{Hand Embroidery by the merriweather council on Etsy}
We all know the saying, “practice makes perfect.”
But, life and to-do lists can become so overwhelming that we don’t prioritize consistent practice.
For the first two years that I blogged, I blogged every day—sometimes twice a day. I wanted to be the best blogger I could possibly be, so I practiced constantly.
I still write daily. There might be a day that I don’t—but I usually squeeze in at least 30 minutes of writing. Why? Because, I connect with my audience through writing. It’s one of the main ways that I reach people on a consistent basis. Writing is a skill that’s developed over time, and I can always improve.
So, I ask you: What do you do every day?
Do you check your email every day? Tweet? Update Facebook? Check what your friends are doing on Facebook? Watch television?
I bet many of you said yes to those things—which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I check my email at least 3 times per day, tweet almost daily, and I do indulge in television.
But, do you also make art daily? Add products to your online shop? Connect with your target market?
Do you do the things that will help you build a successful creative business on a consistent, daily basis? If not, it’s time to rethink how you spend your time.
I challenge you to look closely at your daily practices.
Which ones give you energy? Which ones leave you feeling exhausted or unfulfilled?
I read for about 30 minutes each morning, because reading gives me inspiration and motivation. I used to talk to someone on a regular basis who I no longer talk to very often—because the person was always complaining about something. And, I mean always complaining, and our conversations left me feeling exhausted and unhappy.
I try to exercise daily, because it helps to clear my mind and I concentrate a lot better. I used to eat junk food all the time, but it left me feeling unfulfilled, sick, and tired—so, I stopped.
It can be hard to write down all the things that you do every day, and see how many unhealthy, uninspiring, unfulfilling things that fill your day. But, you can make choices to change your daily practices. Anything from what you eat every morning for breakfast to your creative practices can be changed. You can decide to work in your art journal every morning, to spend 3 minutes dancing to a favorite song every time you complete a task on your to-do list, or to skip the Real Housewives of Orange County to read a good book.
In the end, it’s all about the daily choices you make. Are they building you up or breaking you down?
{Note: Later today, I’m sending out a fun matching worksheet for this post to my email newsletter list. If you want it, make sure that you’re signed up. You can easily sign up by inputting your name and email into form at the top right of the sidebar.}
Thanks April! This definitely hit home for me. There are so many things that I do during the day that are time wasters when I should be spending that time either increasing my knowledge base {reading books or relevant blog articles} or increasing my creativity {creating something…anything, taking pictures, writing}. So thank you for the inspiration!
This is very inspiring information. I am at the cross roads of work right now in deciding how much energy to put into what area. Great advice. Thanks!
Very timely! It’s so easy to get sidetracked and this was a wonderful reminder. Thanks for a great post!
April, this is a great check in post and super fun work sheet. Love this idea. When we need a change or pace, wonder where our productivity has gone, or being disorganized, this is great to track for a few days! Thanks for your awesomeness.
I do schedule my day pretty tightly and often find myself working late. I probably need to make more me time.
This definitely resonated with me and again, such an inspirational post.
You have really helped me focus on the productive, positives in my personal and business life and let go of negative or time wasting parts.
I really look forward to your posts.
You’re right! I need to sit down and seriously take a look at what I’m doing/not doing and set some goals. Thanks for the encouragement!
Social networking is sooo time consuming and a complete time/energy/motivation waster if you’re not reaching your target market. I need to better figure out where to find my customer.
Thanks April! I try to make a list by 9 am every morning, just to map out my day. Being a stay at home mom and a creative entrepreneur, I often find myself lost in the daily household things and a simple list helps me stay on track or else I loose track of what is important to making my business grow. Great reminders!
Thanks!
I have been thinking about this a lot lately. I need to devise a technology schedule or system! I get so caught up on the computer — checking e-mail, facebook, craftopolis, twitter, reading blog posts (which are often very helpful!), looking for info to share, etc. — that I don’t feel like I spend enough time doing!! Whether that means creating new products, improving my shop, or actively getting out and selling! Off to check out your worksheet. Thanks for the post.
ah, you are a clever little bird! love the promo for the email list!
PS don’t be sad if i steal the idea. i’ll give you props!
It is very easy to get sidetracked. I have my fav. blogs (yours included =) on my “top sites” on my mac. I see the stars come up that show me there are new posts and it takes everything in me to not look at the moment. It’s better if I sit down and plan out what I’m going to do for the week. Then the day of I sit down and plan out my day to the hour (I have 2 little kids in tow so I even write down bath time, etc.) Then I know what spaces in the day I have open to focus on. It helps me not to waste time.
The days I don’t (like today) don’t go as well.
Thanks for sharing!
What a good poke in the arm. My “word for the year” (actually, I chose a 5-word phrase)
“creating order to my day.” It’s all about making conscious decisions and being accountable. Thanks again for being right on target. Great synchronisity.
