I’m going to try to do these journal prompt posts more often because my Pinterest followers seem to like them. There are numerous benefits of journaling, but sometimes it’s hard to stay consistent and or focused, so here are some love prompts for the month of February. If you are just getting started with journaling, that’s wonderful. If you’ve been journaling for a while and you need some prompts to get you jump started again, I’ve got you covered! Many of the prompts are Valentine’s Day related, but don’t worry if you are single. I have something for everyone here.
Prompts For Singles
What do you love about being single?
What do you miss about being in a relationship?
Describe your perfect partner?
What would your perfect date be like?
What are you looking for in a relationship?
What do you enjoy doing on your own?
What would you like to share with others?
Are there any relationship experiences that you still need to heal from?
Write an unsent letter to a previous partner saying whatever you feel was unsaid.
Write an unsent letter to your future partner.
Write an unsent letter to a friend describing your future partner as if you’ve already met him/her.
Prompts for those in a relationship
Write the story of how you and your partner met.
What are your favorite things about your partner?
What is your bucket list together?
What are some of your favorite memories together?
What are your Valentine’s Day traditions?
What could the two of you work on to make your relationship stronger?
What things do you do well as a couple?
What do you see for your future as a couple?
What was your first date like?
What does your perfect day together look like?
What do you wish your partner would do differently?
Write a love letter to your partner.
What is the most amazing thing about your partner?
Prompts for Self Love
What are you doing for yourself today?
What will you do for yourself on Valentine’s Day?
What are your self-care rituals?
If you knew you couldn’t fail, what would you be doing?
What is your biggest dream?
What do you love about yourself?
How can you be kind to yourself today?
What are your favorite things?
What gives you energy?
What makes you laugh?
If you could live anywhere, where would you live?
Describe your dream vacation.
What have you accomplished so far?
What do other people love about you?
If you enjoy the prompts or find them useful for self discovery, let me know. Do you have any go to prompts that you use when you are having writer’s block? Tell me in the comments. Happy journaling.
Although February is right around the corner, there are still 11 months left in the year. Why not start it off right with some journal prompts that set you up for success in 2020? Whether you’ve already made New Years resolutions and are sticking with them or have lost your momentum, take the time to think about what you want this year to look like. It’s also the star of a new decade, so think about your future as well. Think of your pages as clean slates that you can fill with what ever you wish.
I’ll start with prompts to look back because it can be helpful to revisit where you have been. Next, there will be prompts for goals and dreams for the year and finally, there will be prompts for the future beyond 2020.
Looking Back
What did you accomplish in 2019?
What were your set-backs in 2019?
What are your favorite memories from 2019?
Did you do anything new in 2019?
What was 2019 like if you could describe it in one word and why?
What did you accomplish in the last decade?
What were your favorite memories from the last decade?
Is there anything from the last decade that you still need to heal from?
What has been working well for you?
What do you want/need to let go of?
What was your theme from the past decade?
Prompts for 2020
What do you want this year to look like?
What are your short-term goals for 2020?
What are your dreams for the year?
What is your word for 2020?
Did you make New Years resolutions? If so, are you sticking to them?
Make a list of new things you’d like to try this year.
What books would you like to read?
What would you like to do for yourself this year?
What family plans do you have this year?
Do you have any habits you’d like to break? If so, what?
What’s one step you can take today to achieve one of your goals?
Prompts for Your Future
What are your big dreams for this decade? It can be anything. The sky’s the limit.
Where do you think you will be in ten years?
Describe your dream place to live.
Describe your dream vacation.
Write a letter to your future self. What do you want him/her to know?
What do you want to do for fun this decade?
Break your big dreams down into smaller achievable steps and make lists.
What are your family plans for the decade?
Where would you like to visit?
If you woke up tomorrow and could change one thing, what would it be?
What does success mean to you?
What is your theme for this decade?
Since it was Martin Luther King Day on Monday, I am ending this post with one of his quotes. It’s perfect for the start of the new year, trying something new or starting fresh.
I hope these prompts help you gain some clarity, celebrate your accomplishments and get you excited about your future. Do you have any favorite writing prompts? Feel free to leave it in the comments. Happy journaling!
Around the time I was brainstorming for the perfect word for 2020, this wonderful thing popped up in my inbox. Since the beginning of the year, I have been participating in the Best Decade Ever challenge with Mel Robins. For those who don’t know, it’s a totally free 30 day challenge that teaches you to dream bigger. In her live videos, Mel talks about the science behind dreams, why you should dream bigger and how to break those huge dreams down into achievable steps. If you are not participating, I recommend that you do. The program is simple, doesn’t take up much time and it has given me clarity on several areas of my life. It has given me that push to work on my goals plus be more intentional about self-care and bringing love into my life.
