I’ve been pondering on the thought of how hard we all push ourselves to be creative and get our work done. This month I’ve taken on a lot, with #NaNoWriMo which I have only written a few thousand words for and my latest book launch. I also have a new book to edit. Last week I began to have raised stress levels. No one put this pressure on me, other than myself. I keep piling more jobs onto my ‘to do’ list before I have completed the last one, as many of the jobs interlink.
I’ve come to the conclusion that what I am doing is good enough and that panicking or overdoing things is not going to work for me. My priority is to get all of my book launch information to my tour hosts, which is gradually happening. Next will be marketing for my new book. Further on the list is getting some new words onto paper for #NaNoWriMo and finally to edit book 5. All of these jobs are important, but if my head feels like it is packed full of too many tasks, I will feel counter-productive and start procrastinating.
If I happen to manage task one and two quicker than planned, then the other items on my list can swoop in and take over. This week has begun far more efficiently with jobs being ticked off of the list at a fast pace. The key for me is to do one job and do it well, then move on to the next, rather than half completing it and starting something else. I’ll let you know how much I get done in November. It’s exciting and the possibilities are endless, I just have to curb how many ideas I write down on that list and how many I add to a different notebook and store until a later date.
Do you push yourself to hard at work, or are you a master of time management?
3 time management tips (I’ll be using these too!):
- Do the most important job first.
- Don’t let unimportant tasks drag you down. Sideline them.
- Say ‘no’ to some things. If you are busy, it’s ok to decline social or work offers. Only take on commitments you have time for.
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Great reminders Lizzie. I’m at that point of overwhelming 🙂 Yes, I’m one who keeps pushing along. I sacrificed many social outings. I think I’m about ready to treat myself to one. 🙂
I completely agree, Lizzie, we are brilliant at taking on too many tasks and then burning out with exhaustion. I am participating in NaNoWriMo this year as I have done every November since 2011, but this time I have lost all motivation. My mind is distracted with about six other novels in progress, I am juggling the blog work and the ongoing book promotion, not to mention the mundane stress of managing a young family and dealing with health challenges. Something has to give!
https://spookymrsgreen.com/2017/11/15/my-nanowrimo-challenge/
There is definitely not enough hours in the day to get everything done I want.
You make some wonderful points about where to focus our precious time and to learn to say no. I tend to stress myself with self imposed deadlines, but I will put off what I feel doesn’t have to get done. Great topic and hope the rest of month goes smoothly for you:)
There is definitely not enough hours in the day to get everything done I want.
You make some wonderful points about where to focus our precious time and to learn to say no. I tend to stress myself with self imposed deadlines, but I will put off what I feel doesn’t have to get done. Great topic and hope the rest of month goes soomthy for you:)
Oops hoped i had prevented this from being published…
I grapple with time management issues every day it seems. I’ve really been feeling them lately as I’ve had a book deadline, publishing info deadline, and a deadline for marketing material on a book I haven’t even begun to write yet. As you said, most stress we pile on ourselves.
One thing I’ve learned, however—when you write for a publisher, this is the standard life of an author. I’ve accepted that, but it isn’t always easy to have those deadlines hanging over my head!!
The struggle is real, Lizzie! There doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day. Cheering you on. 🙂
I think we all suffer from the “not enough hours in the day” syndrome. I know I do. I find that I have to give my attention to whatever is due first and try to mark at least one thing off my list every day. Good post and good tips, Lizzie.
Good advice, Lizzie… but why does it never make any difference to your workload?
It seems that the harder I try, the longer the list gets. It must be a conspiracy…
Lol:) You might be right. I started with one A4 page of things to get done and now have a book full. I’ve completed lots of the tasks, but there are still one or two on each page that I have to keep adding to the end of the list.
That sounds all too familiar…
Reblogged this on anita dawes and jaye marie.
Thanks for the wonderful reblog:)