Help! I Have No Time Management Skills!

“Sometimes, you are your own worst enemy.” Have you ever heard that expression? Who can relate? *waves hand, sheepishly*

I can also identify with the apostle Paul when he says, “I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate.” (Romans 7:15) From eating right to getting enough sleep and from blogging to social media, I take two steps forward and about three backward every few months.

Although I managed to crank out two novels in 18 months, I can’t seem to find time to get a blog post up once a month. *Pulls hair and asks, ‘Why do I work sooooo much better under pressure?’*

Deadlines are my friend, but I somehow find it hard to set them for myself (because I’m a really nice boss who doesn’t enforce deadlines, ya know?). When I do decide to make a schedule, it’s easy to blow it off when something more enticing is offered.

Poldark reruns? Yes, let’s watch! Hmmm, haven’t made cookies in awhile, maybe I’ll make a double batch! Finally…I’m going to sit down and blog and then—look!—a chicken!

Sadly, these are reeeeally lame examples because I DON’T HAVE ANY KIDS AT THE HOUSE! I’m *practically* an empty nester these days which means my excuses have become extremely flimsy. *hides face behind Pumpkin Spice Latte* (YES! They’re back!)

But seriously, I’ve realized that I’ve got no more mom-type reasons these days (or very few), so why am I SO RIDICULOUSLY disorganized? The above examples aren’t even legit. I made them up. This means I don’t have any decent or flimsy reasons for fumbling around like I do. *sobs into coffee*

I’ve always known that I’d make a terrible administrator. But sometimes I think that my time management skills would make a slug look ambitious Click & Tweet! . And although I do love me some Poldark, I don’t actually watch television except on a weekend evening with my man. Most days, I don’t know what’s happening in the news because I’m too busy.

TOO BUSY DOING WHAT???

That’s a great question. One I’ve been asking myself for awhile. I’m not lounging around on social media (I’m pretty good about getting on and off because I do have responsibilities in that area with my novels). I’m not at the salon or out shopping (beyond groceries or a once a month girl date with my mom). I’m not even cooking very often now that it’s mostly my husband and me at home.

So how does my time for projects and writing—beyond my latest work in progress—dissolve?

If you’ve made it to this point, you’re probably expecting me to unveil some sort of deep revelation. Raise my index finger and shout, “By George, I think I’ve got it!”

I’ll admit…I was kinda hoping that spewing this confession out to cyberspace might highlight some glaring issue that I’ve overlooked. Hasn’t happened. But after chewing on my shortcomings of late, here are some poor character traits that I’ve had to admit to myself:

1. I am way too right brained. This needs to be viewed as a strength that carries with it a set of corresponding weaknesses and NOT an excuse for poor time management. Click & Tweet!

2. I’m a slow worker. Although I type quickly, projects outside of writing take me FORever. For instance, if I clean out a drawer I cannot (emphasis on: CANNOT) prevent myself from examining everything in it and assessing its utilitarian use and whether or not I should keep it because if I get rid of it, I’m sure to discover I need it–but when was the last time I actually used the thing…UGH! You get the idea. Sometimes I actually hire an organized friend to do these sort of things for me because it’s overwhelming.

3. I’m easily distracted. Case in point: Started cleaning out the refrigerator today. After setting a dozen containers and ziplock bags on the counter to discard, I shifted the eggs over and realized I hadn’t eaten breakfast (yes, sometimes I forget to eat. But I never forget my coffee! #priorities). So, I proceeded to make eggs and toast and then sat down to eat. When finished, I brought my plate to the kitchen and saw the containers sitting out and said, “Oh yeah! I was cleaning out the fridge!” Completely forgot. Seriously.

4. No. Time. Management. Skills. Obviously ^^^^

5. Blogging, in particular, is a challenge. I’d rather be writing a novel and struggle with topics to blog about.

So, what’s a scatterbrain to do? Well, I’m open to suggestions. My current attempt at correcting these problems is to treat ALL aspects of writing like a job and schedule them into my day (from writing a novel to blogging to social media stuff). I recently downloaded an app called Productive that reminds you of things you need to do based on morning, afternoon, and evening. I like the idea of time chunks, rather than a hard and fast “8-9 am spit out a blog post” because it allows flexibility for things that come up. It’s too soon to tell if this is going to help since I only downloaded it Monday.

But beyond that…I’m a bit at a loss. Any other creative types find helpful solutions for this problem? No offense to you naturally organized freaks of nature (*wink, wink*), but I would actually like to hear from those that struggle like I do and have learned to overcome. If you thrive on lists and love calculus, I doubt I can jump into your mode of doing life with any success.

Since the best way to deal with a problem is to first admit you have one, I’m hoping this personal post will lighten the load of self-frustration, at least a little. God made each of us unique. I believe our strengths come with an automatic set of shortcomings which cause us to lean on His wisdom and one another to muddle through. Click & Tweet!

Thanks for letting me lean on you (aka, thanks for letting me whine!) Please share any life changing secrets in the comments.