Most people will tell you things like goals, self-confidence, a good attitude, and perseverance are the most important parts of a web-writing career.
But I think all those things are secondary. First and most important is time. It’s like oxygen for the successful web writer; without it, nothing else matters.
The time I have to work and write is a quarter of what it used to be, even though my projects and client requests are bigger than ever. To find balance, I’ve come up with six unusual ways to handle it all and still meet my deadlines.
Counterintuitive Secret #1: Get Busier
There’s a quote I love: “If you want something done, ask a busy person.”
Back when I was a newlywed who’d quit her full-time job and only had two dogs to care for, I had all the time in the world. Yet I hardly got anything done.
Now, with three small kids, three dogs, multiple volunteer obligations, and a home that’s about to double in size thanks to a major renovation project, I’m often radically productive.
If there’s anything I wish I’d done differently in those early days, it would be that I limited my time more by volunteering regularly or committing to something big, like training for a marathon.
So, if you can’t make sense of why you never get anything done with the time you have, consider that maybe you have too much time to work with. There’s nothing like lighting a fire under your bum via scarcity to get motivated!
Counterintuitive Secret #2: Turn Expert Advice on Its Head
For years, I followed the expert advice to not check email till the afternoon. It’s true that it can help you stay focused and find more time to write in the morning, which is usually