Maintaining Momentum in Blogging Series
I find it is very easy to get distracted by the many different elements of maintaining a blog and the allure of social media, to the point where I find it hard to do the core element – creating content.
Here’s how dedicating specific times to write can not only reclaim your momentum but transform your blog’s trajectory.
The Power of a Writing Routine
Establishing a writing routine isn’t just about discipline; it’s about carving out a space for creativity and productivity to flourish. Research suggests that routines can significantly reduce stress, enhance focus, and boost creativity. Embracing a consistent writing schedule not only helps in managing your blog more efficiently but also in nurturing your mental well-being.
I do this by setting aside time each day (usually the same time each day) for writing but also setting aside longer times on a weekly basis (ie at present I’m experimenting with making Mondays ‘writing day’). I’ve also at times taken even longer periods of time to go away for the sole purpose of writing (ie for a weekend). I find that setting this time aside, away from distractions – and even away from being online altogether – really lifts the quality and style of my writing.
In fact, if you’re interested in my daily routine, here’s A day in the life of a ProBlogger (me).
Finding Your Prime Writing Time
Not everyone’s creative peak happens in the morning. Experiment with writing at different times to discover when you’re most productive. Pay attention to your body’s natural rhythms—your circadian rhythms play a crucial role in determining your most fertile periods for creativity.
Read this article to understand your different brain states to Make Sure You’re Functioning At Your Creative Best.
One thing I’ve done before to find my prime writing times and different states of productivity is Keeping a Blog Diary to Analyze Your Blogging Routine.
Setting Realistic Goals
A writing session without a goal is like a ship without a compass. Set achievable targets for each session, whether it’s a word count, a post length, or a number of posts. This clarity will guide your efforts and heighten your sense of accomplishment.
ProBlogger’s resident psychologist Ellen Jackson has some good behaviour changing tips in How to Smash Your Blogging Goals in Just 5 Days.
Soemthing I do every day, even two or three times a day, is to analyse critically:
‘What am I doing right now and is it worthwhile? Is this three hours I just spent on social media taking me closer to my goals—and it could—or is it taking them away?’
This kind of questioning has become an automatic part of my daily work rhythm. By paying conscious attention to it, it’s become second nature. While that doesn’t always stop me from becoming distracted, it does help me stay focused.
Minimizing Distractions for Maximum Productivity
Distractions are the arch-nemesis of productivity. In a world where every ping could lead down a rabbit hole, creating a distraction-free writing environment becomes crucial. Consider using social media blocking apps, establishing a designated writing space, or wearing noise-cancelling headphones to keep the focus on your writing.
Here’s a couple of posts from ProBlogger writers covering other ways to focus on writing amidst distraction:
- 10 Ways to Switch Your Brain to Writing Mode When Working From Home
- 2x Your Blog Writing Productivity and Reduce Your Stress by Single-Tasking
Tools and Resources
Several digital tools can aid your journey towards a disciplined writing schedule. Google Calendar or Trello can help you plot your writing times, while Scrivener or Google Docs offers a seamless writing experience. For inspiration and organization, turn to Feedly for staying updated with industry news or Evernote for managing your research and ideas efficiently.
Engagement: The Heartbeat of Your Blog
Invite your readers to be a part of your journey. Share your experiences with managing writing schedules and ask for their strategies and challenges. This dialogue not only enriches the content but fosters a community of shared growth and learning.
What tips do you have to share with me?
And what tips do your readers have to share with you?
Case Studies: Success Stories
To give you some inspiration, we asked 14 top bloggers who’ve mastered the art of consistent writing to offer their invaluable insights and motivation…
This is what they came back with: 14 Bloggers Share Their Daily Blogging Routine.
Embracing Flexibility Alongside Discipline
While the emphasis on a writing schedule is paramount, acknowledging the need for flexibility is equally important. Life’s unpredictability demands a degree of adaptability. Sharing strategies for adjusting your schedule without derailing your blog’s progress can provide readers with practical advice for navigating their blogging journey. Here’s how I try to Balance Between Family Life and Blogging Life.
Incorporating a strategic writing schedule is more than just a tactic for content creation; it’s the backbone of a thriving blog. This disciplined approach enhances your connection with readers, showcasing that true blogging success springs from both the quality of your content and the thoughtful planning that goes into it.
