Productivity Lagging? Try A Five Minute Blast

Friday, July 23, 2010 00:00 AM EST

Photo by Teodoro S Gruhl

If you find yourself at the end of the day without accomplishing all you'd hoped, try a five-minute blast. What exactly do I mean by a five-minute blast? It's a short exercise where you blast through a small window of time without stopping, pouring all of your effort into one specific thing. This can be a scene from a book, a character sketch or notes about a particular setting. In short, it can be whatever you want it to be; just be sure to choose something that will give you a measurable amount of success.

Five minutes is only a suggestion. You can find equal success by targeting a finite space, perhaps an empty page or a certain number of bullet points that you want to address. The whole point of this exercise is to work within constraints and see how you perform as a result. I've found that by mixing the two I can achieve greater success. Give yourself one page to write, but only five minutes to do it. This will give you a whole new perspective on the exercise at hand. The more specific you can be, the better the results.

It's always amazing what can be produced in a small space of time. As you write you may find that five minutes is not enough. Listen to yourself and keep going. The blessing with this exercise is that it got you writing in the first place; you should always strive to keep yourself writing. You may also find that this exercise is effective when dealing with writer's block.

I would also recommend that you place these 'blasts' strategically throughout your day. A five-minute blast is a great way to kick off your writing and jumpstart it when you lag. Start and end your day with an exclamation point and give yourself that small taste of success that you deserve.

Word Count: 313

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What I Learned About Writing 2010: Eye Strain

Sunday, May 9, 2010 11:00 AM EST

It's a common dilemma: should I write at the keyboard or with a pen and paper? As I pondered for a solution, I found myself staring at the keyboard. I later realized what I was looking at was actually the solution. The following isn't a grounds-breaking revelation that will change the way you write forever, but rather a small detail that I picked up that will keep you writing longer and smarter.

When writing for extended periods of time, one part of our body that takes the most abuse is your eyes. It's easy to overdo it and pay the price the following day. Occasionally my eyes burn so bad that I cannot look at a computer monitor or TV for a couple days. There goes my productivity! If only I'd been more careful. What I really needed to be doing was looking away every now and then; somewhere where I could focus.

Instead of staring directly into the monitor while typing, try looking at the keyboard. Train yourself to look away as much as possible. At first this may seem counter-intuitive; surely if you've had typing or keyboarding class this is the very thing they teach you not to do. But if you find yourself writing for 8 to 10 hours a day this isn't practical. You've got to force yourself to look away.

There are also other tricks that you can mix in for maximum effect. Close your eyes while you type. This gives you a little break and improves your focus (just don't fall asleep). Pick out something in the room that you can focus on while hammering away at the keyboard. Try ticking down the brightness on your monitor or turn it off completely. I've found that when I turn the monitor off completely, I cannot resist the urge to turn it back on every 15 minutes to check something I wrote. Also, take periodic breaks, and of course, if you're reading large amounts of text, do yourself a favor and print out a hardcopy. You'll find that marking up a copy is both liberating and eye-saving.

Ultimately I've found that concentrating on the keyboard increases my typing speed, improves my focus and minimizes glancing at the monitor. Of course, it all depends on what works for you. Writers who spend long hours at the keyboard need to develop a game plan that includes sparing their eyes. But whatever you do, make sure you don't impact your performance the following day. The key to being successful is consistency. Strike upon that elusive balance and your body will thank you in return.

Word Count: 435

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A Novel Idea - One Sentence at a Time

Wednesday, February 10, 2010 10:00 PM EST

Ok, this is going to sound totally insane, but bear with me. I'm going to try out a new approach to writing a novel. Consider it an experiment, a curiosity. Rather than make excuses, I'm going to write a manuscript--one sentence at a time. Progress is measured by the number of sentences I can add each day. The minimum is one and everything afterward is a bonus.

