How To Plan Out Your Week & Prioritize Your Project
I mentioned on my Instagram recently that I really feel like I’ve hit my stride with creating content on a regular basis now. Are there still long nights and busy weekends? Sure, but the regular writing, photographing, filming and editing has become just another part of my everyday life. I’ve managed, through trial and error, to find more time in my daily routine to devote to something I love. So today I’m sharing my top tips with you so that you can apply it to your own hobby, passion project or self-care routine!
Prioritize Your ‘Thing‘
I now consider my blog to be a part time job (sans the reg paychecks), which is really just a way for me to prioritize it in my life. It’s a responsibility I have to my personal growth and happiness, which is as important as being able to pay the bills. When you frame it that way, you don’t really feel like your projects are a burden or something to put off. Rather, it feels good to be able to pour time into them because you’re clear on their personal value.
Reassess Your Work Mentality
One huge difference that I’ve recognized is how my mentality towards work has changed. This year, I’m trying to embrace the idea that work doesn’t always have to be hard or a struggle to be work. Often times, the best ideas and solutions present themselves to you when you allow your mind to relax. Sometimes you need a physical activity like washing dishes or cooking a meal and other times you need a different type of mental stimulation like reading, watching tv or listening to music for inspiration. And then there are the times when you’re really stuck and just need to be quiet and meditative, take a walk outside and let your thoughts flow freely.
Become a Scheduler
I have a content schedule that I stick with, more or less, every week. Mondays and Wednesdays I write blog posts. Tuesdays I update my Pinterest. Thursdays I edit my IGTV videos. Fridays I relax (an important one!) and the weekends are spent filming, editing and shooting photos. I don’t schedule out times of the day because each day ends up looking a little different and I could never commit to that amount of rigidity. But I find having one main goal for each day works really well without overwhelming me.
Pick Yourself Up
I’m still learning to let go of the disappointment when things don’t go to plan or don’t get done on time. Usually it’s because I get to do something fun and spend time with my loved ones so it’s never wasted. But a schedule is not meant to make you feel like crap every time you don’t accomplish something. It’s there to give you structure so you can slowly chip away at those larger-than-life goals of yours. When you’re feeling less than adequate, learn to let go of the self-criticism and instead focus on how you can improve.
Take Back Your Time
One measurable change I’ve made since the start of the year is waking up an hour earlier. In fact it’s now up to an hour and a half! And while I am a bit of a morning person naturally, I also cherish my sleep and require a lot of it (like a solid 9 hours people) so I was a bit skeptical of it at first. But this has made the biggest difference in my overall mood for the day, and thus my productivity. It allows you to have more control over your life. When you wake up late and rush out the door it can feel like your whole day is given to someone else until quittin’ time rolls around. But when you give yourself an hour more in the morning, there’s more time to do what you want and just breath for a minute before the craziness of the day kicks in.
You can carve out time in other ways too, whether it’s a career-focused podcast during your commute or one less episode on Netflix each night, I promise you your time is there for the taking back.
SHOP THE POST
