Don't Just Make a Plan: The Benefits of Tracking Your Time

I talk a lot about To Do lists and planning here, but there's another part to productivity that I've never paid that much attention to: tracking the actual time I spend doing things. I add things to my schedule, but how often do I stick to that? Not very often unless it's a set appointment. So if I get to the end of the day and haven't checked off all of my To Dos, what's the reason? Did I screw around and waste time? Did I schedule too much? Were my goals unrealistic? I didn't know. 

So, this week I decided to track my time. I'm currently using a two-planner system since I've found I need both a weekly overview and a daily tasks list to keep me focused. The Happy Planner houses my weekly events/appointments and I get that planned out on Sunday. But then I'm using my Day Designer each morning to write out a fresh To Do list. But the Day Designer also has a column for your schedule. I decided to try to use that to track my time as I get things done vs. pre-planning anything in that section. It's turned out to be SO helpful, so I thought I'd share my thoughts with y'all. Here's some of what I've discovered...

The Benefits of Tracking Your Time

1. Know how long it takes you to do something.

Often we underestimate how long something is going to take us to do. Tracking time gives you hard numbers about how long something takes. So instead of assuming, "Oh, I need to blog and that will only take 20 minutes.", you'll find out that it is actually taking up an hour of your morning.

For instance, this week I'm doing fine-toothed-comb editing on LOVING YOU EASY. That means that I have to read EVERY word. This is the stage where I catch typos or awkward sentences or little logic mistakes. So it's pretty intensive. And I've discovered by tracking my time that I consistently take 30 minutes to get through one chapter. That's very helpful for me to know because now I can look forward and know how long it's going to take me to wrap up these edits.

2. Learn your peak productive hours.

We all have them and they are going to vary from person to person. Like I hear that some writers get up at 4 or 5am to write before everyone gets up. That would never work for me. My brain isn't creative at that time. *not a morning person*  This week, I've learned that I'm not productive until about 10am. No matter how motivated I am, my la-la-la, ooh-bright-and-shiny-distracted time is between 8:30 and 10am. This is the time I check all my social media accounts, chat with friends, read interesting articles from Twitter, etc. 

My guess is that this segment of time is how long it takes for my morning coffee to kick in, lol. But I'm learning that I have to ease into my work day. My highest productivity is after lunch. I know this to be true when I'm drafting too. I don't get into my writing flow until afternoon. It is what it is. 

3. Helps you tailor your work day

So building on the point above, if you have a pattern of when you're productive, when you're creative, when you need mindless things, you can structure your day to play to those. This may be harder if you have a schedule at work that's out of your control. But if you're able to, you can schedule the things that require less mental intensity at times when you have the most trouble concentrating. So for me that means I should probably schedule low intensity things in the morning when I know I'll be less likely to be writing/editing. Social media updates, responding to comments, answering email, etc. It's all good information to have to make the best use of your time.

4. Keeps you honest about wasting time and gives you options for when best to do it.

We all waste time. That's not a bad thing. We need fun and mental breaks too. But if you track your time, you can find out if you're doing that a little too much. You can pinpoint what sucks up your time, what sends you down a rabbit hole. And if you need it, you can use apps to shut down your access to the internet and have focused times to work on what you need to work on. I talked more about that in this post. And you can even schedule in a time to do those not so productive things. That can help because you know--ooh, I want to read this article, respond to this FB thing, etc. but I can save it and do that at x time when I have break time scheduled. 

5. It's motivating and reinforcing to write down what you've done as you go.

Don't wait until the end of the day to write everything down. You'll forget and it won't be accurate. Write down what you did each hour as you do it. Keep a notepad or planner nearby so it's easy to jot down. I find it's hard to write down "wasted a whole bunch of time" lol. I'd much rather write down. "Two chapters edited!" That's reinforcing. :)

Ready to give it a shot?

You don't need two planners like I have. Though you can! If you just want to try it out for a few days, use a notebook or find a printable. The Day Designer has free printables of the schedule I'm using. So grab one of those if you want something with the times already on it. And let me know if you try and how it goes! :)

Does anyone already track their time or have you tried this experiment in the past?

*Day Designer link is an affiliate link. 

What's Your "Escape Hatch"? The Importance of Hobbies

Today,  author Jaye Wells did a fantastic post on burnout. Go read it. I'll wait. She explains how she got burned out when her passion and escape (writing) became her job and took over every aspect of her life.

I so relate to that article. I've talked a little bit about it here, but I definitely was burnt to a crisp by the end of 2015. I love writing. It is my passion. But when it became my job and my world became deadlines and constant writing and promotion and all the business that goes along with being a writer, I lost what Jaye calls the "escape hatch."