Dream Bigger
The main part of the challenge asks you to dream bigger. Instead of just focusing on 2020, Mel is asking you to think about the next decade and how you can make it the best decade ever. What are your big dreams? What can you accomplish in this decade? You find out by asking yourself, what are my dreams? Then you write down the first five things that come to mind. You can do this any time of day, but I prefer to do this in the morning. If you do this each day, you start to train yourself to think bigger. It also helps with creating positive energy, seeing reoccurring dreams and can help you gain clarity. I’ve seen so many amazing dreams posted, but here are my big five.
Build a life coaching business,
Get in the best shape of my life,
Make a steady income from this blog,
Find a loving and supportive relationship,
Have a second child.
Some of my other dreams are to find my tribe, travel, build my dream house and move out of state. Most of these dreams are broad and not specific and that’s okay. There are no rules when writing down your dreams. Whatever comes to mind is perfectly fine. Don’t over think it. If you have the same dreams every day, write those down. If your dreams are different, that’s fine as well. If you never accomplish these dreams or if they change over time, that’s okay. The point is to learn the skill of thinking about your dreams and realizing that they are possible.
Self Limiting Beliefs
Most of the time, we don’t even get started achieving our dreams because we tell ourselves that our dreams are stupid. We tell ourselves that we are too young, too old, not smart enough, not good enough or that we don’t deserve it. The self limiting beliefs can be endless. We are our own worst critics. We tell ourselves things that we would never tell anyone else. Mell offers a free tool that helps you get clear on your self limiting beliefs and how to get rid of them. This is hard work, but we have to train our brains to think the opposite of what we’ve all been thinking about ourselves for years. Old habits die hard.
Check out this video on self limiting beliefs.
Brick By Brick
Last year, I wrote a post about my take aways from the book, Take Control of Your Life. Also, by Mel Robins. In that book, there was a concept where you build a foundation brick by brick. Well, this is how you achieve your dreams. You break each dream down into small achievable steps. In week two of the course, one of the assignments is to simply pick one dream out of your five and explore it further for 15 minutes per day. What does that mean? Well, there are many ways to explore a dream. One of my big dreams is to become a life coach and build a business, so that’s the one I chose to explore further. I bought the book Becoming A Professional Life Coach and started reading it. I watched a video of a sample life coaching session. Another day, I read everything on the World Coach Institute’s website. I’ve read blog posts written by life coaches on how to get started, listened to The Life Coach School’s podcast and I’ve done what I call a life coaching brain dump. This is where I’ve generated business ideas as well as a todo list for steps I need to take to get started.
Here’s another example. What if your dream is to start a parenting blog? Your first step would be to do a brain dump. Write down anything that comes to mind regarding your blog.
Blogging Brain Dump
One area may be exploring topic ideas. What do you want your blog to focus on? Here is a list of possible topics.
Developmental milestones,
Toy/product reviews,
Self-care for moms,
Breast-feeding,
Sleep routines,
Kid friendly recipes,
Educational activities.
You get the idea. List as many possible topic ideas as you can think of. Then do another list of action steps that you’d need to do to get started. Some possible items on your list might include
Coming up with a domain name,
Researching and finding a web host,
Explore WordPress themes,
Design website, (Banners, logos, layout etc)
Do research on writing a blog post (SEO, proper format, Pinterest etc)
Create written content,
Find images,
Create social media accounts for your blog,
Learn how to promote and drive traffic to your blog,
Learn about ways to earn an income from your blog.
The point of these lists is to have a place to get started. This way you can see what small steps you can take, what skills you need to learn etc. You can also do a list of steps you’ve taken if you’ve been working on your dream already. That way, you can see your wins and it will keep you moving. Staying with the blog example, one big step would be to choose a domain name. This will be the website address where your blog is located. To achieve this step, you may want to write a list of several blog name ideas. Then choose the one you like best and see if it’s available. If it is, your next step would be to buy the domain. Then your next step would be to find a hosting provider. If you know which one you want to go with, you’d simply go to that website and sign up for a plan. If you are an absolute beginner, your first step may be to do research and compare various hosting companies. There isn’t a right or wrong order to exploring your dream. Just do one small part or actionable step each day and that is how you get started. Brick by brick!
As I write this, I’m wrapping up week two of the course and am looking forward to making more progress on my dreams during weeks three and four. I will keep you posted. What are your big dreams for this decade? What is one step you can take today to get startedd? Let me know in the comments.
I know this post is long overdue, but before I get to that, I want to wish you all a happy new year. I hope 2020 has started on a positive note for everyone, but if not, this post can point you in the right direction.
