30 Habits That Have Improved My Life As A Full-Time Author

This one if for the authors at the back, Gentle Reader (Author?) Enjoy!

10 Habits That Improved My Author Life

1. Jealously guarded writing time and determining what time of day/system works best for me.
2. Writing dates with other authors that I get to via walking or biking = social time, sunshine, exercise, and productivity.
3. Writing retreats.
4. Joining local author groups/clubs.
5. Dedicated writing bag/backpack that includes noise cancelling headphones.
6. Blocking out time for painful tasks (e.g. taxes).
7. Blocking out monthly brain breaks, usually a weekday where I’m not allowed to schedule anything, just give myself time to be creative.
8. Understanding exactly how I value my time and how much my time is worth to me including what I must/should/enjoy doing most.
9. Consuming writing podcasts and YouTube videos.
10. Doing something small that makes me happy every single day.

10 Habits That Improved My Author Business

1. Weekly agenda plus time on Mondays set aside to review that agenda each week.
2. Systems and templates for everything (e.g. itinerary, invoices, newsletter) stored in the cloud.
3. Dictating into the Notes app on my phone for emails, blog posts, social media, story ideas.
4. Writing down goals: writing, business, life and then parsing each out into manageable tasks, so that they become SMART goals.
5. Scheduling time to achieve those goals (and to review them 4 times a year).
6. Scheduling, time boxing, and batching social media.
7. Refusing to engage with DMs on any platforms, instead using automated responses or redirects to email me about business or join my newsletter for fans.
8. Automated bill payments.
9. Tracking spreadsheet for all of my subscriptions and auto-pays (monthly, annual, or sporadic; on what credit cards; about how much they charge; and how to cancel them with links).
10. Jealously guarded weekends, when I have them and I’m not traveling, that are not for work.

10 Tiny Habits That Improved My Life
1. Creating traveling kits for myself inside zipper pouches of different textures that all live in a go bag.
2. Finding a sunscreen that I actually love wearing, and wearing it every day as part of a dedicated skin care routine (I may have to start buying these when in Thailand as the best filters are banned in the US).
3. Labeling and organizing my house accessories in clear plastic tubs.
4. Using a thermos (with built in tea strainer) for my tea in the mornings instead of a teapot.
5. Leveling up my compost bin, I mean literally, raising it up so it’s level with my countertop.
6. Cooking mainly with an electric tea kettle, toaster oven, wok, or rice cooker (and not my oven).
7. A digital shopping list on my phone.
8. Winding down in the evening with a scented candle.
9. Creating zones in my apartment so that all items of one type (like cleaning or repairing) are together in one place and easy to find.
10. Ensuring my entire house has conveniently placed charger, plug, extension cord combos and devices that work off of USB charging (e.g. speaker, lighter) rather than batteries

Yours,

Miss Gail