How To Get Writing Sooner: 3 Efficiency Tips For Writers and Entrepreneurs

Identifying Useful Activities That Have Gone Overboard
Time wasters are everywhere, but not everything we do that keeps us off task is a waste.  Hours can be spent on perfectly necessary projects such as maintaining a connection through social media and email, or honing our taste in literature by reading.  Reading tips from other writers can also help you make connections, and is a form of continuing education (though you'll never receive a grade, and I wouldn't recommend putting that you read Writer's Digest on a resume).  So here are some thoughts on how to stay productive while keeping yourself connected and informed.  Most solutions have a bit of Psychology and self-help included, so get ready to use a little metacognition (thinking about thinking) or even "listening to thinking" to better organize your time.  I'm sure after reading the following list you will have no trouble identifying things that are occupying too much time.

Time Wasters and How to Manage Them

1. Email:  I have three or four email addresses that I check frequently, and taking the time to sign in and out of them can get excessive over the course of a week or a month.  This time adds up quickly.                     Solution:  Use forwarding to check all your emails at once with a single "master" email you check once to see what was sent to all the other accounts.  
2. Reading:  Reading is an important part of writing and is certainly time well spent, but when you can't put down the novel you're engrossed in or the magazine with the fabulous advice, it becomes counterproductive.  Solution:  Keep a journal of your peaks and troughs of efficiency and arousal.  Use the times you are most "with it" to write, and times when you are not as energetic on more passive endeavors such as research, enjoying a novel, or gathering tips in magazines, blogs, and websites.  There is great information out there, but if your all strategy and no action, you won't get very far.                                               

1. Facebook/Twitter:  Though I use Facebook much more than Twitter, they are both a distraction when used for more than networking or sharing your work with potential readers (or clients, if you have a business).  These Internet powerhouses can help a great deal when creating a platform that is free and attracting people interested in seeing what you are doing (let me rephrase that: people are interested in how what you are doing CAN HELP THEM).  But, as most people know, it can be a serious distraction when you really should be writing and creating content.  Solution:  No two people are going to have the same solution to dealing with the engrossing distractions of social media, but remember advice I gave earlier about peaks and troughs in arousal and performance.  Use the times you are at your best to maximize your content, write your novel, or do the brain crunching stuff that really takes a lot of mental power....                                       

Because I think we can all agree that checking our Facebooks isn't exactly the most demanding thing in the world.  The same typically goes for email, and emails that are important should be given thought and consideration.  Draft important emails (if deadlines and time constraints allow) when you are feeling energetic and "on it".

So don't stop reading, connecting, and building your platform.  Put these activities into perspective and make sure you use your waking hours as efficiently as you can.

What other time wasters can you think of?  How do you deal with them?  Help us all out and tell us in a comment.