Tag / writer

by caitlyncallahan14

8-10 hours/day

I went to the eye doctor last week (for the first time in years) to talk about getting contacts because my vision is so bad. As we were going over my history and concerns, she asked me what I do for a living and how many hours a day I spend on the computer.

I told her 8-10 hours, average.

She laughed at first.

And then when she realized I was serious, she expressed concern about how bad that was for my eyes.

I told her that between my full time job and my business, it’s the truth. And yet, these last few weeks I’ve found that even that much time isn’t enough.

You may have noticed it’s been about a month since I posted a blog post. I also haven’t been regularly updating my social media, or posting industry articles. I’ll be the first to admit I’ve been slacking. My full time job has been so busy lately and it’s been exhausting. I’ve been working longer hours, and had no time during the day for a break (so many meetings!). On top of that, I’ve been very busy with my existing clients, and working on onboarding two more.

Therefore, I’m spending 8-10 hours a day, 5-6 days a week staring at my computer.

But, I’m still falling behind writing and publishing for my own business. Which without that new content, I’m not continuing to grow and establish. And while I know the importance of prioritizing my own business, I’m not. And sadly, it’s an active choice I’m making.

Because after 8 hours of meetings and 2-3 hours of writing for clients, I’m tired. And I want to watch an episode of my favorite show, or read some of my book, and then go to sleep. I know I should be writing a blog post, or scheduling out social media posts. And I can’t say I don’t have the time (because that would be a lie), but spending that time working means I’m sacrificing time doing other things I enjoy, or time with family or friends.

I’ve been doing this freelancing gig for about three years now and I’ve written before about finding the balance. Now more than ever it’s challenging to find that balance as I’m busier than ever with work and clients.

Don’t get me wrong – it’s the best feeling to have. I love what I’m doing with my clients and the work I’m publishing. I’m so proud of my success so far and how far I’ve come.

But to keep going, I need to continue to prioritize my business. I just honestly don’t know how.

So here’s a question to my fellow freelancers – how did you do it? How did you build a successful business, while also having and enjoying your life? Not missing those moments in life is so important to me, but I feel like too often I read about successful people having sacrificed everything to get to where they are, including family, friends, sleep and their own health.

I don’t want to be like that. I want to change the narrative. I want to prove to every kid out there dreaming of this life, having their own business and being successful writers, that you can have it all.

I’ll be sure to let you all know if I figure it out.

Until then, I’ll keep spending my 8-10 hours.

by caitlyncallahan14

1,000 words

A picture is worth a thousand words.

How many times have you heard that saying? Probably at least a thousand, referencing both good and “bad” photos (we all have at least one picture on our Facebook we are embarrassed about).

Pictures can evoke emotion, bring back memories, tell a story… each worth a thousand words.

But have you ever sat down, looked at a picture, and written 1,000 words?

I hadn’t. Until today.

While reading a book about tapping into and expressing creativity, the author (a photographer) described how each photo he takes, he embodies how photography is about capturing a moment and creating a story – at least 1,000 words worth.

It sparked an idea for me – I’ve never actually written 1,000 words about a picture. And what better way to practice writing, express creativity, and hone my craft than doing just that?

The general guideline is each typed page is about 500 words, so I sat down at my typewriter to write out about two and a half pages (since typewriter keys are larger than typical computer font). I scrolled through my phone’s photos and selected one I took today of my view from my patio chair. It’s not a spectacular photo, and it’s not of a spectacular time, which I thought would make for a challenge.

You don’t realize how many words 1,000 words really is until you’re writing them. But I found that my fingers flowed across the keys and typed out 2.5 pages in just under half an hour. Even though I had taken the photo only a couple of hours before, I felt so much emotion writing about it. Gratitude, joy, satisfaction, relief, content. I described the sky, trees, flowers, and grass. My dogs. My book. The sun. The breeze and warmth from the day.

Honestly, I could have written 2,000 words. Maybe more.

And the point is it got me writing. It inspired this blog post. I spent half an hour of my day writing, letting my mind wander, exercising my fingers on the keys. Practicing my craft.

I’ve written before about Malcolm Gladwell’s 10,000 hours of practice to become an expert rule. Today I added to my expertise.

I encourage you to take at least 30 minutes a day to practice your craft. To better yourself. Whether it’s exercising, writing, reading, learning, cooking, painting, knitting, or whatever it is that you love to do, start with 30 minutes. And then make time for 60. Or, if you have a busy day, take just 5 or 10 minutes.

And if you’re a writer, I encourage you to take or choose a photo and write 1,000 words about it. Tell a story. Feel the emotion from the photo, or evoke emotion from the viewer and reader. It doesn’t have to be perfect. But the more you do it, the more you practice, the better writer you will be.