Blogging Rituals and Routines | 10 Secrets for Increasing Blogging Productivity

1. Benefits of Blogging Rituals: a lot of people think of something mystical. When they hear the words blogging ritual, for instance, they may think of something like burning and cents, candles, Gregorian chants, meditation and other mystical things. But when I write about blogging rituals, that's not what I mean. Although if burning candles or incense or doing other quote unquote mystical things works for you, they could certainly be a part of your blogging ritual. Let me let you in on a little secret ritual is a more sexy sounding word for routine. In fact, you're blogging. Rituals can be no frills and may even be considered boring by someone else and yet be very effective for you. The bottom line is that at least when it comes to blogging, the word ritual and the word routine can be used interchangeably. So what you call them doesn't really matter. The thing that will make a difference is actually making rituals and routines part of your blogging process in order to increase your blogging enjoyment and productivity. Here are a few of the benefits of putting into practice the various blogging rituals and routines. Blogging rituals will help you get into the groove and beat writer's block as an example. If you do a certain action such as brewing a particular tea blend or sharpening pencils are doing some stretching exercises immediately before you start blawg. Whenever you start doing those actions in preparation for blocking your mind and heart will immediately transition into blogging mode before you even turn on your computer. Number two. Blocking rituals provide a sense of being in control. Routines are the exact opposite of random myths and a lack of stability. Rather than allowing life and circumstances to dictate your behavior. Rituals put you in the driver's seat as you take control over the blogging process. Number three Blogging rituals Reduce Anxiety Have you ever noticed that Children thrive with routines? The reason is that routine naturally reduce anxiety because they let you know exactly what to expect. This reduced anxiety is a natural outcome of the two previous benefits of being in control and overcoming writer's block. If you have good blogging rituals in place, you won't be filled with anxiety when you sit down to write number four blogging rituals, get rid of mental clutter and free your mind. To write Mental clutter is a huge hindrance to getting things done because it can paralyze you. And it's certainly hinders your blogging productivity. When you have a blocking routine in place, you don't have to think much about what you're going to do, and you'll be less likely to encounter roadblocks to getting your block post written Number five Blogging Routines Expedite your entire writing process. As I wrote earlier. Blogging rituals make it easier to get into the writing groove. In addition to that, they tend to set off an entire process of routines that lasts beyond the actual ritual. For instance, not only will you start the writing process faster with less procrastination, sense of order present in the ritual will often spill over into the rest of the writing process. When you consistently use the same routines, your entire running process becomes more automatic. This order and automation reduces the amount of time you might waste with a more haphazard approach to your blocking, riding prom right about any writing ritual to have ever used. If you have never used any, jot down your thoughts about the process and how you feel about it, whether those thoughts for positive or negative 2. Clean Up Your Office: clean up your office. Are you a blogger with a messy desk? Many bloggers air creative times and not all but many creative types are a bit messy, some, of course, or messier than others. Other bloggers air outwardly neat and tidy but have messes stuffed in closets and drawers. Regardless of whether you are a closet messy or a certified messy extraordinaire, or even if you're somewhat of a neat freak, a lack of organization can keep you from being a productive blogger. Not only can it result in you wasting time looking for things that you need, it can even zap you of creativity so that when you do sit down to write, the writing doesn't flow as well as it could hear some things bloggers could do to clean up their work environment number one. Remove all unnecessary items from the top of your desk Onley. You can determine what really needs to go on your desk. For instance. You may want family pictures on your desk and maybe a couple of knickknacks, but the less clutter you have on your desk, the better. I currently have. Just my computer monitor, a container with pans and a small note pad on my desk. Obviously, while I'm working, I may have some papers that I printed off and a book or two that I'm using for research. But for the most part I keep my desk free of clutter and let me make a confession here. I am a naturally messy person, so I have to work at this. The key is to tidy up your desk, either at the start or end of each day, so that you always start each day with a neat work environment. Number two Organized your drawers and files. If you've just toss things like receipts, manuals ran and papers and other items in your desk drawers, you'll waste a lot of time trying to find things when you need them. And while having the top of your desk tidied up is a good start, you need to take it a step further and clean up the hidden parts of your office that no one but you