7 Ways to Make Time to Write

Choosing to write or journal is like dieting. You have to decide to do it. Having a plan does not hurt either. Instead of scheduling in meals, you are scheduling in time to write. Unlike dieting your chances of success are greater. Here are seven tips to make more time to write.

1. Make Extra Meals — When shopping, buy extra chicken and ground beef and double your recipes. Put the extra prepared meals in freezer safe containers for the following week. This can save you a supper time preparation of 30 minutes to 1 hour depending on the meal. This is lots of time to churn out 2 to 8 pages.

2. Get Kids to Help — When it is time to get ready for bed they can police one another to wash up, brush teeth and change into jammies. You can still have your together time by reading bedtime stories. This saver could be 1 to 2 pages.

3. Trade Off With Spouse — If he will take care of the kids for two hours when you are in the writing mood, then you will do him an extra special favor for two hours at a later date.

4. Hire a Neighborhood Babysitter — To watch the kids in the other room for two hours (or better yet, take them to the park). Explain to the kids you will be working and you do not want to be disturbed. They are to act like you are not home. The same is true for the sitter. This may take some practice.

5. Shorten Idle Chitchat — One of the biggest time wasters is idle chitchat. We stay longer at appointments, meetings etc. chatting about nonsense. There is being polite and then there is being an open book to everyone you meet. Get home already and get writing.

6. Do Not Answer the Phone — Or read email until writing is done. A lot of time is lost answering unexpected phone calls, reading email and deleting spam. These are not high priorities and should be left for after writing time. If you do not have an answering machine, get one. It is worth the investment.

7. And the most obvious… Stay Up Later or Get Up Earlier — Once a week plan to stay up later or get up earlier. This quiet time is excellent for getting the juices flowing. Avoid the TV and radio syndrome.

Now get writing!