Stop Changing Lanes in Your Brain-EP023

When your phone pings, it can be tough for a freelancer to ignore. Who is it? What do they need? Is it a potential client?

Many of us are addicted to email, and we have a very difficult time maintaining focus on our writing. We may even believe that we are getting more accomplished by multi-tasking. But the truth of the matter is that constantly changing lanes in your brain makes it more difficult to get things done – and it’s mentally taxing.

Laura is back with a solo podcast as part of her Become a Better Writer series. She shares her best advice about breaking your addiction to email, batching like-tasks to increase productivity, and utilizing available tools to eliminate distractions. Listen and learn how to create high-quality content in less time as you maximize your income potential!

Key Takeaways

The concept of batching

Defined as doing like tasks together
Requires organization

The benefits of batching

Allows your brain to hit its stride and maintain focus
Adds up to ten hours of productivity per week
Increases income potential

How to deal with unforeseen circumstances

Adjust your schedule as needed
Give yourself wiggle room

Pareto’s Principle

Work ‘expands’ to fill amount of time to complete
We are more likely to adhere to self-imposed deadlines

Laura’s tips to avoid email distractions and minimize time spent in correspondence

When you’re in writing mode, turn off your email
Schedule time blocks to respond to email (e.g.: Laura spends one hour twice a day)
In responses, give clients the next unnecessary step (i.e.: “no need to reply”)
Utilize a scheduling tool to avoid unnecessary back-and-forth
Employ an auto-responder to let clients know you are unavailable