Some bloggers worry that, to succeed, they need 40+ hours per week to spend on their blog.
Thankfully, that’s not true.
Most bloggers start out with a day job, or school work, or young kids to care for. Some bloggers end up adding responsibilities along the way — perhaps getting married, having a baby, or caring for elderly relatives.
The good news is that you can still succeed.
In fact, you may find yourself doing better than someone who has all day, every day, to obsess about their blog.
However much or little time you have, here’s what you need to do.
How to Get More From Your Time
#1: Keep a Time Log
Where exactly is your time going? Keep track of it for a few days, or a couple of weeks, and you may well find that you’re not using it as efficiently as you’d like.
If you’ve ever tracked your spending habits while trying to save money, or tracked your food intake while on a diet, you’ll know (a) how writing things down helps you spot patterns and (b) that the act of recording everything helps you make better choices.
If you’ve not come across the concept of a time log before, Scott H. Young has a straightforward article on Why You Need to Run a Timelog (And How to Do It).
#2: Get More Efficient
As your blog grows, you’ll find that some tasks that took a couple of minutes a day (like answering emails and moderating comments) end up taking much longer.
Always look for ways to become more efficient: one of my favourites is to use email templates for common queries. Michael Hyatt has some great ones in Using Email Templates to Say “No” with Grace.
#3: Focus on High-Value Tasks
It’s very easy to end up working long hours as a blogger, only to end up with very little to show for it.
If you’re doing any of the following, think about whether they’re serving you well:
- Publishing a new post every day (or trying to!)
- Writing dozens of comments and/or forum posts.
- Checking your stats several times a day.
- Trying to be constantly present on social media.
- Reading every single blog post on every blog in your niche.
Instead, think about:
- Publishing a new post once or twice a week.
- Writing guest posts for major blogs.
- Checking stats once a week.
- Using social media in short (5 – 10 minute) spells, perhaps twice a day.
- Skimming blogs in your niche and only reading the best posts.
There’ll never be enough time to do everything … so you need to decide what really matters, and cut down on the activities that don’t.
I’d love to hear how you make the most of your blogging time. What tips have you got for other busy bloggers? Let us know in the comments.
About Ali Luke
I'm a writer and blogger, and have four books out: Publishing E-Books for Dummies, and Lycopolis, Oblivion & Dominion (three novels in a trilogy).
Great tip on cutting down the old social media, Ali. It’s one of my failings, especially having a smartphone. I used to struggle for content until I started freelancing. Producing a large quantity of 500-600 word articles on a regular basis kind of gets you into the groove. I did think that once I started there would be no time for blogging but the opposite was true.
The other way to save time is to do your blogs in blocks. Because you can schedule them to post in the future, you can write ‘extra’ when you do get into the writing groove
Great tips Ali! Couldn’t agree more, especially with #3: Focus on High-Value Tasks!
I would add that one step to becoming more efficient (especially after doing step #1) is to analyze your activities, and determine which tasks you can “batch.”
Batching is combining similar activities in order to use time more efficiently. When we switch tasks, our brain has to adjust to the new though-process it must use which takes time. Also, we waste time gathering the materials for the different tasks we switch to. Combining similar tasks has boosted my efficiency immeasurably!
I like #2 and #3 especially. I’ve made myself a list of SMART goals for my first year, and I review them regularly to keep me focused on what I need to do to advance my blog. That way, if I only have, say, a couple of hours in an evening to work, I spend my time wisely.
[ Smiles ] I genuinely believe that all bloggers can make the time for blogging. Why? Because, Tablets, smartphones and laptops allow us to blog on the go.
In today’s world, it is not mandatory that we sit in front of our desktops whenever the time is available to churn out posts!
I think prioritizing is the most important. I do write daily because my blog is called “homemakersDAILY”. But I try to alternate between time consuming posts and easy ones. I spend a set amount of time on social media and reading other blogs. I can’t do as much as I would like but I feel like I’m doing the most important things.
I agree with #2 more than the others – even though you are correct on all points. We need to ask ourselves “how much time do we spend doing nothing?”
Point #2, getting more efficient is the key, if you ask me. I have this theory of doing as much as possible within less time. This starts with getting efficient. One has to cut factors that makes way for time getting wasted. This is the first step to get started in that direction.
#3 is also something that I do each day. Prioritizing things, targeting high value tasks and finishing them first is what I make sure that I do each day! 🙂 It really helps.
A good article for those who are short on time and want to make the most out of the little time they have on their hands.
I found the link to this article on Kingged.
Arun
“Focus on High-Value Tasks” is a great tip, I think a lot of people get caught up with the small things when starting out, then may lose interest when there is not a lot o success early on.
Rohit: I don’t think professionals will not be able to manage time effectively.Those 3 things can help most of the peoples to manage their time.Todo List is an best way to manage all the task efficiently but goal should be realistic & followed strictly.
Nice Post Ali!
Yeah great post and for beginner bloggers its easy to manage in short span of time but if for professional bloggers these times creeps up very quickly so one must manage and try to be more productive rather than sitting whole day long in front of their laptops
Try to work smartly and thinks how you can be more productive in your blogging