As much as I’m eager for the arrival of spring—with its longer days and warmer temperatures—the jump forward due to Daylight Saving Time this weekend means we lost an hour of time.
These days, every minute seems precious. With so many commitments, activities, and demands on our time, it’s difficult to carve out a small window for doing what we love. (And sometimes when that time pops up, we may not be in the mood to write—because let’s be honest, writing isn’t always easy!).
How can we find time to write? And how do we make the most of that time?
Photo by Alex
Counting the Minutes
To find more time to write, first know that it takes some trial and error. Everyone works a little bit differently, so the method that best fits into your lifestyle or meshes with your personality is probably much different than another person’s. Give one or more of these a try and see what happens:
1. Schedule it.
For those who live and die by their calendars, block off time to write. Of course, when something else comes up, it’s all too easy to cancel or move that writing “appointment,” so this technique requires an attitude adjustment too—you have to prioritize this time like you would any other important meeting, deadline, or special occasion. Play with setting aside the same timeframe each week, so you’ll find it easier to remember and work around it. Or look for a time when other people don’t usually schedule things, such as early morning or late at night.
2. Give something up.
As busy as life is, we all spend some time doing a whole lot of nothing. Whether we’re wasting time on social media or TV, there are portions of our days when we could be more productive. Sure, downtime to relax and recoup is a vital part of life, but too much of it becomes a time-suck. Look at how you can swap out activities and limit your time-wasting ways so you have a chance to write instead.
3. Make space.
Consider creating a ritual or a dedicated space for your writing. While it doesn’t have anything to do with your calendar or appointment book, associating a special place or treat with writing motivates you to make it a priority. It could be as simple as sitting down with a cup of coffee or clearing out a corner of the dining room table, but that small action may be just the inspiration you need to write more often.
4. Time yourself.
When free time is rare, use it wisely. If you find yourself with a few minutes to spare, set a timer and write as much as you can. The tick-tock of the clock provides extra motivation so you don’t waste a second. Or use this trick to boost your productivity in general. Give yourself a specific amount of time to get something else done quickly in order to use the leftover minutes to write—instead of taking 30 minutes to clean, allow yourself 15 minutes and then use the additional 15 to write.
How do you find time to write?
PRACTICE
Write for fifteen minutes. If you can’t seem to find time to fit this practice into your day, try one of the techniques above (and let us know how it goes!).
When you’re finished, please share your practice in the comments section. And if you post, please respond to some of the other comments too.
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Melissa Tydellhttps://thewritepractice.com/author/melissatydell/
