Productivity Tips for the Scattered Writer
By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
I think of myself as a pretty productive writer. But this winter has been the toughest ever for me in terms of being able to finish a project.
I’ve mentioned before that I’m behind on my current book. And I never like to think of myself as behind…I start each day fresh with no catching up.
However, at this point, it’s time for this particular book to be finished with. My freelance editor is waiting for it. My beta reader is waiting for it. I have been emailed several times about it by readers (I’d been smart this time and said ‘spring 2015’ to keep it vague. Now they’re emailing to ask exactly what spring means).
In some ways, I’ve remained fairly productive. I’d heard the advice, years ago, about creating first. I’ve worked on the book, as is my habit, every morning before five shortly after waking up. I know what I’m going to write each morning, so the daily work has been completed quickly. I meet that day’s page goal before anyone else gets up.
My problem is the rest of the day and the part where I’m making up for lost time. I told a friend of mine on Monday that I just felt so scattered. I’m pulled in so many different directions at once. This is everything from the personal (college-related forms, a new water heater, a change in prescription provider, sick children, various middle school carpool catastrophes, and tax-related stuff) to the professional (recent interviews, blog-related issues, copyedits for another project, back and forth with book reviewers, business with my editor, and a talk I’m giving in a couple of weeks at the Macon, Georgia, Cherry Blossom Festival).
It’s tough when every task seems like an emergency. When we start working on one thing, remember another priority, and stop what we’re doing to switch over.
Which is why, when I came across an article by Time magazine a few days ago, I found it especially helpful. It’s “The Morning Routine Experts Recommend for Peak Productivity” by Eric Barker. In it, Barker has five ways to maintain productivity. They’re: stop reacting, decide what matters today, use your ‘magic hours’ for the top 3 important things, have a starting ritual, and ‘positive procrastination.’
I particularly like the ideas of the three most important things each day and the ‘magic hours’. Regarding ‘the most important things’, Barker states:
What will let you end the day feeling like you accomplished something? No more than 3 goals.
The ‘magic hours’ you can probably figure out. Barker references Duke University behavioral economist Dan Ariely:
Dan says you have 2-2.5 hours of peak productivity every day. You may actually be 30% more effective at that time.
When everything seems like an emergency, this approach provides a thoughtful way to examine, reorder, and prioritize my tasks.
It’s easy for me to see where I’ve gotten off track the last few months. Some days I’ve squandered my magic hours by using them for high-energy activities like housework. Sometimes I haven’t done a brain dump to create a master to-do list. Sometimes I haven’t prioritized the items on my list or staggered the tasks on the calendar. I’m reacting all the time, spinning my wheels, scrambling to get everything done at once.
Identifying the three daily priorities has helped me focus. I realize that I can edit my three top tasks at any time if things come up. Or, since my productive magic hours are in the morning, maybe I’ve already done my three things by the time the emergency crops up. This means that last week my day wouldn’t have been nearly as knocked off course when a snowstorm was (allegedly…meteorologists blew it) approaching and I suddenly was saddled with a teen with a respiratory infection and an elderly corgi experiencing a sudden, immediate health issue. I’d have finished my important tasks by then and would have edited my list to the new most important things: my child’s appointment and prescription pick-up, the corgi’s vet appointment, and possibly a shopping trip for wine in advance of the storm. :)
So it’s sort of like having an outline…for my day. A flexible one that can be adjusted as needs arise, just as my story outlines are adjusted when something interesting comes up in my story.
I know a lot of the writers here with a business background and day jobs will likely find this all familiar. I’ve seen similar tactics online but nothing as succinct as this. It definitely has improved my working from home strategy. For one thing, it takes that panicky feeling away…the feeling that I’ve got to jump in and fix something immediately. I’ve figured out all the things that I know about that need to be addressed and put them on my calendar in a more orderly fashion.
Do you ever feel scattered? How do you approach it?
Image: Death to the Stock Photo: Wired
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