Living Success: One Step At A Time
Image courtesy of zaraki.kenpachi
Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Sean Platt of Writer Dad.
We each blog to the beat of our own lives. Different schedules and rhythms require a multiplicity of approaches, but there is a constant. If we want to be the best blogger we can be, without becoming a prisoner of our posts, then it is necessary to approach each day no different than a sunrise on the farm.
Farmers don’t waste the sunlight. They make every minute matter. So should we. Bouncing around from task to task only carves us a tunnel leading to nowhere. Modern innovation has led to an endless array of distractions; email, twitter, YouTube, Digg… I could continue, and easily turn this into a two part post. We must focus, or risk drowning beneath the billions of bytes.
I’m married, with two children. I run a preschool, and a successful blog which posts five times a week. I’m also writing a book, editing a second, and have a few other projects in various stages of development. Even with all that, I’ve never thought of hiding under the covers and hoping it would all just go away.
The key is in how we organize our time. We can not simply run up and down the court and hope to sink the shot. We must first aim and then release. When I first started blogging, I believed I could juggle a dozen things while dancing. Alas, I can not.
I successfully sweep through my days by tackling a single task at a time. I start each morning with a list of everything that needs to be done. Then, I set my priorities. Of course I check email, tweets, and comments, but only when it’s time.
Imagine you’re in the kitchen cooking. You’ve got something on each burner, and something else is in the oven. There’s frozen food thawing in the microwave, and a rainbow of ingredients spread across the counter. You smell something burning, and run to check the oven. Smoke spills out, and you grab a potholder. One of the pots on the stovetop is bubbling; spilling angry liquid over the edge. You reduce the flame, and begin to rapidly stir a series of sauces. Sweat drips from your face as you wonder what went wrong. Why you didn’t start out with a plan.
Too much blogging at once will never burn our houses down, or ruin our dinners, but it might make us wish we’d never even started. I treat each day as a collection of minutes, where each one matters as much as all the others. It is the only way I could ever hope to get everything done without wanting to run from the room and find a place to cry.
If you enjoyed this post, you can find more great writing by Sean at his blog Writer Dad.
16 Responses to “Living Success: One Step At A Time”
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Hi Eric and Writer Dad – It warms my heart to see two of my new blog of the week authors working together. It feels like “family”.
I love this post. Sean, you’re right. We do need a plan and we all have the same number of minutes each day. How we use them determines the outcome. What I find works best for me is concentrating on that which I think is important, and not let my schedule be determined by what others (or blogosphere) tell me I should be doing, signing up for, writing about, etc. It keeps my love of blogging alive.
Barbara Swafford´s last blog post..It’s All About Me – Part 3
One thing at a time is the best advice one could give or get. Multi-tasking dilutes the product or the interaction. This was a good reminder to just do one thing, and it will be done well.
Betsy Wuebker´s last blog post..LOOK OUT!
I mentioned this elsewhere and I’ll repeat it here. The ultimate success is conquering one self.
“I treat each day as a collection of minutes.” What a wonderful way to imagine it! Thanks for the tip.
Julie´s last blog post..Been There, Done That
Barbara: If you worry about what others think you should be doing, you’ll never get your must dos done. Focusing on a single task just makes sense if we want to keep our wits about us.
Betsy: I think the number one thing that helped me with that principle is playing with my children. When I play with them, I’m doing nothing but. That makes the moment full. I’ve tried to approach work the same way, and it is yielding wonderful results.
Confident Nerd: True, that.
Julie: You are very welcome. Thank you.
Writer Dad´s last blog post..At Least I Don’t Have Zits
Thanks for sharing some of your thoughts. I’ve just started my blog and I am at times overwhelmed with all that I could do. I decided to pre-write some articles. As the clock ticks down on them I find I need to cut out the distractions and focusing on writing. As that becomes more routine I’ll have time to focus on other aspects.
Hi Sean,
I enjoyed this post. As someone who has two jobs and two boys under the age of two (that’s a lot of twos!), I sometimes feel myself feeling overwhelmed by what needs to get done. As you say, I think the keys are to stay organized and have the discipline to focus on a single task at a time.
Peter
Peter | The Change Blog´s last blog post..5 Daily Practices to Help You Keep Your Edge
Neil: Definitely. It helps, if at all possible, to write a week ahead. It’s not always easy, but there are days when it feels wonderful to simply pull something from the bank, and go to bed early.
Peter: It is overwhelming. Life isn’t easy, unless you’re one of the lucky ones. Staying organized helps us keep our heads above water.
Writer Dad´s last blog post..At Least I Don’t Have Zits
Hi Sean,
Planning is definitely needed to in order to bring balance into our life. Imagine trekking in the Amazon Rainforest without a map and a compass. We are bound to be lost and that is the same as trekking in our life without a plan.
Cheers
Vincent
Personal Development Blogger
Vincent´s last blog post..Do You Give Up Easily?
Your ability to fulfill the dictum in writing, “show, don’t tell” is well honed shall we say?
Great post.
Bamboo Forest´s last blog post..Make This Halloween a Ghost Dad Halloween
Vincent: I believe we can do anything with the proper planning, but no one can make a plan better than ourselves. It’s not just a job, but a duty if we really want to reach our destination.
Bamboo: Thank you. That is a high compliment.
Writer Dad´s last blog post..Let’s Get Our Kids Drunk! or Happy Halloween!
This is my biggest stumbling block. I’m ADHD and it’s difficult to focus. Thanks for the encouragement!
Tess Marshall´s last blog post..How To Stay Strong & Motivated In Tough Times
These are thought to live by , Tess. You have made it sound easy to get organized and by doing just one thing at a time eliminates the feeling of being overwhelmed. Thank you for the insight.
Proper planning is an absolute necessary to any work that we undertake or else we will end up in a total mess.
Everything Counts’s last blog post..Chronic Lateness Syndrome