How I Find Time to Write

Everyone has the same 24 hours in a day. It’s just a matter of choosing what you do with the time that you have. There are very few (possibly no) people whose lives are so busy they could not find 15 minutes to write a few words a day. And if you can get in 200 words in that 15 minutes, you will have a novel by the end of the year.

Things most people spend time on that I don’t.

1. Makeup and hair.

This is what I look like most of the time. I could look better. I don’t feel obliged to for the sake of other people. I’m not saying you’re bad if you choose to care about personal appearance. I’m just saying that it’s one of the things that goes on the chopping block for me. You may have other things.

2. Shopping. I have a delivery service for fruits and vegetables. I pay a little more for it, but I don’t have to go shopping. And I suspect I also save money and health by not buying the tempting crap at the store. Yes, I cook from scratch for almost everything. I tend to shop for clothes on-line if I possibly can. And I have this year moved to letting my kids get school lunch. Saves time and hassle.

3. Cleaning.

This is a photo I took just randomly going around our house. I keep a schedule for necessities, like dishes and laundry, and make sure those get done either daily or close to daily. But I’m not a clean freak and I don’t care if other people come to my house and see that it’s messy. I also don’t particularly find a clean house relaxing. (I grew up in a family of 11, so that is part of it). Again, I am not saying you are wrong if you love a clean house. But consider putting it on the chopping block.

4. Make my kids go to lessons that they don’t care about. I feel like there are a lot of parents who gain their identity from their kids’ accomplishments. I don’t think I’m like that. I enjoy my kids and I think they are amazing, but it’s not because I get to brag about them. If my kids want piano lessons, I’m not going to bug them to practice. They have to do it on their own. If they don’t want them enough to practice, I cancel them. My 17 year old who is now at music school sometimes complains I didn’t start her younger on an instrument. No, I didn’t. My strategy, to the horror of all music parents everywhere, was to threaten to take away her music lessons if she didn’t do her chores.

5. Volunteer for things I don’t care about. Look, I like to do things at the school that matter to me. I go in and do book talks or literature circle. But I don’t do parties anymore and I don’t join the PTA because they have aims other than mine. I really have to want to do something in order to volunteer because I have other things to do with my time.

6. Watch television/go out to movies. I allow myself to watch TV when I am working out on my treadmill or bike trainer, but not often otherwise. And if I am outside, I am listening to audio books, which I feel like is part of my job.

7, Answer the phone. I know this sounds rude, but when I am working in my office, I don’t answer the phone unless I recognize the number and it is one of my kids or my husband. I figure I’m at work, and people can all me when I’m at “home” instead.

So now that I’ve given some things I don’t do, I will admit that there are some things that I think I am very efficient at and I will try to explain about that.

1. 2 minute showers.The swimming pool I go to has the shower on a timer, so I have made sure I get my shower done in 2 minutes flat. It transfers to home. Occasionally, I take a nice, long bath (15 minutes), but not often.

2. 30 minute dinners. I do most of the dinner cooking at home, but I have a list of 30 minute dinners I can make with things I keep on hand, including enchiladas, homemade pizza, hamburgers/veggie burgers, quesadillas and beans, soup and toast, and spaetzle noodles with cheese.

3. Chores for kids. Your kids need chores. I know it can feel easier to do jobs yourself, but you are cheating them if you don’t give them the chance to pitch in and in a year or so, they actually become good enough to help you out. They can unload the dishwasher, vacuum, clean bathrooms, and so on.

4. Multi-tasking. I think some kinds of multi-tasking actually make you crazy, but I fold laundry while talking to kids or watching TV and find it soothing. I also like to knit/crochet while doing something else. It can help me focus at church or in other situations where I am seated and expected to be quiet.

5. Reward myself for completing tasks. I don’t like scheduling. It makes me feel rushed. But if I instead tell myself that I get x reward after I do y thing, I am often motivated to do y thing more efficiently and quickly, if it’s a writing related task or anything else.