Chris WiegmanI’ve been blogging for a long time. This site goes back to 2008 but I’ve had earlier sites that were simply lost to time as I switched blogging software over the years, eventually landing on WordPress.
Throughout that time the one consistency in my blogging has been the inconsistency. No matter how much I enjoy writing I just can’t seem to find a way for me to keep up with it more than a few posts at a time.
Why keep a schedule?
Over the years I’ve tried numerous schedules and other techniques to write more consistently but none of them worked. The idea of daily blogging sounds great, but I could never keep up with it. On the flip side weekly blogging never seemed to work for me as I would get bored with it before I could get into a groove.
I’ve probably tried a dozen different schedules over the years, all ending in failure and, as a result I’ve tended to write only when something comes to mind. This might be easy but, for me, it means I write only sporadically and miss so many ideas. Once I drop out of “the zone” I just can’t find the motivation.
The simple fact is that, at least for me, keeping a schedule helps me form a habit and keeps me accountable. It gives me a chance and a method to keep ideas flowing at a sustainable pace, something I’ve never been able to find before.
Finding the write schedule
Some people blog daily, some blog once a year and for them it works. As I’ve said already, that doesn’t work for me. When I try to write too often I burn out on it and when I don’t write enough I cannot find my groove to keep it going.
If you’re trying to build a writing habit yourself I suggest looking where your balance is. Even if you love writing it may not be sustainable to do it every day as it is not easy to come up with ideas or simply to balance writing with the rest of life.
That said, finding a schedule that is regular enough to challenge you is also important. In my case three days a week keeps me accountable without burning out. When I have an idea I know I can get to it rather quickly but that I also have some time to flush out any given post.
Each post I write takes me, on average, one to two hours. This involves planning it out, writing it, editing it, etc. Three days a week means that my current schedule keeps me writing 3-6 hours a week. For me this is right about one full afternoon and evening after work. It’s perfect in that means I can complete a full weeks’ posts and still keep the ideas coming.