By: Emily Tjaden
Deadlines kinda suck, don’t they? (There’s
a reason they aren’t called “alivelines ”.) They can bring a lot of stress to
your work and cause
you to doubt yourself, but the good news is—they don’t have to be scary.
After blogging for a couple of years, I’ve
grown accustomed to working with deadlines. Every week, I know I’ve got to
write two articles; it’s just the way things are. And it’s not always easy. So
today I want to share some productivity hacks I’ve learned to help you meet
your next deadline.
Hack #1: Understand inspiration
Inspiration owes you nothing. I just want
to say that up front, because it’s important to understand the nature of
inspiration before you even think about getting to work. Last week, I talked
about the
secret of outstanding productivity, and that’s it.
You’ve got to accept the fact that
inspiration isn’t some lost puppy that wanders up to you, begging to be
adopted. It’s more like a wild unicorn tearing away in the opposite direction.
You’ve got to chase it down.
Hack #2: Get organized
It’s hard to meet deadlines when you
aren’t sure what you need to do, so get organized. Make a list of the things
you need to accomplish and keep it in front of you. Clean your desk. Disorganization
kills productivity and fosters procrastination.
Getting organized not only prepares you
physically, but mentally as well. It allows you to declutter your mind, freeing
it to focus on the tasks at hand.
Hack #3: Map out your goals
Having a plan can save you a lot of stress
when you’re in the middle of pushing for a deadline. Whether it’s the outline
for a novel or bullet points for a speech, you need a road map.
Set mile-markers for yourself along the
way. When I work on a book, I like to do this in Google Calendar by setting
word count goals each day. Your goals don’t have to big huge. In fact, small goals
can be better, as they give you something to do right now instead of
“sometime in the future”.
But, regardless of your method, you need
to set goals.
Hack #4: Set the mood
. . .
To
read the rest of the post, click here:
~*~
If
you missed my writing & marketing tweets and retweets yesterday, here they
are again:
- MariaVicente.com — How Fanfic Writing Skills Can Help You Transition... http://ow.ly/VIAKq
- Creating a Vision for Your Writing Career | WordServe Water Cooler http://ow.ly/VIAYw
- Let the critics choke on literary fiction. - Venture Galleries http://ow.ly/VIBmU
- 9 Productivity Hacks to Help You Meet Your Deadline | This Incandescent Life http://ow.ly/VIBtF
- Polishing a Novel | Claire Fuller http://ow.ly/VIC5Y "The first draft is finished, as is the second, third, and fourteenth... "
- Here’s How to Beat Writer’s Block and Get Back to Work http://ow.ly/VICuH
- Carly Watters, Literary Agent — 6 Tips To Hook A Reader on Page One http://ow.ly/VICKZ
- MariaVicente.com — Querying Tip: When to Start Sending Query Letters http://ow.ly/VID1b
- 10 Common Grammar Mistakes Writers Make (Infographic) http://ow.ly/VID84
- A toolbox to build character - The Writer http://ow.ly/VIDdu
- What
We’ve Been Taught About Backstory . . .
and
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