sees clutter. Even hidden clutter can waste your time and make it harder to focus on the task at hand. Blogging number three. Clean up your computer files. This may seem less important, especially since It's only a quote unquote virtual mess, but you can waste a lot of time trying to find documents and other items on your computer when everything is a mess. The most important thing when it comes to computer filing is to have some type of a system that you use consistently. I first learned the importance of this at one of my workplace is a former employee had set up a computer filing system that everyone in my department used. The value of this was that even if something had been filed by another person in my department, or even by someone who worked there several years before me, I could usually find a needed document in a matter of a few minutes. If you have a ton of files that are a complete mess, create an archive folder and drag all files that are totally unorganized into that folder. They'll still be there if you need them, and getting them out of the way will help you start fresh. Then set up a computer filing system for your business and everything related to your blawg , such as assistant for organizing all of the blonde post you Britain, the images. You've downloaded audio and video files and so on. Number four. Remove anything from your office that doesn't need to be there for some reason. Random things that have nothing to do with work end up in offices. This is especially true if you work from home, since home life and blogging life often intersect. If an item that has nothing to do with your business has somehow ended up in your office, get rid of it. Obviously, if you have a really messy work environment, it may take a good amount of time to get it cleaned up. If you don't have big chunks of time to devote to the cleanup, block out 30 minutes per day toe Work on cleaning up your office. Focus on one small thing at a time, such as cleaning off your desktop or one specific drawer or shelf. And whatever you do, don't let cleaning your office being excuse to procrastinate. When it comes to doing your actual blogging, make tidying up your office a part of your routine, as I previously said, especially if you have Messi tendencies like I do. Even once you clean up your desk, it will get messy again. Because of this, it's good to make clean your desk part of your daily or, at the very least, weekly routine writing prompt. Have you found that having a queen work environment helps you to be a more productive blogger? Or do you think that messes enhance your creativity right about the queen slash messy debate and the environment that best enhances your blocking? 3. Write the Same "Time" Every Day: right the same time every day. Earlier, I wrote about writing rituals and routines and how they can help you blogged more consistently and be more productive in the time you spend blogging. One of the routines that can help the most with your blogging, consistency and productivity is writing the same time every day. This helps tremendously because being consistent in this way get you into a mode that makes writing to be a more automatic and natural process. And as I'm sure you have experienced in other aspects of life, you won't have to work. It's hard on anything that has become automatic night. Alice versus Larks. For me personally, first thing in the morning is a must. I tried blogging other times during the day, but once my day gets started, other things dictate my priorities. And before I know it, I'm sucked into one task after another until it's time to go to bed, and I experienced yet another day without blogging. One block list day leads to another until I've gone, not just days, but weeks without blogging. The only way that I found to block consistently is to do it first before the demands of the day set in. This works for me because since I blogged so early in the day, no one expects anything of me at that time. As far as everyone else is concerned, I may still be sleeping, so even seemingly pressing emails can be ignored until later. And unless there is a true emergency, no one calls me until later in the day. Obviously, I'm a fan of getting up early, and it's pretty easy for me to do so because I'm naturally a morning person. Now, before you roll your eyes and your defenses go sky high, let me assure you that I don't agree with the people who claim that everyone should writes early. The bottom line is that some people are more productive late at night or perhaps early afternoon. In fact, my husband really comes alive at midnight and will often work on something all night long. Well, it's true that he can't adapt and work quote unquote normal business hours. He's always been more productive at night. The bottom line is that it's important for you to find a time that works best for you and then be consistent with it, so that it becomes even more natural to you. For those who like more structure. Now, when I see to write the same time every day, I don't necessarily mean treating your blogging time as if you were punching a time clock. You don't have to write at the exact same time every day, though that type of rigidity definitely helps some people. A common saying that I've heard is what gets scheduled gets done, and many people advise putting the things that you're going to do on your calendar for a specific time and treating those things like any other appointment, depending on the settings on your smartphone, if desired, you can even set it up so that you're