By: Taylor Davies
it’s not a necessity to be a full-time blogger to be successful. For many of us, our blogs are supplemental elements of our professional endeavors. As such, we can’t devote as much time to our blogs as we do to our jobs, schooling, parenting – whatever the case may be.
With limited time (we want to have social and romantic lives too, after all), it’s so key to make the most of what we have, working smarter, not harder.
Start by thinking ahead.
As someone who’s a part-time personal style blogger, the most helpful thing I can do for myself and my site is think ahead. I struggle to think beyond the immediate week ahead, but Sunday evenings are my prime bloggin’ time to get the next six days lined up. Even if I realistically cannot get a whole week of blogging done in a few hours, I can make a big dent, and then figure out when I’ll have time to get back at it. I look at my work load, my social plans and then factor in a little slack and go from there. Hopefully, you can still look at blogging as an enjoyable way to spend your time when you aren’t at work, and can look forward to the times you have scheduled to “work” on your site.
Create and schedule in blocks.
Block out time in your week that’s just for blogging – whenever works for you. Maybe it’s 3 a.m. on Wednesday and maybe it’s 9 p.m. on Sunday — just make sure you’re scheduling and accounting for it. Give yourself proper time to develop your content and figure out when it will go out. And maybe it’s just me, but getting a lot done at once and then sitting back as it all flows into place is a really rewarding feeling. (Like a to-do list with all the boxes checked!)
Also, sometimes when I’m particularly excited about a post I’ll want to get it out there right away, which isn’t always the best strategy. Schedule your most dynamic and bound-to-be-a-hit content on the days you get the most traffic. (Strategize to maximize, as I like to say.)
Be selective with your social media.
This is an awesome tip I’m drawing directly from this article on ProBlogger. When the time you have to spend on your site (and it’s promotional channels) is limited, making the most is critical. Make sure the channels you’re putting the most effort into are the same as your peers (be where the people are!). The both good and bad thing about social media like Pinterest, Twitter and Facebook is that they can suck you in.
Try looking at it this way when the time comes to get something done:
Do not, I repeat do not use this time to browse your friends’ activity on Facebook. Post photos and links to your page, share relevant content, and get outta there! (Save the “creeping” for your personal time.)
Same goes for Twitter. Share relevant and timely content, participate in peer-driven conversations and give shout-outs, but try to avoid that never-ending scroll through your followings feelings about last night’s episode of Girls.
Shoot for multiple posts at one time.
For fashion and lifestyle bloggers, photography (and subsequent photo editing) is one of the most time-consuming elements of our “work.” Do yourself a favor and (nudge, nudge) plan ahead to shoot for multiple posts at one time. Get your gear, prep your sets, choose your looks and bribe your photographer (or yourself) to help you out for a few extra hours.
This way, you’ve got oodles of content ready to be edited and scheduled ahead of time, and you’re not scrambling for good daylight hours to shoot during a hectic work week or finals time.
Are you a part-time blogger? How do you make the most of your schedule?
*This post was inspired by a great piece on part-time blogging success from ProBlogger.
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