Time management plan helps accomplish goals

Do you ever feel like you aren’t making any progress on your writing goals? Procrastination or a lack of a plan may be holding you back.

Finding funny GIFs to share with friends or finding something to snap so you don’t ruin your 264-day streak chip away at your time without you even noticing. Soon you find the time you intended to work on a project gone as other commitments press in.

So, what’s a writer to do? Make planning a priority. Having a time-management plan helps us to stop procrastination. Here are some tips I’ve discovered that may help you:

How to prepare

• First, determine where you have pockets of time to write, then guard it.
• Next, buy yourself a planner and a notebook to make your priority lists in.

I’m sure you’ve heard the advice to plant your seat in the chair and write. That’s easy enough to say, but sometimes even when we’re intentional, time slips away.

My system explained

Sometimes I work hard all day, but feel like I haven’t accomplished much. Since I dislike that feeling, I make a list of weekly goals on a page in my notebook. When you have multiple projects vying for your time, put the ones with the closest deadlines at the top. Certain jobs must be done on specific days so note that. For example, I must get my Storyteller Squad blog written, edited, and formatted by the deadline. If it doesn’t get done, I let you, the reader, down, and I let the rest of the Storyteller Squad down. I can’t have that.

Deadlines for my novel in progress are self-imposed so sometimes they get pushed back and back and back. That hurts me because it postpones my finish. It’s on my list though. Break big projects like this into smaller parts. My novel list may look like this: brainstorm plot ideas, incorporate suggestions from last critique, write a new chapter, edit last chapter and prepare to send to critique group, look for pet words, etc.

Every little step matters. Each step moves us forward toward our goal.

I may not get everything done on my list, but one or two might be finished. That’s better than none at all. Sometimes just rereading what I’ve written and making edits might be all that I did. That still keeps my story fresh in my mind so that ideas continue to percolate in my subconscious. When random thoughts barge in, I jot them down with as many details as possible so I can come back to them.

It doesn’t matter whether you have half an hour or two hours. It will all add up to progress.

My lists include proofreading jobs and critique work, even platform building work I have to do such as learning how to use Instagram. It’s all part of the writing gig. Social media can be a time sucker so set a timer and don’t spend so much time there. There is only so much time in the day.

My plan broken down

Put the following in your planning notebook:

1. Look at your upcoming week. Block off your appointments/practices, chores, times you work, times you spend with family. These are your nonwriting times. Everyone has these. Now you know when you have free time. Mark that section for writing. Since family activities are incorporated in the week, your family knows which part of the day is your writing time. It may take some adjusting, but once you find your rhythm, you’ll see progress. It may also vary from day to day or week to week.
2. Jot down goals.
3. Assess priorities.
4. Plan in extra time. If you finish earlier, you feel excited about the additional time. Some work just takes more time though so don’t get discouraged.
5. Put like-work together. I try to do my proofreading and critique projects on the same day so that when I get involved in creating, I don’t have those assignments distracting me.

Put the following in your daily planner:

1. Now, each day mark what you accomplish in your daily planner. I note how long I worked on whatever I worked on that day.
2. At the end of the week, move what you didn’t do over to the next week in your notebook. Assess from your planner how much time you spent toward your goals. Do you see your progress?

At the end of the month or the year, review your planner/calendar and see all that you accomplished. It’s usually more than I thought, which is encouraging. The review helps to modify what is and isn’t working also.

Yes, some days not much gets scratched off the list, yet progress is made. Every little step matters. Each step moves us forward toward our goal.

If you don’t have a method, perhaps this one will work for you. What time-management plan helps you accomplish your goals?

Happy writing!

Photo by Emma Matthews Digital Content Production on Unsplash