reminded that it's time to blawg. So if you like a lot of structure, by all means put your blogging time on your calendar, set up notifications on your phone that indicate that it's time to write and sit down at exactly the specified time. For those who prefer routines over schedules, I've actually tried the superstructure approach myself. But for whatever reason, that level of virginity has never worked for me. Instead of being rigid, down to the minute the thing that works for me is to write at approximately the same time every day, and rather than a precise time, right, based on other set activities, such as soon as I wake up, my goal may be to write starting at 5 a.m. every day, but some days and we sleep later and not start until six. The key for me is to make writing one of the first things that I do each morning. The bottom line with this less structured approach is to allow another activity to indicate that it's time to write. For instance, for me, it's simply after waking up in the morning for a night owl. It maybe after putting the kids to bed for someone else it may be after eating lunch or dropping the kids off at school, find your optimal time to block and make that part of your daily routine writing prompt. In a perfect world where you have complete control over your time, when is the best time for you to write? Are you more of a rigid punch, the time clock type of person? Or are you more inclined to follow a routine that has approximate but not set times 4. Daily, Weekly, Monthly Word Count Goals: have a daily, weekly and monthly word count goal. There are many ways to stay motivated as a blogger. One of the most common ways is to have a daily word count goal. The concept is pretty simple, really select a challenging but doable number of words that you will write each day and then do it every day. The biggest problem with this approach is deciding how many words per day to commit to. One way to figure this out is to start off with a daily time goal instead of a daily word count goal, for instance, determined to write at least 30 minutes per day If you start off with writing a certain amount of time a day, track the number of words you right during that time. Do that for at least a month, and then that will give you a good idea of a realistic amount of words you can write daily , since every day is different, and there are other factors that figure into your ability to write a specific amount of boards each day. I find it helpful to have a daily, weekly and monthly word count goal. My day would go off 500 words is pretty low. The reason I made this decision is that 500 words has a low enough number of words that except under the most extreme circumstances, I can do it consistently your daily word count, goal, maybe even lower, such as 250 words. Part of the point of having a word count goal is to develop discipline and a habit. So if the goal was to high, you're almost setting yourself up for failure. Because of that, make sure to set a goal that you know you can reach consistently with a moderate level of effort. On the other hand, a goal that is too low isn't very motivating. After grappling with this, I found that a great way to have a low enough daily word count goal to make it doable and yet be appropriately challenged was Toe also have a monthly word count goal that is much higher. I decided to make my monthly were count goal 20,000 words, which averages out to approximately 670 words per day. If I don't take weekends off because my monthly goal is as high as it is, I almost always push myself to write more than 500 words per day. This balanced approach is what works for me, and you might want to give it a try yourself to see if it will also help you make progress when it comes to blogging. Consistently writing prompt. Have you had a daily word count? Goal? If so, what was your experience like with it? What was the most extreme writing goal you've ever had? If up to this point you haven't set any writing gold, what do you think you'll start with a time goal, a word count goal or a combination of the two. 5. Set a Daily Time Goal: have a daily time goal. In the previous video, I talked about having a daily workout goal that definitely works and in fact, is something that many bloggers dio when it comes right down to it. I hear about that one method of increasing writing output more than any other method. There is another option, however, that you might want to try a daily time goal. This was my first and for a long time, my favorite way to motivate myself to block consistently. A time goal is exactly what it sounds like. Blogging for a set amount of time each day, for example, setting a goal of blogging for 30 minutes a day or an hour. I've even done it for 15 minutes with success. In fact, my first daily time goal was to spend 15 minutes per day writing. I set that goal at a time when I felt that I didn't have much time to write, but knew that I needed to make riding habit if I ever wanted to get anywhere with my writing. The reason that this method works even with a very short amount of time, such as 15 minutes is that anything when done consistently will yield results even if the time is limited. There are some advantages of having a daily blonde time goal instead of a daily word count goal. For one thing, time is something that you can control more than the number of words. You right? As an example, let's say that you're still working a day job, but you want to block consistently, and the only or best time for you to do so is your lunch break