As we all know, it is incredibly easy to procrastinate and dawdle when it comes to focusing on any significant piece of work, especially writing. Goodness knows, I've nearly started this Passle about 3 times today, I admit...
But Mo Harake, writing for the Content Marketing Institute blog, offers some advice here, on how to facilitate the content creation process so that it feels less formidable.
In his post, he lists 10 tips for streamlining the content writer's time; considering all aspects of the task from planning to production to distribution, he has suggestions for ways to improve efficiency at every stage.
There are ideas here on how to maximise your creativity at the planning stage, so that you compile a number of content ideas well in advance, thus avoiding the brain-halting freeze that comes with having to dream up a new topic each time you blog.
There are hints on creating the right environment in which to write by scheduling specific time in your day or week as exclusive writing time. And there's advice on ensuring that this dedicated time is as productive as possible, by eliminating those elements of frequent distraction that we all experience, be they notifications on your phone, online and social media noise, or colleague/family interruption. Be strict with yourself and allow yourself the space and time to focus on the task in hand. Writing for Forbes.com, Jacquelyn Smith suggests a number of ways to avoid distractions in the workplace in order to achieve just that kind of focus.
And lastly, Harake's post provides thoughts on the usefulness of repetitionand recycling. Repetition, in the sense that you should find a formula that works for you in terms of distributing and promoting your content; and then repeat this tried and tested process for all your pieces.
And recycling - think not only of repurposing previously popular content (perhaps into different formats or from a different angle), but also consider running with topics/posts that are resonating with your audience and write about your views on or your counter-arguments against them. If certain themes or stories are attracting the attention of those you would like to reach, then reclaim some of the best of what's being said out there and add your two-penneth.
As a content creator, you’re aware of the arduous task of getting a single piece completed. Audience research, topic sourcing, planning, collaboration, editing and revisions, and sourcing authoritative data to back up ideas, etc., are time-intensive tasks. I used to waste a tremendous amount of time creating, producing, promoting, and distributing content. Then I set out to optimize the process, while also working to improve the response from my audiences.
http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2017/01/save-time-creati