April,
Thanks! I needed this. I’ve been checking my etsymail every morning but I was spending too much daylight reading blogs and everything I could find for help on etsy. I now read blogs and hints, tips and studies in the evening while watching TV. This download page is a fun way for me to prioritize my days.
Theresa
Just the thing I needed to read today! Thank you- your post really made me refocus….just as I was beginning to feel overwhelmed and unproductive, this gives me an action plan.
-allisa
What a lovely and inspiring post! Makes me rethink some of the things I do on a daily basis!
This was wonderful insight. i haven’t thought about my day that way. I do need to rethink my creative time. After laundry, dishes, picking up clutter, cooking, email, mail, and shopping, I feel like I have nothing left. I can’t wait to get a copy of your schedule!! I obviously need to prioritize my creative time and gather some courage to list my items!:)
Your article got me thinking about all the things that become so routine we don’t even think about it anymore. I’m going to print your worksheet and take a look at how I’m spending my time. I do know many days I feel as though I’ve spent a lot of time on all of the things I think I “should” be doing, instead of things I “want” to do. There’s a big difference between the two!
Thanks for the inspiring thoughts!
I have been working with something I came up with called The Equation. Every activity gets ranked +1 to +3, neutral, or -1 to -3. Depending on how that activity effects my day. Then, after dinner, I write the Equation and if my day is negative, I do something to add positve points, like brainstorm color schemes. If I am already on the plus side, out comes the Netflix, a neutral activity for me. Simple!
What an on target post! I know I spend far too much time checking my email and trying to figure out FB when I really need to be creating even more. I do a good job sketching ideas but I need to do a better job executing those sketches into clothing and accessories for the store on a more consistent basis.
Thanks April, this is a great article and I LOVED the handy worksheet…a perfect example of beauty and practicality!
Great article! It is hard to stay focused when you have a day job to pay the bills,and the job you love. Articles like this help you get back on track.
Very timely! I took BlondeChicken’s advise and took the day off. Its incredible how much ‘stuff’ I’d piled on my to-do list that, after stepping back, seems pretty unproductive. I think the 10th is going to be my ‘take a break and refocus’ day. =)
One think I tried a couple weeks ago was to log everything I did for the day into my google calender. My computer is pretty much always on and nearby so it wasn’t too tough. It helped me to see where I was wasting time needlessly.
I applied this today and had wonderful results. I got all six things on my list done with time to spare. I pared down the excess, easily. It was good to give it a name and let it go. The plus was having time for exercise!!! I blocked out time for things that were necessary and important, there it was, instant structure.
What ever you have going on, we could all use more of. Thanks April!!
This is great April,often I get lost trying to do little,wasteful
things and procastinate…need more time to paint!
eating healthier and exercising definately improves the overall
quality of our daily lives…fabuleuX article!
Merci again(*_*)
Great and inspiring post! I LOVE this ~ to spend 3 minutes dancing to a favorite song every time you complete a task on your to-do list definitely going to have to give that a try! Hopefully I will be dancing my way to great health and a finished to-do list every day! Thanks again!
Hi April,
Really enjoyed this post! As entrepreneurs, it’s so easy to get side tracked and bogged down. And when things get crazy, we’re quick to just go go go without taking a breather. While this may seem productive, it’s often just the opposite – when you’re stressed and not thinking clearly, what you produce will reflect that. About 6 months ago, I started a daily practice of meditating before I turn on the computer and get into the day. These few minutes of quiet and contemplation have made such a huge difference!
Since discovering your site I have been so glad for the support and advice- thank-you!! My daily practice currently leaves much to be desired unfortunately!! I have tried subscribing more than once but haven’t received a confirmation email or worksheets etc. Will try again!
Here’s to the bright future of creative business and living!
Super inspiring as always April, thanks!! Following your earlier advice to schedule everything, I’m getting a lot more done.
I’d found the creating art/jewelry and listing new items in my shop had really been slipping in a scramble to promote and improve other aspects of my business. Since I set up recurring appointments for creating of new work, photographing it and listing it in my shop: I’ve re-energized the creative part of my business, am enjoying myself more and have even made more sales!
This new post inspires me to keep refining what gets scheduled in and when. Through scheduling everything in my virtual calendar, I also found out that I spend 40 hours/week on my business in addition to my two parttime jobs! (20 and 12 hours/week) Before, I was feeling like I just didn’t get enough time to work on my business, but I see now that I have enough time but wasn’t spending it in the best way. Since I’m already spending 40 hours a week on the biz, there’s no reason I shouldn’t be able to make it so profitable that I can leave my other jobs and support myself with my creative business! I’ll keep refining and making better/more profitable business decisions and you keep giving me great inspiring advice! We’ll get there 😉
Thanks again!!