at work, since that is a limited window of time and since sometimes words don't flow as quickly as you like, you could get into trouble if you had to push yourself to keep writing until you hit a certain number of words. Obviously, the same problem could pop up even if you don't have a day job but have other responsibilities, such as needing to get kids to school. It's definitely easier to schedule out a certain amount of time to blawg than a certain number of words. Even if you're not on a super rigid schedule, such a someone with a day job or apparent needing to get kids to school on time, you may like the simplicity of just setting a timer and writing for a certain length of time each day. I especially recommend this. If writing is a painful thing for you, and it's something you really dread, your attitude can be. I can do anything for 15 minutes, and once 15 minutes becomes easier for you, you can gradually increase the time. All of those are positive reasons for having a time goal rather than a word count goal. But there is at least one negative thing about having a time goal rather than a word count goal. And it's that you may not get much work done with a set amount of time to block each day. You could set your timer and then end up daydreaming a big chunk of that time and still say that you wrote during that time. In contrast, a word count Gold demands that you produce a certain amount of volume each day, which can be a huge help when it comes to putting out a good volume of content. What I would recommend is trying the time goal if you are a very scheduled person and live by the things blocked out on your calendar in a very rigid way or if your time to block has to be fit in during specific time blocks such as lunch breaks. If you find yourself slacking and not getting much done in that time, then I'd recommend changing to a different methods, such as writing a set number of words per day writing prompt, having considered both a word count goal and a time goal. Which one resonates with you the most? Taking that a bit further. If you plan to set a word count goal. How many words do you plan to write in a day, week or month? If a time goal, How much time will you spend writing each day? 6. Blogging Retreats: go on a monthly quarterly or annual blogging retreat. If you're the type of person that likes to focus on things and longer periods of time, rather than trying to do something daily or weekly having monthly quarterly or annual blocking retreats, maybe the way to go for you. I personally think it would be really rough to write an entire year's worth of blood post during a single retreat, even a long one. But an annual writing retreat can still be helpful because even if you don't get an entire year's worth of block post written during that time, you can still make great progress and get ahead of the game. That could take the pressure off of you in times that you felt to meet your daily or weekly blooding goals. If you go on the blogging retreat more frequently, such as monthly or quarterly, you may be able to make more progress on the actual writing during those more frequent retreats. Here are a few ideas for writing retreats Number one start off by setting a primary goal for the retreat. Ideally, you should set this goal before going on the retreat so you don't have to spend time during the retreat, figuring out what you'd like to accomplish to be sure that your goal is challenging so that you'll be motivated to push yourself and get a lot done during your retreat. But keep it realistic so that the odds of it being a successful retreat or good. The bottom line is that you want to come away from your retreat with a sense of accomplishment. Number two decide on the location for your writing retreat. If you don't have the money to spend on heading to a hotel or a cabin in the woods, you can do a writing retreat at home, especially if you could be home alone. Another alternative is to go to the library or even a friend's home. If you off to use a friend's home, it's best that she is away during the retreat unless the friend is going to participate in the retreat with you. Obviously, it would have to be a very good friend to allow you to use her home when she's not there. But I've heard of this type of arrangement working well, and it's definitely worth considering if you don't have the funds to spend at a hotel or cabin number three. Make sure you have everything you need and want for the retreat. Even if you're having your blogging retreated home, do some things to make it special. For instance, I love ruined my favorite tea to drink while I blawg. Other practical things include your laptop pen and paper books. You may need to research an Internet connection and so on. This will largely be up to you because it all depends on what will make you more comfortable and productive. For example, while I mentioned an Internet connection something you need, maybe a place that does not have an Internet connection to decide what you really need for your blocking retreat, make a list of what you'd like to accomplish during the retreat and everything you'll need to do what's needed. Then make a list of things that will make you more comfortable and make the retreat more enjoyable for you. For instance, if your retreat is in the mountains and you plan to do some walking, you'll want to make sure to pack hiking or comfortable walking shoes. If starting your day with coffee or tea is important, be sure to add those items to the list. Number four. Reward yourself for a