I recently became a full-time stay-at-home mother of two thanks to a layoff. I don’t get a ton of free time, but when I do, I spend it trying to get some writing done.
At first, it seemed like every time I got to my computer to work, I spent the majority of my small break trying to decide which project to work on. Since I could never decide which was most important, I switched between all of them.
This is not productive. Multitasking like this is counterproductive and promotes stress and fatigue. According to Psychology Today:
“Multitasking creates an illusion of parallel activity, but actually it requires mental switching from one task to another. This drains the glucose fuel needed by the brain, making the brain less efficient and creating the feeling of being tired.”
No wonder why I couldn’t get anything done.
I knew if I wanted to keep up my writing career in between all of my mom duties, I needed a better system. So I started batching my work.
I first purchased this gorgeous planner called the Stay on Track Desktop Notepad to help plan out my weeks. At the top of each day, I wrote down the project I am to work on any time I have a few spare minutes. That way I don’t waste even two minutes once I get to my computer trying to decide which needs my attention most.
The planner also has a section called Big Picture, where you can remind yourself why you’re doing all of this hard work in the first place, as well as a section for projects, notes, and home life.
Here’s how I divvied up my first week of batched work:
Monday: Blogging
Tuesday: Book marketing
Wednesday: Blogging
Thursday: Email planning and scheduling
Friday: Open
I knew I’d need at least two days to blog if I wanted to get two or three posts done for the week, at least one day to work on promoting my book, and probably only one day to compose and schedule my emails. I left Friday open because I knew that come Thursday evening I’d know what I needed to finish for the week and could make a more informed decision then.
Batching my work has helped me immensely. I’ve only been using this system for a short time but focusing on one task, even if it’s scattered throughout the day and might be a few different tasks within one category (like blogging, for example), has made me so much more productive. It keeps my mind focused on one objective instead of darting between all of the things I want to get done on my various projects.
Additionally, when I sit down to get some work done, I don’t waste any time wondering what would best serve me then. I just know what I’ll be working on because I already decided over the weekend.
Every night before bed when I write in my habit journal, I also review what I’ll be working on the following day. This prepares me for the work before me and reminds me of what I’m doing it all for — because I wrote that out in the Big Picture section of my planner.
This system is not perfect. I still catch myself wanting to do something outside of my chosen task for the day. If that happens, I gently remind myself of what I’m supposed to be working on, and I bring myself back to that task. If I need to, I’ll send myself an email or write a note in my phone so I don’t forget what it is I wanted to work on. I’ve gotten better at focusing on one task per day and it’s made me so much more productive during those precious moments of downtime I get as a stay-at-home mom.
Do you batch your work? Do you have a different tool or system that helps you stay productive? I’d love to hear what works for you!
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