It’s been brought to my attention (by me) that I am not using my time wisely.
In fact, I am even (gasp) wasting time.
Don’t even mention Bejeweled Blitz.
I need a plan. A system. A schedule.
I used to be a good multitasker, but now–not so much.
I’m not even a very good start-and stop kind of person. I mean, if I start writing in the morning, I don’t want to stop. I may not eat. I may not feed anybody else. I may not get dressed until 5 p.m. If at all. And if I start household chores first, well forget the writing.
Operation Declutter helped some–a lot–but I’m not there yet.
There’s no point in dividing tasks into writing and nonwriting, because as we all know, a writer is writing when not writing.
So I need a plan for:
- Blog writing.
- Blog reading.
- Blog commenting.
- WIP research.
- WIP writing.
- Article writing (for money.)
- Writing craft study.
- Book reading (nonfiction and fiction, contemporary and classic)
- Devotional and worship time.
- Inductive Bible study.
- Preparing lessons.
- Social networking.
- Household and yard chores (cleaning, laundry, cooking, groceries, weeding.)
- Financial planning/organization and bill paying
- Exercise and diet (other than rolling my chair from desk to bookcase and back while munching M&Ms.)
- Sleep.
- Family fun time.
- Do-nothing dream time.
- Time to plan a plan.
That’s too much to devote a day to each. So I’ve got to break up my day and learn to breakaway.
That’s my mission–should I decide to accept it.
And I do.
Copyright © 2010 by Sandra Heska King
Hey there my friend. Today is day three of my sabbatical and I was concerned about using my time wisely or just kind of waste it away and not do what I needed to do.
So I have Outlook, I can set my calendar with reminders etc… so I set the day and times I want to write, be before the Lord, time for friends, clean etc.. so far it's working. If I am on the computer too long I get a reminder that pops up telling me what I should be doing!!
Remember it's only day 3…but for some reason if I have it on my calendar I am less likely to plan anything else during that time and I know what I should be doing, when and how long….
*sigh* I hesitated to read beyond the title here because I KNEW you were going to challenge me. KNEW it. And there were those words….Bejeweled Blitz….steppin' on toes, ladyfriend! lol I mean, I have not 1 but 2 facebook pages open, 1 to my home page and 1 to Bejeweled because you know it takes, well, several seconds to load and who wants to waste that kind of time going back and forth??? ~~~ I know….I have a problem. *'nother sigh* Add to that I'm cramming in 1-1/2 hours of physical therapy these days to my already ADHD tendencies and my MT productivity is shattered.
OK Ms. Snady Lady….we shall attack this area together. Pullin' up my bootstraps….
Snady, thats quite a plan you have. If I could add one thing to your list-Dates w/ Dennis. Try crawling up in his lap and flirting with him.(not in the food court..you know what I mean *wink*) Go ahead and sweep those chores under the rug!
I have a flexible schedule. There are certain tasks (like laundry and searching for a job) that I do on particular days. In between, I fill in with smaller tasks such as opening the mail, making my bed.
I try to schedule time to write every day, check email, and moderate blog comments. Devotions and blog reading are also done on a daily basis.
My to-do list is crucial. All deadlines are noted on the list. I also schedule all my blog posts, so if life happens, it isn't a disaster.
Blessings,
Susan 🙂
@Sharon: Maybe I should try that again. Or my phone. I have a tendency to put stuff like that on snooze if I'm real interested in what I'm doing. 😉
@Laurie: Tell me you really do NOT have two windows open! Why that is almost an addiction! (Looks around furtively.) Ummm . . . so do I. Funny, I kicked the habit for several months once.
@Melinda! ~~~~Blush~~~~
@Susan: You make your bed??
I used to keep one of those notebooks where I kept my whole life. I even had index cards (ala The Sidetracked Sisters) where all my household "to dos" were neatly scheduled. Years ago, our accountant said he'd never seen anyone bring in such detailed records. I lost it somewhere along the route, but I'm determined to get it back. Thanks for the ideas!
I forgot to add playing my harp–but I guess that comes under do-nothing time.
I am semi organized, although you wouldn't know if it you looked at my desk. I keep a running to-do list which helps, and I also try to get to my important things first thing. Sadly, these things aren't always writing. Aiming to do better with that though.
Have a good weekend,
Karen