job well done. If you're blocking retreat last for more than a day. You may want to add in some pampering or fun during the retreat to refresh and reward yourself. For instance, if you have a weekend retreat on the afternoon of the second day, you may want to go for a massage, go hiking or eat at a restaurant. That would be a splurge for you. Just do whatever it is that feed your soul and makes you feel rewarded. You can have a bigger reward for accomplishing your bigger goals. If you retreat a shorter term, such as only a day, you probably won't want to use any of it on non writing related items. But do plan to reward yourself at a later date if you are successful when it comes to meeting your goals for the retreat. Writing prompt. How do you feel about the idea of going on a writing retreat? Are you excited by the idea, or do you feel like you'd be bored to tears with concentrated times to write? Do you feel that you can realistically take the time for a retreat? Or does the idea seem like a pipe dream 7. Go on an Artist Date: go on a weekly artist state I first heard about artist states in The Artist Way by Julia Cameron. The basic idea of an artist eight is to go on a weekly excursion that will help to nurture the artist in you. There are a few rules of artist states, but one rule is that you must do them alone. In other words, going on an artist date with a friend wouldn't be, according to Cameron on Artist State. Now, to be clear, artist dates don't have to be what many would consider to be artistic. For example, they don't have to involve things like going to an art museum or a shop where you make pottery that they certainly could. The main idea is to do something that is fun and helps you refuel. I first learned about artist states when my kids were young, and for me they often included going out for coffee alone with my journal as a state home mom. Getting out by myself once a week was a real tree and definitely helped me re fuel. But even if you aren't in a position of being around little kids all day, every day, going out on a weekly artist date can be immensely helpful in filling your tank so that the rest of the week you find it easier to write. Here are some artist date ideas. Feel free to use any or none of them and, of course, feel free to come up with ideas of your own as well. Number one a coffee or tea date, with or without your journal. For me, The journal was a big part of my artist state number to visit a nursery kind with plants that Children number three, visit a bookstore and browse whatever looks interesting rather than books that you quote unquote need to read. Sometimes used bookstores or more fun, since you never know what treasures you may find. But I also like stores with new books and good coffee, too. Number four. Go on a nature walk. This doesn't have to be way out in the woods, so it can be. If you live in the city. Find a nice part to take a walk in. Bring along a sketchbook journal camera or all three. Number five. Visit an art supply store. You don't necessarily need to buy anything, so you certainly can number six Goto a hobby shop. Hobby shops were similar to art supply stores, but often have other things that may inspire you, such as rubber stamps, model kids and who knows what else. Number seven. Do something to pamper yourself, such as a massage, facial or pedicure. Number eight. Go on a day trip to a nearby town and go exploring. Don't worry about having the whole day planned out, but instead see what you can discover while there number nine. Take in a movie, any type of movie. It's fine, but when it comes to my artist dates, I like ones that pull on my emotions. Number 10. Visit a gift shops such as a Hallmark store and browse through their collection of fun things that you don't really need. If you want to avoid spending money on something that will just clutter your home, leave your wallet in the car. Number. 11. Bring a blanket to the park and do some cloud watching number 12. Write a letter to someone who means a lot to you unless you don't know how to contact them . Mail the letter to them and enjoy the fact that you'll be making their day when they receive it. Number 13 browsing online shop such as etc. Just for fun. Number 14. Have a picnic in the park. This doesn't have to be anything fancy, but if you have the time and energy to pat food, you really enjoy so much the better number. 15. Go fishing. Try to go to a more isolated place. Impossible. And while your focus will be on fishing, bring on the journal or other way to record your thoughts. Just in case you get some ideas to write about while you're waiting for the fish to bite. Number 16. Get out the art supplies and make something just for fun. If you have kids, use their silly things, such as pipe cleaners and wiggly eyes to make something that you'd probably be embarrassed to show anyone. Number 70. Go to a museum gift shop. You can usually get into the gift shop free, and they often have really fun and creative items For sale. Number 18. Enjoy a meal at a cute cafe. Do some people watching while you're there. I like to make up stories in my mind about the people around me to get my creative juices flowing. Number 19. Visit a flower shop and take time to smell the roses and other flowers. Number 20. Go to an ethnic grocery store and buy something you've never tried before. Go home and look for a recipe online using the ingredient and then cook an exotic meal. Number 21. Visit a planetary in. Enjoy the fact that you could take a trip to quote unquote space