I think it’s a valid tip in a most general sense – if you want to hold yourself to long term goals, then you need to pace yourself and be disciplined enough to work on the project at regular intervals and in a goal setting way.
General advice for any long-term project, I think.
2c.
Yes, self discipline is very important for every blogger. Actually, I feel that if you want to make money and shine in blogging then you must take it like other jobs. For example, suppose you are an executive of a company and you must go to office by 9 AM and do your work until office time finishes (5 PM in most places I guess). You must have the same attitude about blogging.
I’ve certainly found that I’m more productive if I set aside particular times to write exclusively, with no distractions. I generally use a few hours at the weekend to write major posts that go into detail on particular subkects. I then spread these out over the following week. These are then padded out with either breaking news stories that need to get posted immediately, general news stories that can be delayed to fill a gap, or general thoughts/opinions/comments on stories on other sites that don’t require a huge amount of writing time.
I find that this method balances both the site content and my time effectively, meaning that during the week when a full time job doesn’t allow time for writing long articles, the site still maintains an even keel.
I also recently went on holiday for a week and setup a series of posts to publish while I was absent. While this was time consuming initially, it meant that not only did the site maintain a daily presence, but also that I could relax in the knowledge that there was pressure to return and begin posting immediately, as I added a couple of days overlap on my return. This gave me two days to catch up on emails and news without needing to post if I didn’t want to. A weeks absence is great if you niche is perhaps a little too thin to maintain a high post rate, as it allows news to build up and can be used on your return.
I think one of the best bets in terms of keeping momentum in blogging is to keep a list of idea’s so that if if you ever seem to run dry you always have something to write about.
Other than that, the best and only way to keep momentum is to write something everyday. Even if its not worth publishing, you have to write something.
I have only recently gotten into blogging, and I agree that setting time aside to blog is an important step in putting worthwhile content out onto the internet.
It’s certainly a lot better than worrying about what to write all the time.
However, I find that the more I write consistantly, the easier it becomes to think of things to write about. I start to see the world through a different set of eyes, eyes that are always looking for things to express.
I’ve found it’s helpful to divide the time into segments of no more than 45 minutes each. It helps to avoid fatigue.
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bloggerclub.org: http://www.bloggerclub.org
bloggerspace.org: http://www.bloggerspace.org
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If we do not love about the topic, maybe we will sometimes get bored, but if we really like the topic, I think make write of one by one article will be fun.
Not every one have time to write everyday, except your main job is as writer. Person with other main job, have to a allocation time to write the blog in their busy time, such as tell the story about what happen in the last day, and this also could become time to relax maybe.
When you said the posts that you write mid-week “tend to be more ‘newsy’ and ‘link posty’ in nature”, I realized that I was putting too much pressure on myself to post something original everyday. I see tons of things in my news and blog exploration that are worth a quick comment, but I don’t often do that. I think that aside from having times to write I should probably decide how many more involved posts I should be doing per week (maybe just 3 or 4) and post interesting links and news items on the other days. Thanks!!! That really helps!
Blogging Productivity Tip: Set A Time For Writing Posts
Do you ever feel like you don’t have enough time for blogging?Darren Rowse explains how to schedule your writing times for maximum blogging success. The other day I offered some business blogging productivity tips that go well with Darren’s the…
[…] Schedule Writing Times […]
I need to start doing this. Currently my posts are sporadic through out the day or week. If I could set a schedule for writing, I think that I could do much better.
I have a full time job and I find it not easy to write post constantly as many times I will be distracted by other blog maintaining tasks like changing the layout, experiments with ads, backup the database and files etc. I should start schedule some specific times for writing posts.
Writing is one of the hardest things to do… if you want to write quality content. This is even more so if you are running multiple websites with different topics. It would be nice if we can hire people to do this full time, but I think most websites are not there yet. Some websites are as good as newspapers, but I guess that’s for the lucky few.
I think maintaining a blog is one of the hardest tasks you can achieve. You read so many these days which are just crap, i.e. look what I found on youtube, etc….what’s the point? I would prefer to read a detailed article or funny story, etc. But again, as you so rightly point out, it’s so hard to find the time to generate such quality. Life is just one big blog lol.
I remember when the word “blog” first appeared on the scene, It was something that an elderly neighbour done instead of a diary because they were trying to be cool and keep up with the 21st century.
How times have changed.
Ive only recently got into the online community myself and its unbelievable how complicated the world of blogging actually is.