was driving around meeting people at important appointments and his new phone kept ringing.  His staff kept calling him and asking him “important” questions about certain aspects of his business.  He kept reminding them that they had always done this work before without his constant guidance.

However, they kept calling.

So as he was driving through the countryside and out of sheer frustration ― he chucked the cell phone out of his car and never looked back!

So, if you’re going to focus on your writing goals, you’ll have to take evasive action with electronic media.

I’m talking about cell phones, TV, the Internet, radio, music, and the whole nine yards.

 

How I improved my life 100% – Fool Proof!

While I’m on the subject of ignoring electronic media, I’d like to mention a behavior modification that has dramatically changed my life for the better.

I used to be a radio talk show junkie. I’d listen to all sorts of crazy stuff from political programs to the bizarre. (If you’ve ever listened to Art Bell, George Nory, or Jeff Rense, you’ll know what I’m talking about when I say, “Bizarre”.)

However, I eventually noticed just how mean-spirited and negative all that junk was. So, I cut it off.  I just couldn’t take it any longer; I no longer listen to any of it.

And guess what?  The air smells fresher, food tastes better, and I no longer have headaches or depression.

I’m not kidding.

(I also don’t discuss any of my political stances with anyone. If someone brings up a political party or figure, I change the subject.  If someone asks me who I voted for in an election I tell them, “I voted my conscience, did you?” and then I move on to other things.)

Look, if the world was to somehow implode tomorrow, how is listening to all of these geniuses going to stop it?  It’s especially stupid to keep listening to it when it’s eating your time and killing your productivity.

So, cut it all off and you’ll find that your life will dramatically improve.  I guarantee it.

Time Management Tips for Killing Time Eating Zombie #3 Keeping Your Goals Center

If you’ve got a particularly large goal or a set of goals, you’ll want to stay focused on it.

It is very easy to start traveling in a million different directions unless you are aware of what you’re doing. It’s a daily battle staying committed to what you want to get done in life.  If you’re a part-time writer with a full-time job, you know how hard it can be.  I’ve got several businesses myself, and each of them is competing for my attention.

 If I don’t focus on clearly established objectives and stay committed to achieving them, none of them will get finished.  The result will be stagnation, depression and eventually quitting.

An easy way to stay focused on your purpose is to ask yourself this question as you are working:

“At this instant, is what I am doing or working on moving me closer to my goal?”

If your answer is “no” then you should step back and refocus.

If your answer is “yes” then pat yourself on the back and keep moving forward.

It’s just that simple.

The One Hour Super-Pill for Writers

This tactic will enable you to get all of the writing done that your little heart desires.  If you’re going to be serious about your writing, whether it’s blog posts or copywriting, you’ll need to deploy this method.

Here is the prescription:

Write every day for one solid hour no matter what.

It doesn’t matter if:

• It is a major holiday…
• It’s your birthday…
• You go to on a vacation…
• If you’re on the road…
• You had a bad day…
• You’re tired…
• Your dog has fleas…
• Your favorite sports team is playing in a championship
• You’ve got a million things to do…

Unless you’ve been in a severe accident or close to lying on your death bed, you will write for one hour every single day ― no matter what.

Period.

Honestly, this is what will separate the winners from the losers.  If you want to be a success in writing you have to pull out all guns and move forward with your dreams.

You cannot wimp out and start missing days because once you start down that path there will be no end to it.

Commit yourself right now to this goal and it will change your life!

Time Management Tips #4 – Filling in Time-Eating Holes

Don’t lie, you know you have them.

You know…holes…those uncontrollable gaps of time when you’re not getting things done that you need to.

A good example of this is going shopping with my wife.  My wife likes to go to clothing stores like Kohl’s or Penney’s.  She’ll tell me she’s going in for a few minutes to look at such and such.

I tell her I’ll see her in an hour or two when she gets done.

An hour or so later, she’ll call me on the phone to tell me she’s found a pair of shorts on sale.

So, I sit out in the car and wait for her.

One of two things will happen when I do that; either I’ll fall asleep and take a nap, or I’ll read a book that I’ve brought along.  To date, I’ve never brought along a book that was fiction.  I’ve read fiction books before but it was before I became an entrepreneur.

The books I usually leave in my car are by guys like Dan Kennedy, Tim Ferris, or Bob Bly. Those guys are big-time information marketers that I aspire to be like.

So I use my car-time wisely and read their books while waiting for my wife.

If you’re looking for more time you can use wisely, you have to consider all of your day and plan accordingly.

Here’s a couple of ways you can fill in those time-eating holes:

• Take audio courses with you in your car and listen to them while you’re driving
• Carry a non-fiction book along with you on your travels so you can read during idle hours
• Bring along a notebook so you can brainstorm ideas and jot down inspirational thoughts
• If you can, carry a folder of the best blog posts, printed ads, or other material to study
• If you want to improve your copywriting skills, take along some swipe files and rewrite them out while waiting for a bus or a plane

The best way to implement these strategies is to have a bag of stuff you carry around with you at all times.  That way, you can use the idle hours or get two things done at once, like driving and learning.

Time Management Tips for Killing Time Eating Zombie #5 – Planning Your Activities

I have 2 businesses and both of them require planning; a copywriting business and I have a musical instrument repair business.

Because of this, I have to have 2 calendars. (I’m involved with 3 calendars; one of them is my wife’s.  She takes care of the planning of family matters like doctor’s appointments, car maintenance, vacations, etc.)

 

So, I keep my writing calendar right next to where I write at and I keep my musical instrument calendar next to where my workbench is.

The main reason for this is so I don’t react to the day…It reacts to me.

I already know what my schedule is going to be like as soon as I sit down to do a task. So, I keep my schedules right where I can access them immediately.

Conclusion

It’s not hard to kill a time-eating zombie; you just have to have the commitment and the will to drive a stake through its heart.

I hope that these time management tips have given you the tools and ideas you need to become more productive.

If you have any time-saving methods or ideas, please feel free to share them with us in the comment section of this post. Also, if you could share this scary post with your friends and cohorts it would be a real treat (instead of a trick) for all of us at ElmoCopy.