without leaving Earth. Let the wonder of space inspire you. Number 20 to go to a concert or life play. Relax and enjoy the performance, but make a point of also taking it all in in a much deeper way than you normally would. For instance, at a concert, pay close attention to the movement of the musicians and the looks on their faces. Imagine what they may be feeling and thinking at the moment. Number 23. Go to a bus or train station or other busy place, and people watch. Make up stories in your mind about the people there and write about one of them. Number 24. Take a pass by candlelight, have a good book to read and put on some relaxing music number 25. Go outside and yell something fun like life. I love you. This is a great one for a day when you don't have time for quote a real artist state. This list should get you started. But whether the items on this list appeal to you or not make your own list is well and remember that it's fine to do the same thing each week. If that's what works for you as a stay home, Mom with little ones, My weekly coffee and journal dates were a great way to refuel and something I really looked forward to writing. Prompt Right about all the possible artist states that you'd like to go on right about a dream one, even if it seems absolutely absurd. And then write about ones that you are 100% certain you can dio 8. Put on Your Writing Clothes: put on your writing cloves. Some people swear by the importance of people who work from home getting dressed for work, meaning donning business attire as if they were heading to a corporate job. For whatever reason, that's never worked for me and in fact, more comfortable. I am the better. But since there truly are different strokes for different folks, I would experiment with different blogging attire to see whether United impacts your writing productivity. You can certainly give getting quote unquote dressed for work. Try to signal that it's time to sit down and write or like me. You may find that putting on something comfortable such a short your sweats is what does the trick. I've heard it said that John Cheever, a Pulitzer Prize winning author, wrote in his underwear most the time side note here. If I tried that with my life, that's when the neighbors were dropped by. You could have just one specific article of clothing, such as a baseball cap or a pair of slippers that you put on to signal that it's time to write. The bottom line is that wearing the quote unquote right thing when you write can make a difference in your writing productivity. So experiment a bit to find what works best for you. Writing prompt. Do you feel that what you wear impact your ability to write what writing quote unquote uniform works best for you? What do you think of the guy who writes in his underwear? Is that something you dio or are you more of a business suit kind of writer? 9. Go on a Morning Walk: go on a morning walk. A morning walk is a great way to kill multiple birds with one stone first. If you are a full time writer or sit at a desk most of the day for any other reason, making a morning walk part of your daily ritual is a great way to get in some exercise before the business of the day starts. But walking is also a great way to get your creative juices flowing before you sit down to write, even if you aren't able to get around to writing until later in the day. While I mentioned exercise as a benefit of your morning walk, I've personally found it to be more beneficial when it comes to increase in my creativity to take more leisurely stroll on a daily basis, a huge benefit of making a morning walk part of your blogging routine is that sometimes the best way to break through writer's block is to get away from the computer. Great news is that chances are as you walk you'll come up with multiple ideas for blood posts, so be sure to bring something with you. To record those ideas, you could carry a small note pad and pen in your pocket. But I like to carry on my smartphone with me so that I can record any inspiration multiple ways. For instance, I may record a voice memo of ideas that come to me or take some pictures of things that it's fired me that all, perhaps once, right about later. I personally bought a galaxy note phones so that I can literally write, Notes said. Sometimes the act of writing long hand works wonders when it comes to getting the creative juices flowing. The bottom line is that the tool that you used to record your thoughts doesn't really matter. But trust me. If you don't have some way to record your thoughts that come to you as you're walking, you'll likely forget the brilliant flashes of inspiration. By the time you get home a couple of items to note here, your morning walk can occur at any time of the day. I personally like morning because then it sets the tone of the rest the day. But if it works better for your schedule, you can walk later in the day as well. You can also incorporate a walk with um or intentional writing time by carrying a laptop with you, walking to a nearby park and doing some writing while they're writing prompt right about your favorite place to walk and how you could incorporate this into your blogging routine. 