Writing used to be my escape hatch. I started writing in high school not just because I loved reading and creating stories but because it gave me a break from the angst of being a teenager. It was an escape from every day life. That's one reason why I went back to writing after I had my son. I was a new mom who had no idea what she was doing and was dealing with a very colicky, non-sleeping baby. When I needed to take a break from all that, I escaped into writing.

That was the best thing I could've done because that's the point where my passion turned into my career. I got my first publishing contract when my kidlet was three. From that point on, writing became my full time job. 

I love it. I feel lucky every day that I get to do this for a living. BUT, it means that writing is my job. It's what I *have* to do now. That takes some of the "escape" out of it. Where do I get to escape when writing gets hard or stressful or a book is fighting me? And books always fight.

That's what led me to my burnout. I didn't have that other outlet anymore. For a while at the end of last year, I didn't even want to read because that's tied to writing. And, believe me, if I'm not reading, that means there's a major problem lol. *cue warning sirens for meltdown*

So after turning in my book, I stepped back and evaluated and took a break. I read non-fiction since fiction wasn't calling to me. I painted and redecorated my office. And I got a planner--seemingly to be more organized--but it ended up being more than that. I discovered there was this whole planning community. And it was a crafty pursuit. There are pretty pens and washi tape and stickers involved! That has become my version of an escape. It's a hobby that will not make me money, that has no pressure attached to it, and that relaxes me. From the outside, it seems like a silly thing. I mean, how many pens do I really need? This many, btw:

My pen/pencil collection

But after reading that post, I realize--no, it's not silly or indulgent. It's necessary. It's self-care.  I found a crafty, creative outlet to be my little escape hatch when I'm not writing. And looking back, I've been doing this all along. When things get stressful, I seek out hobbies. Maybe I start cooking a lot. Last year, it was canning and pickling things. I took a photography course a few years ago when I definitely didn't have time for it. I rebuilt my website because I enjoy the process of taking things apart and putting it back together. It's even in my author bio:

"If she’s not working on her latest sexy story, you can find her cooking, watching reality television, or picking up another hobby she doesn't need--in other words, procrastinating like a boss."

But maybe it's not always procrastinating or a hobby I don't need, after all. Maybe it's making room in my head for the writing. It's giving my brain space to "breathe" and refresh. 

And I know that Jaye's post was specifically about writing, but I think it applies across the board if you're doing a job you love. Or being a parent. Or even a job you hate. We need that time to play. We need those things that don't have any stakes tied to them.

So, I'm curious. What's your escape hatch?

5 Lesser Known But Wildly Helpful Apps

Y'all know I'm obsessed with paper planners and like doing a lot of things the old school way, but that doesn't mean I'm immune to the joys of technology. I'm not someone who has a billion apps on my phone, but I do have a good number and there are a few that are great little short cuts that help me out often. So I thought it'd be fun to feature the ones that I find extra helpful.

1. Pocket

Not sure if this one is lesser known, but it's necessary for me. Am I the only one who ends up with 13 million tabs open on my browser? Arg. I see an article I want to read on Twitter or Facebook, and I open a tab. But I don't have time to read it just then, so it sits there. And then I'm left wondering why my computer is getting slow when I have 13 MILLION TABS OPEN. This is where Pocket comes in. I can hit a little button on my computer (or phone) and it saves it in the Pocket app for me to read later. BUT this isn't the only helpful thing. Pocket also sends out a weekly newsletter of curated articles that they think you'll be interested in, and they are always really good. Like there is always something I want to read in that email. Usually more than one thing. I look forward to that email--which I can't say about many newsletters. So I'd get the app for the newsletter alone even if it didn't do the other cool thing.

2. Pensieve

This is a recent find. Someone in my planner group recommended it and as soon as she said what it did, I was like--I need that! So this is a super simple app but it lets you send a quick email to yourself without having to type in email addresses and such. You just have a little open box, you type your note and hit send and it automatically goes to your email. (You only have to enter your email the very first time when you set it up. After that it remembers.) I am constantly emailing myself little notes or reminders when I'm away from my computer and this makes it super quick and simple.

3. GIF Keyboard

Okay, I don't know if this is "helpful" per se, but it certainly is fun. I have it on my phone and computer. This gives you access to a GIF database instantly. You just search and then click the picture and it automatically copies it so you can paste into text messages. You can install it as part of your keyboard on your phone, but I chose just to get the app and open it when I need it because I didn't want it in my keyboard. Either way works. But it's loads of fun to be able to grab GIFs quickly.

