I am a writer first. A blogger second. A marketer somewhere down the bottom of the list. But I’m working on it. I’m also a mum, an employee, a wife, a chef for the family, a student, a weekend athlete. Just like you, I have many roles, and many activities that require my attention. One thing that I have learnt from all these roles is how to manage my time so that everything gets done. My house mightn’t sparkle every day – actually, it resembles a playground at the moment –  but I am good at getting things done without breaking out in excuses. You don’t find time, you make time for what’s important to you. Here are my three top tips on getting things done.

1 – Just do it

I’m sure this has been regurgitated time and time again but it’s still true. When you have something that requires doing, you just do it. Don’t think about, don’t dwell on it, don’t let your worries overwhelm you. Just do what needs to be done whether it’s brainstorming the next scene of your novel, going for a run, cooking dinner, or sprucing up your CV to get a better job. Just do it. Think about it later, once you’re half way through the task at hand at the earliest.

For about two months I was umming and errring whether to send my fiction manuscript to an editor. Finally, I stopped procrastinating and just did it. I Googled a few editors, emailed them requesting a quote and sample edit, and then decided on the one I wanted to use, polished up my manuscript a little bit more, and emailed it off. It really wasn’t as difficult as I made it out to be.

I’ve found that if I overthink things they are less likely to get done. If I get on with them then I’m more likely to have a super-duper productive day and all before the clock strikes 12, no, no turning into a pumpkin here, my brain slows. That’s 12 noon not 12 midnight by the way.

When it comes to little things I have a strategy: if it takes less than two minutes to do, just do it right now and move on. Don’t put it off. Things like putting on the washing, cleaning up the kitchen, sending an email, clearing the table, etc, take minutes if not seconds. Stop the clatter preventing you from doing the more important things like writing the article, finishing an important action scene or sending off that query. If it takes less than two minutes, don’t put it off for later.

2 – Plan ahead

Some people are seat-of-your-pants writers while others need to plan ahead before they sit down and put pen to paper. I fall somewhere in between. If I rely on the muse then there’s no planning involve. Unfortunately, relying on the muse is well, not very reliable.

I’ve found that planning in my down times – on the train, during my lunch break, while I’m cooking dinner, in the waiting room, in bed before I go to sleep, or while I’m watching My Kitchen Rules, I can brainstorm and outline ideas so that they are ready to go when I sit down to write. It means I’m more productive in the limited time I have, which at the moment falls while baby J is napping, when hubby comes home from work and can take over the parenting reigns, or on the train on my way to work.

3 – Don’t stop

Once you’re writing, keep at it. Don’t stop to edit until you have finished your writing quota for the day or your writing time is up. You’ll be amazed at how much more you can write. Once you’re done, then you can put on your editors hat and critique to your heart’s content. I find putting on a timer and challenging yourself to write as much as possible in a limited amount of time helps. Fifteen minute spurts seem to be the most effective.

What are your productivity hacks?