10. Change Your Scenery: change your scenery. Writing rituals and routines can be very powerful. But if you've fallen into a rut with your blogging and you just can't seem to get into the group with it, try changing your scenery. For example, I usually write block post at my desk in my office, and while that works for me, sometimes I need to step away from my desk and do something different. Here are some places you may want to go to right blood post. If you need a break from your normal writing location, number one. The library. The library isn't just a great place to get books and other type of media for free. It can also be a great place to study or write a long post. Most libraries have free WiFi, so if you need to connect to the Internet while there, that shouldn't be a problem that works well for me because I tend to compose my block post in Google docks and depending on the frame of mind I have while at the library, may also upload my blonde post my website so that I don't have to go back in and do it later. Another thing I love about the library is that there are obviously plenty of resource is available if I need to look something up or get some inspiration. I do have to be careful, though not to get sucked into something like reading a magazine number to the nearest Starbucks or your favorite coffee shop. Let me say that I personally find Starbucks, Panera and other similar places to be a bit distracting. I don't actually do well with noise and activity around me. So in less time, stuck waiting around for something such as an appointment I don't typically choose. Starbucks is my writing place. I mentioned it here simply because some people find it to be a great place to write, and the activity level actually helps him. Blawg, try it out to see if it works for you. Number three, a local church. This option actually works best if you attended church regularly and the people there know you. I once attended a church that was just a block away from my local library, and every now and then, when I went to the library to right, there was some type of activity, such as ladies Knitting Circle that made the noise level higher than what works best for me . In those cases, I went over to the church to write, since the people there knew me and didn't mind me finding a quiet corner to write. Ah, hotel lobby. Hotel lobbies air often beautiful places, and most have free WiFi. So if being surrounded by beauty inspires you, the blawg give writing in a hotel lobbyist shot. I've never once been asked what I'm doing or whether or not I'm staying in the hotel. There's generally so much activity going on in a hotel lobby, and even if the hotel staff thinks you're not staying there, they typically won't bother you as long as what you're doing isn't bothering others. Number five, a local park. I love going to a nearby park to write, because being in beautiful places inspires me, and it could be nice to get some fresh air. The downside to blogging in a park is that you may not have any WiFi available. That could be a real plus, though, if you tend to get distracted by the Internet when trying to write a note. If the sun glare makes it hard to see what's on your computer screen. Head for the nearest shady spot to have more flexibility in terms of the location within the park where you camp out, bring along a blanket or lawn chair so that you won't be tied down to places in the park that have benches or picnic tables. Writing prompt. What are some places that you'd like to try writing? If you've written in various locations, write about your experiences with those locations and whether or not they help or hinder the writing process. 11. Your Project: as your project for this class, you'll create your very own personal blogging routine. I've included to sample routines in the project area of this course, so be sure to check those out, but I don't really expect either of them to be 100% perfect for you. So I'd like to encourage you to create your very own blogging routine here. Some ways to go about it. I can't wait to see what you came up with right up to possible routines, one that is quote unquote in your dreams, meaning if time and money were no object, it's what you would dio. I want you to have that in mind because it's something worth working toward and envisioning . It is a great way to start down that path, even if you're not quite there yet. Next created routine that you could reasonably do, starting now by reasonable. I don't mean that there won't be any challenges to it, but rather that with some tweaks to reschedule on other commitments and with a bit of commitment, you could do it. Pull out your calendar and put the items on your calendar. Even if you're like me and have a bit looser style than doing things at a very specific time. Putting them on your calendar conserve as a reminder to you of your plans and commitments, and can also help you reserve blocks of time for the things that are important to you. One thing that I have found very helpful about putting things on the calendar is that if something else comes up for my schedule blogging time that I really must do, I move my blocking time to another place on my calendar rather than just blowing it off. Be prepared to make adjustments, routines, air like budgets in that it's hard to get them 100% perfect the first time around. You may need to do some tweaking as you start to follow your routine. Don't consider this to be a failure, but rather part of the process. Most of all have fun writing. It's work, but it doesn't have to be drudgery. And especially if you incorporate artist dates and some retreats into the mix, you'll really have something to look forward to. By the way, if you enjoyed this class, I'd really appreciate it if you'd give me a thumbs up that helps other people to discover the class. And trust me, it means the world to me. Thanks so much and happy blogging.