4. Can I Stream.It?

Want to know if a movie or TV show is available to stream/rent/purchase from one of the many services out there? This app has the answer. It will tell you which services something is streaming on, where you can rent it, where you can buy it, and/or if it's available on DVD from Netflix or Redbox. It covers the major movie stations, iTunes, YouTube, Amazon, Google Play, Xbox, Sony, Hulu, Crackle, Vudu, etc. Very comprehensive. It also lets you set up alerts to let you know when something become available on a certain service. Really helpful if you have a lot of different options for streaming and don't want to have to individually search each one.

5. Sleep Pillow

Need white noise to go to sleep? Sleep Pillow has SO many different sounds to choose from. Box fans, open car windows, city noise, wind over the plains. I use this a lot when I travel and need to block out all those unfamiliar hotel noises.

Note: I'm on an iPhone so I'm sure if all of these are available across platforms.

So those are a few of my favorites. What are some of your favorite apps?

Creating Mottos for Your Year and Your Sanity

I've mentioned here before that I am a pantser (write by the seat of my pants) not a plotter (plan the whole story ahead.) But that's not entirely the case. The vital thing I need to know before I start a story are my characters' inner workings. I need to KNOW them. All the good stuff. All the ugly stuff. Like a therapist doing a an in depth history. Otherwise, I inevitably hit writer's block early on. I'm character-driven and need to know how they'll react in a situation, what their motivations are, what happened in their past to create who they are today. And one way I get to know them is by figuring out their motto. I learned this trick from one of Michael Hauge's classes. His character stuff is the main structure I go to for developing my characters. I've used it for years.

So, for instance, in my current work in progress, my heroine's motto is "Get them before they get me." Now, that's not the healthiest outlook, and it's creating some problems for her. But it helps me to know how she's going to react when thrown into a scene. For her, that often means she's mean and defensive. That, of course, will have to change if she wants her happy ending. But now I know what her internal journey is going to involve. How can she get past that fear of being hurt again? What does she need to do to get there?

But as I've gotten into the habit of doing this exercise for my characters, I realized it can be a helpful exercise for real life, too. We all have mottos that probably guide us on a large, life level. Everything happens for a reason. Go into things with an open heart. Let go and let God. Live and let live. YOLO. Whatever it is, it's our outlook on life. That's not what I'm talking about today. Those are big and hard to change. But there are other layers of our life where mottos or mantras can come into play--smaller ones that maybe characterize what you want your year to look like, how you want to approach your business, how you want to parent.

As I've talked about recently, 2015 was a stressful year for me. So I've spent a lot of time trying to get 2016 off to a better, calmer, more organized start. And in doing that, I realized that I've picked some little mantras to keep me on track this year. These aren't ones I created myself but things I've read elsewhere and that resonated with me enough that I wrote it down and pinned it to my computer monitor.

My keep-me-sane Mottos for 2016

If the answer isn't "Hell yes!", it's no.

I can't find the original source for the quote, but it's everywhere. And this is in direct contrast to what I've been doing for the last few years to build my career. When you're starting out, you feel the need to say yes to every opportunity that comes your way. Do you want to guest blog? Do you want to speak at our meeting? Do you want to be in our anthology? Do you want to add short stories to your books? Do you want to try to write more books this year? Yes! Yes! Yes! However, as you get busier and busier over time, this ends up running you into the ground and burning you out. So, my goal this year is to only say yes to the things that really excite me and move the needle on my career. I don't want to get burnt out. And I don't want to end up filling time that could be used for things like writing more books with things that maybe are just time fillers.

Would I say yes if it were tomorrow?

Angela James brought this one up to me when I mentioned the first one. This is a good add on. When someone asks you to do something for a future date, ask yourself, would you want to do it tomorrow? This resonated with me because, like I said, I have a habit of wanting to say yes to everything. And it's especially easy to say yes to things for Future Roni. Present Roni doesn't have to worry about that right now. I can be a total a**hole to future Roni, loading up her schedule without thinking about how she might feel. Then when the day of whatever commitment finally gets there, I'm buried in deadlines or worn out or just wanting to have family time, and now there's this thing that I committed to doing and am now dreading. No more. If I think I'm going to dread something later on, if I wouldn't be excited about doing it tomorrow, I'm not going to add it to my schedule. (This of course only applies to optional things. Obviously, we all have things we dread doing that we MUST do despite the I-don't-wanna's.)

Frustration is a fundamental step in the creative process. 

