Set a schedule, you dolt!

The revisions for Sadie's War have fallen a little behind as of late.  The reason why isn't exactly a good one.  When it boils down to it, procrastination and a lot of distractions throughout the day are to blame.  That, in turn, makes it my fault.  I've just been lazy and unable to focus.

While I'm a bit of a procrastinator, I am also driven.  I know that doesn't make much sense.  Basically, I'm at constant war with myself.  Part of me wants to work while part of me wants to play or take a nap.  Unfortunately those two rivals have an equal amount of power so making the right choice can be difficult. 


No, I'm not complaining...just explaining what happens.  Don't worry, I figured out how to tame the beast.

I took a step back one other day and looked at what still needs to be done before Sadie's War is ready for print.  I discovered that the revisions had fallen more behind than I thought, and would only get worse if I don't kick it up a notch.  I was 3 chapters behind where I aught to be.  Thankfully, it's a small enough number to make it easy to catch up before January.

Last night I sat and thought about how it's always easier to get work done when I had a job.  I was always an efficient worker who finished my tasks on time (or early).  It's easy to see that the difference between that and working for myself is that I had an employer who told me what to do and when.  If I messed up I could get fired and that's never a good thing.  So, I worked hard.

Now, I'm my own boss.  There's no one out there who is going to kick my butt into gear or threaten to fire me if I don't do a good job.  There's just me, myself, and I.  So, I need to do what any good self-employed person would do and treat this that way I did working for another.

I've set a schedule and penciled in specific times for work.  I set an alarm on my phone that will let me know when to start, and when to stop.  I also made sure that on this schedule I had time for the things I need to do that are non-work related.  These include chores, doing things with the kids, doctor appointments, and playing.  Including the other things, and making the schedule for my whole day to fit it all in, helps me to stay on track a little easier.

I did forget to do one thing, and that is to make a list of what I need to get done for each work day.  That's the next thing I'm going to do.  Winging the rest at this point seems hopeless as I don't get as much done as I could.  To much time is spent planning in the moment instead of ahead of time.

Just keep writing. :)