Sure, it sounds hokey. I mean really--how will I ever finish a novel by writing that slow? For starters, this doesn't give me an excuse to procrastinate. Writing one sentence per day is obtainable for everyone, even the busiest of people. Better yet, there's a possibility that I might start taking bus trips into D.C. and this would be an effective use of my time.

In short, this is the answer to a potential problem I have (but a nice problem). And besides, why not? I have nothing to lose. Why not profit from the experience? Besides, I'm sure I'll have plenty to share as a result.

Word Count: 176

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What I Learned About Writing 2010: Taking Breaks

Saturday, February 6, 2010 3:00 PM EST

When it comes to taking breaks, I am the absolute worst. I continue grinding away until I can no longer look at the screen. I turn off the computer. I hide all my books. And I don't even think about writing for another day or two.

So how do you balance this? That is the age-old question. I can only say that I am getting better at this, but only marginally so. I believe the answer lies in setting clear and obtainable goals. Your mind needs a beginning and an end, just like a book. From what I've found, if my mind doesn't see an end in sight, my productivity wanes. I work longer hours and get less done. And somewhere along the line, there's a total brain freeze.

Another factor is progress. If you perceive that you are making headway and can see the end, you'll want to work longer and harder. Again, this ties into setting realistic goals. Can you really complete this task in a day or two? If not, break it up, and then give yourself one as well.

There are several different types of breaks and each has its own advantages. Short breaks typically last between 5-10 minutes and are certainly no longer than 30. We primarily think of these as bathroom and snack breaks, but they could also be used effectively during long writing sessions. Try writing for an hour, and then lay down for ten minutes. Completely relax your body and mind. Once those 10 minutes are up, write for another hour. This is basically a power nap, but it can work wonders for your energy level (just don't accidentally fall asleep and wake up the next morning). If you feel sleep is a bad idea, try taking a light jog.

When taking a medium-sized break of one to two hours, be careful not to stop writing altogether. It's easy to get caught up in the day and throw your manuscript by the wayside.

But you can avoid this.

Give yourself an ultimatum. Tell yourself that you can only be away for a certain period of time--let's say a maximum of three hours. Then it's back to work! Georges Simenon, one of the most prolific authors in history, imposed an internal deadline of 48 hours. If he was away from his work any longer, he discarded everything he had written. At times he'd throw away the better part of a novel. Certainly I'm not advocating this approach.

It is also helpful to alternate activities. Schedule a two-hour block of time to write, followed by an hour of research, 30 minutes of organization, and then write again for another two hours. At the end of your day, reward yourself with a movie. Or chocolate ;)

We take long breaks when we sleep and even longer ones when we fall into a coma. Such can be the effect on your writing too. It's hard to muster the same enthusiasm when the idea is no longer fresh. That's why it's better to keep producing for a designated period of time so that your work can harnesses all of the initial excitement. Leave long breaks for work, sleep and family, but nothing else. When you're in the middle of a project, honor your commitment. See it through and then reward yourself with a little vacation afterward.

I know what you're about to say--this is only a generalized view of how to manage one's time. But let's keep things simple, really simple. Everything discussed above can be boiled down to this--take a break when you need to, not when you can. Get in the mindset of starting and finishing tasks and reward yourself afterward.

Certainly things come up. Life happens. Do you have a strategy when it does? Conversely, you cannot be expected to write 16 hours every single day. You'll go insane. Find the proper balance and you will unleash your true potential.

Word Count: 659

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That Magic Minute

Tuesday, February 2, 2010 10:00 AM EST

Photo courtesy of Sam Mugraby (Photos8.com)

A minute of your time is not just any minute. It is the taste of what could be if you only had more. It is a launching point, a war cry or that final bit of polish. It is your magic minute, every minute of every day. And it is yours to do with as you please.

You can use it to succeed or to fail; the choice is up to you. But if you do not choose, you will most certainly fail.

So how will you use your magic minute? How are you using it right now?

Word Count: 98

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Total Word Count: 1681

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