No matter how many books I've written, I think the idealist in me still expects the next one to go smoothly. This time it's going to be different! The words are just going to fall on the page! Maybe it's like childbirth. You have to forget the pain from the previous one in order to go forward with another one without abject terror. But I have to accept that writing is always going to be hard. In fact, it gets harder every time because I learn more and raise the expectations on myself. Frustration is part of the deal. And Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Big Magic, goes even further to say "Frustration is the process." I need to remind myself of that when I inevitably start to struggle with a story.

So those are my three. Not life mottos per se but business, keep-me-sane mottos for this year. And I've already used them. And I can tell you, it's not easy. I still have the kneejerk reaction of wanting to say yes to everything. I'm a work in progress. :)

Do you have any quotes or mottos that keep you focused or that characterize your year?

Eating Healthy At Home: How I Meal Plan and a Free Weekly Menu Printable

If you follow me at all online, you know I love to cook (and eat!), but I'm not one of those cooks who just comes up with inventive meals on the fly. I've spent hours writing fiction most days, so my creativity is drained by the time I get to dinnertime. I don't want to think about what to cook or how I'm going to make it tasty, which is why for years I've sworn by weekly meal planning. Without my weekly meal planning, I'd end up going out for fast food or ordering pizza every night. Meal planning keeps me (and the fam) on track with healthy eating.

Here's my general routine. On the weekend, I set aside some time to grab a few of my cookbooks off the shelf (or to go to my saved recipes online) and I sit down and choose what I'm cooking for each night of the coming week. This is even easier if you have few main go-to recipes that you use each week. I'm weird in that I like to cook different stuff pretty much non-stop. I have very few go-to meals and those are usually brought out when hubs is out of town and I'm just cooking for me and the kidlet. My theory on why I like novel cooking is that I like to eat in restaurants. But restaurants are expensive and somehow they manage to pack twice as many calories into things--even things that seem healthy. So what keeps me from eating out too much is creating new stuff for me to try to each week, so it feels like I'm going to a new restaurant. (See, told you, I'm weird.)

And luckily, I have a family with an open-minded palate, so they're pretty go with the flow on whatever I decide to cook. (I set up the expectation early with kidlet--you eat what I cook. I may alter his slightly, like not make his serving as spicy or keeping onions out of his or something, but he's expected to eat what we're having for dinner and to try things he may not be sure of. And he does.)

But anyway, I think through my week--which nights are going to be more hectic than others, what nights I'll have more time, etc. Then I lay out the menu on this sheet I designed (see the free printable below if you'd like to download it) and make my grocery list as I go. Then I post the menu on the refrigerator so everyone knows what's coming. Sometimes I'll switch days around during the week--much to the distress of my order-loving kidlet--but otherwise, I stick to the plan. And usually we save eating out for once or twice on the weekend.

The Quick and Dirty Tips on Meal Planning:

1. Gather your supplies: cookbooks/magazines/internet/whatever, a notebook or meal planning worksheet, and a little bit of time.

2. Think through what supplies you have or what you need to use up. (This is where cookbook indexes and internet search comes in handy. Have a cabbage and some chicken to use up, look up the more specific ingredient and work backward from there.)

2. Figure out which days you need to have quick meals and which you can spend more time on so you can plug in meals accordingly.

3. Fill in your go-to meals if you have them. Bonus tip: Pick theme nights like Taco Night, Sandwich Night, Slow Cooker Night, Stir-Fry Night, etc. and then your meal planning will go even quicker.

4. Write down the name of the recipe and where you found it (don't forget page numbers) then plug it into your menu sheet on the appropriate day.

5. Make your grocery list as you go. Bonus tip: There are lots of printables online for grocery lists. If you find one divided by section of the store, you can already have your list done and  sorted by the time you're done meal-planning. 

6. Put the menu on the fridge for you and your family to see, and then stick to it. 

7. After the week is done, mark down the new recipes that went well to save them for the future. 

It sounds like a lot, but really, it's not. Plus, there are so many benefits.

Benefits of Meal Planning:

1. Eat healthier.

2. Less waste because I know what I need to buy for the week.

3. No thinking involved when I'm brain-drained at dinner time.

4. Saves money.

5. No, "What are we having for dinner?" questions from the family.

5. Yummy, delicious meals every night.

So it's a no brainer for me. I've done it this way for almost a decade, and it becomes like clockwork. Plus, it gives me a good reason to feed my cookbook addiction. :)  Which reminds me, stay tuned for Wednesday when I tell you about my favorite cookbooks, recipe resources, and apps I love for meal planning and cooking. 

In the mealtime, here's your free Weekly Menu printable download if you'd like to give meal planning a shot. Let me know if you do! :)

Click to download

So do you do any kind of meal planning? What's your process? Any tips to add?