The year was 2009, and I was a general reporter working the early morning shift. By the time the clock struck 12, I’d survived two deadlines – filing two stories on a slow news day. Fast forward almost a decade later, and I was struggling to write a blog post per week. By drawing on my experience in the newsroom, and a few behaviour science hacks, I was able to publish content consistently.
These days most of us feel overwhelmed by time pressures. It feels as if we always have too little time and too many priorities. So, it’s easy for things that don’t have a timeframe attached to get lost in the daily grind.
On top of that, we have a tendency to focus on trivial tasks with tight deadlines over more meaningful activities with longer lead times. It’s called the urgency bias, and it’s why we sometimes get stuck responding to emails as they arrive in our inboxes.
It’s also why we don’t typically make the time for writing over our daily duties.
The problem with this is we’re missing an opportunity to help businesses and our customers.
Here’s how you can use regular deadlines to keep creating content – even if you feel like you don’t have the time.
The Magic and Curse of Self-Imposed Deadlines
Have you ever set yourself a deadline for a personal project?
And what’s the first item you chuck off the to-do list when an urgent task lands on your desk?
If this sounds familiar, it’s because we usually don’t take self-imposed deadlines seriously.
This study found people turned to self-imposed deadlines for motivation. We know the scenario well.
We’ll start exercising after the holidays. We’ll do the spring clean in summer. The list goes on.
But the research doesn’t find them extremely effective yet.
“People have self-control problems, they recognize them, and they try to control them by self-imposing costly deadlines. These deadlines help people control procrastination, but they are not as effective as some externally imposed deadlines in improving task performance.”
To combat this, remember what you’re trying to achieve with consistent writing and publishing.
Publishing a weekly blog post has improved my writing, help me generate original ideas, and get to work with my ideal clients.
Imagine would it could do for you and your business. Is that important enough?
To stick to your self-imposed deadlines, researchers suggest finding meaning in the project:
“That’s why some experts–namely, Fuschia Sirois of Bishop’s University–think the best strategy for addressing procrastination is to find something enjoyable or meaningful in whatever task is before you. Easier said than done, for sure. But if you can make that chore or assignment almost as pleasant as, say, reading a book of Twain quotes, then maybe you’ll only put it off until tomorrow. You’ll have the whole day after to thank yourself.”
Here’s how you can take advantage of deadlines to create content consistently.
1. Set Tight Deadlines
In the newsroom, the deadline was always looming, and it was set in stone.
Now, you have flexibility when you’re writing for own blog, but try setting a hard, non-negotiable deadline.
According to Parkinson’s Law, we’ll fill up the allotted time with work. If you give yourself an entire day to finish your blog, then that’s how long you’ll take.
Give yourself a final deadline for publishing and stick to it. The upside of committing to a frequent publishing schedule is you’ll write faster.
2. Bursts of Focus
Distractions are the last thing you need when you’re on deadline.
When’s the last time you got anything done in between checking your phone?
Now, I don’t mean responding to emails or surfing social media. I’m talking about the kind of meaningful, difficult work that requires concentration. Cal Newport calls it Deep Work.
My productivity was at its lowest when I needed to check WhatsApp regularly for work-related messages. I was involved in a few group chats. Each time my phone pinged, my concentration was broken.
I was never more distracted.
But it wasn’t just me.
This study found our smartphones reduce our concentration just be being in the same room. Even if you’re phone is turned off, it still divides your focus.
To improve your concentration, banish your phone from wherever you’re writing. If that’s not possible, at least switch to silent.
Creating a sense of urgency can also increase the pace of your writing. Consider the Pomodoro method, where you work intensely for 25 minutes before a five-minute break.
Try setting yourself a deadline this week. You can, for example, commit to finishing a draft post by the end of the and agree to publish the following week. When you’re on your deadline, build a space that will improve your focus. That’s the kind of environment that will support the kind of concentration needed to write content that helps build your brand.
