How To Easily Boost Your Productivity
— And Your Income!

by copywriter and marketing coach Chris Marlow

How disciplined are you?

If you’re like most freelancers, you love the “time freedom” of your
lifestyle. No more punching a time clock or being chained to a desk.
No more “hanging up quickly” when the boss walks by.

As a freelancer those days are gone forever...but one quickly learns
that in order to make a great living as a copywriter, you’re now the
“boss” to whom you must be accountable!

It’s ironic, to be sure. And as you strive for higher and higher income
and greater and greater success, you’ll realize that neither will come
without strict time discipline on your part.

Setting Your “Policy”

Now that you work from home (as most freelance writers do), people
will know that you’re available for rides to the airport and other favors.
Since part of the pleasure of freelancing is its time flexibility, you
might want to be able to say “yes” from time to time.

However there’s a big danger lurking called “part time work,” and if
you spend too much time not working, you wind up with “part time
pay.” If you have a family or small children, enormous amounts of
time can also be siphoned away through small but endless
interruptions.

The best way to deal with “time thieves” is to institute a “policy,” as
most businesses do. When you say “I’m sorry, my policy is to devote
two hours per week to doing favors and this week I’ve already used
them up,” you’ll probably find little resistance. That’s because policies
are like printed signs: people rarely argue with them.

A Simple But Powerful Daily Schedule Document

As a freelancer, you’ll need to create your own work system and your
own documents. Over the years I’ve refined my own system and
documents to near perfection (I’m always changing and improving as
ideas come to me).

One of my most powerful documents is my “Daily Timesheet and
Schedule.” It helps me prioritize my most important projects, lays out
what I need to do in half hour increments, shames me into doing my
daily exercise routine, and forces me to be accountable throughout the
day. If someone needs a favor of me, it must go on the Daily Schedule
where it “bumps” a work item.

Here is the Formula for
Creating Your Own “Task Master”

Since it’s so easy for us freelancers to procrastinate when we’re faced
with a task we’d rather put off, I put right at the top of my Daily
Schedule the question, “How will I earn money today?” And then I
must write it down in the top position for that day’s work.

This forces me to put aside the fun but less important jobs, to focus on
the most lucrative.

My Daily Schedule also has two columns: the left hand column is for
“Task”; the right hand column is for “Activity.” The Task column shows
what I should be doing at any appointed time. The Activity column
shows what I AM doing.

Having to write down what I’m actually doing under “Activity” exposes
those moments when I’m doing something I shouldn’t be doing...those
time-wasters that detract from my income. You can imagine how
powerful it is to acknowledge — by physically writing it down — that
you’re not doing what you’re supposed to be doing!

If you adopt this system for keeping you on the straight-and-narrow,
be sure to create your plan for the day the night before. That way you
can gather the tools, papers, research and other items you need so
you can truly stay on schedule throughout the day.

By working from such a schedule you can identify your personal work
weaknesses, increase your billable time and effectiveness, and
conquer your procrastination.

Try this system for yourself and see if you don’t get more done, earn
more, and feel more successful — because you are!

Chris Marlow, all rights reserved

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