Tips for Blogging on a Busy Schedule // New Year's Resolutions

   I can't help but smile when someone finds out about my blog and replies with, "I can't believe you have time to sit down and write a blog!" Or, "It must be nice to have all that free time!" If only blogging was that simple. For anyone who has attempted to conquer the art of blogging, you know this is far from the case. Blogging takes hours out of your day and days out of your week. It's hands on, taking creativity, inspiration, and motivation. It needs consistency, scheduling, and a system that works for that individual. Over the past year, I've learned a lot about a balanced schedule for my blog. With working at Red Velvet, photography, and blogging, I usually work about 60-80 hours a week, so I definitely have to have an organized schedule to maintain all my responsibilities while still making time for those most important to me.

So that being said, below are five tips that have helped me to establish a more organized, effective way of blogging. Enjoy!

1// Creating Consistency Amongst Topics:

   Creating consistent topics to post about can give you clarity of what a blogging week will look like. This shouldn't constrict you to talking about only these topics, but more help you in knowing what your strongest types of posts are. Here on SK, I focus on photography, D.I.Y. projects, and fashion related things. I try to stay within these three topics, because I feel like they are my stronger points, but that doesn't mean I can't venture out from them. For example, instead of an outfit post for a fashion topic for the week, I might share a recent lookbook that I really enjoyed or a wish list of my favorite current trends.

Staying within a few topics not only help you focus and grow in specific strengths, but will also attract a consistent readership because they will know that they can count on you to continue posting about the topics they love and started following you for in the first place. Again though, it doesn't mean you have to always stay within the realm of a few topics, but more so help create a consistent, balanced form of posting. 

2// Creating a Schedule:

   Creating a schedule for your blog is one of the best ways to stay stress free when blogging. It allows you to see the big picture and see which areas need more time and effort. My goal is to blog four to six times a week, which can seem like a lot at first, but breaking it down into a schedule make it accessible and doable. 

The photo above is what a blogging week might look like for me. As I mentioned in the first tip, I blog within the realm of three main topics; Photography, Craft Projects, and Fashion. The week above consisted of:

1. Buckle Strap Boots DIY Inspiration
2. Outfit Post
3. Sequins Cardigan DIY
4. Bridal Session
5. Outfit Post
6.  Giveaway

  Writing out a schedule ahead of time can prepare you to know when's the best time to publish each post. Plus, it helps me to prepare new ideas for the week ahead. Staying a step ahead in the game is one of my greatest sources of inspiration. The weeks I'm frantically trying to gather a post together are the times that I start to feel insecure about my content and lack new, fresh ideas. Organization, for me, sparks the best type of motivation.

3// Setting Aside a Specific Time to Blog:

   Monday is my "blog" day. I try to spend Sunday evening jotting down ideas and making a supply list. This step really prepares me for the next day so that I don't waste the whole morning scrambling to put together a to-do list. On Monday, I start the day early, shopping for supplies for all the projects for that week, then come home and tackle every project I can. About an hour before sunset, I bring along all the wearable projects and one to three outfit posts and take photographs with my husband at a local spot. Yes, one to three outfit posts at a time. I don't know about you, but this thought bugged me at first. I thought it meant I was being dishonest if I didn't actually wear it "that" day that I posted it, but that's not the case at all. I always make sure I'm wearing outfits that I would definitely wear on a day to day basis (I usually do later on that week anyway), and write the text for the photos the day I post it so that it's valid with how I'm feeling and what I'm doing that day. I don't always have the chance to do this tactic, but it's always helpful in a time aspect. Lastly, I'll dump all the photos onto my harddrive, and organize and edit them so that all my posts for the week are only a few steps away from hitting publish. Try finding a morning/afternoon/or whole day to dedicate to making and photographing your blog posts for the week. This will help you not only feel less stressed, but inclined to think more positively for the week ahead.

  4// Create an Inspiring/Distraction Free Atmosphere  

   We all do it. Open up our phone and next thing we know, we've been scrolling through Instagram for 20 minutes. The times I get the most work done is when I have no distractions. My biggest distractions are my phone, a messy room, movies, and other websites I love to check. Start by working in an organized environment. Clean your work space, add a candle (I actually bought a "you only get to burn me if you're working on the blog/photos" candle. Dorky? Extremely), and some inspirational decor. Work in a space that you actually like to be in. Next, remove all media distractions. Unplug the wifi until you're ready to write your post, put your phone in the other room, and turn off the television. If you don't like to work in silence like me, create an inspirational playlist. Certain types of music actually help you relax and focus. Google "music that helps you focus" and you'll find some really great, calming tunes you might like to add to your music library. 

 5// Creating Balance:

   Over all, I believe a sense of balance is the foundation of adding blogging to a busy schedule. My personality is to workworkworkwork. Knowing this, I have to carve out specific time to spend with family and friends (and that extremely inconvenient thing we call sleep. huff). Maybe it sounds grandma-ish, but knowing ahead of time what days I'm going to stay in and work on current projects and what days are my "chill" time, help me not to stress when I have deadlines because I made sure to finish them on my work days. If your personality is more inclined to choose play over work, dedicate one to two nights to working on the blog, knowing that the other nights of the week are for friends and family. 

   And of course, knowing that if you didn't blog as much as you had hoped that week, it's okay. You're okay. Don't stress, just try harder next week. We've all had our weeks where we feel like we've slacked off, got too busy, or just needed a break. That's okay. It's a good thing. I'm a pusher and a doer. But I've really had to learn to listen to my body and mind. When you need some extra sleep, or three date nights instead of one, do it. Blogging should be something you love, not something you dread. Something that pushes you to grow in creativity, not drive you to insanity.

    I'm not one to really believe in New Years resolutions, because I think you need to make lifestyle resolutions that will actually stick and be effective. But this year, I'm focused on being even more organized with my time and schedule, making each minute count. If you're lacking in organization or motivation, I hope these tips helped you out a bit! I'm so looking forward to see what the blogging community has to hold for all of us in 2013. Cheers!