December was a busy month for me and I needed to take a break from the blog and although I’m posting today, I don’t know how often the entries will be coming. I suppose whenever I get inspired. I’ve really needed this break so that I can focus on other things. While I love the blog, I was having to devote way too much time to it. With being a single parent, working in a highly stressful job and dealing with other obligations, it was getting harder to carve out time for anything else, so I’ve had to rethink my priorities. I want the blog to be successful and I know that blogging is hard work, but I need to coast for a while. One of the reasons I’ve made this decision is because of the new year. I wrote in my journal and thought hard about what I want 2020 to look like.
Why one word instead of a New Years resolution?
I have always hated New Years resolutions. I make tons of goals for the new year, get excited about them and there’s a big push in January, but by February, everything gets dropped. Then there’s the guilt and all the negative self talk about why I didn’t accomplish my goals yet again. This year, I’m doing things differently. I’ve decided to choose one word to live by this year. I did this last year as well, but wasn’t really following it with intention. In order for this to work, you have to be passionate about the word you choose.
My word for 2020 is love. I chose the word love because after soul searching, I found that love was the most meaningful thing that I needed to work on for this year. Both for myself and others. This also means that all the goals I’ve chosen to work on for 2020 are connected to love in some way. some of my goals for the year include
Getting in better shape,
Being more present and patient with Rosebud,
Taking more time for self-care,
Changing my mindset,
Being in a loving relationship.
These goals all relate to taking care of myself or others. Having a connection between the goals will help to make them achievable. My intention for 2020 is love, but yours may be different. Maybe your word is action, happiness, mindful or change. It can be any word. Here are some suggestions if you are still having trouble coming up with a word.
How to Choose Your Word
1. Write in your journal about what you want 2020 to look like. Are there any common themes?
2. Brainstorm a list of words and see which word or group of words resonate with you the most.
3. Make a vision board using images, words and or quotes. Are there any words or themes that pop out at you?
4. If you are torn between two or three words, take time to think and then come back the next day. Do you have any new thoughts?
5. Be sure your word and and any goals connected to your word energize you. Think about intentional things that you can do every day to bring your word to life.
Be Intentional
For my word, love, I have thought about what I can do everyday to bring love into my life. I can practice self-love by exercising and taking care of my body daily. I can send out loving energy by writing down a gratitude list of things that I’m thankful for each day. I can reach out to people to increase the chance of finding a meaningful relationship. There are so many things I can do to bring love into my life and that is what I intend to do in 2020. How about you? Do you have a word for the year? What are your plans, dreams or goals for 2020? Tell me in the comments.
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you may have noticed that I haven’t been posting regularly in the past couple of weeks. For the past several months, I’ve had posts scheduled for Mondays and Thursdays, but lately I can’t keep up. The ideas haven’t been flowing and I’ve been frustrated with the lack of traffic along with the amount of time I’ve had to devote to my blog. As much as I love writing, I feel like this has been an uphill battle. I still love blogging, but I really need a break. My life is also changing in a lot of ways and I need time to adjust and find a new routine. That being said, I will still post here on the blog. Maybe once a week. Maybe more depending on my mood and how much time I have for creating new content.
I wanted to share how I came to this decision. Maybe there’s something in your life that you need a break from, but you are still unsure. Maybe you need a break altogether or just need to cut back. Here are just a few ways to know when you need a break.
Stress Level
Are you overwhelmed and or stressed? If something is completely stressing you out, then maybe you need a break. If it’s not absolutely necessary, don’t be afraid to stop whatever it is. Maybe you took on too many projects. Maybe you want to declutter your whole home, but have no idea where to start. Maybe you are saying yes to too many people. Whatever it is, step back and ask yourself, is this essential to my everyday life?
If cutting it out altogether isn’t an option or if you start to feel guilt, the nest step is figuring out how to make the task more manageable. If you need to declutter your home, start with one room. If that is too much, do one shelf or drawer. Then keep working at it a little each day. If it’s blogging related, can you outsource some of these tasks? Can you hire a virtual assistant to handle your Pinterest or other social media? How about getting some guest posts if writing content isn’t your strong suit? In my case, I am not able to hire out any of these tasks, so my only option is to change my posting schedule for the time being, but I’m okay with that.
Relationships
The next question to ask is how is this thing impacting others in your life? I know I haven’t had much extra time since I started blogging almost two years ago. I work on the blog each night and constantly throughout the day. I’m always participating in blogging threads on social media, trying to keep up with Pinterest, coming up with blog topics, finding images etc. If I don’t get my posts done on time, I will work on the blog early in the morning as well. Sometimes, it’s way too much. It doesn’t leave much time for myself or my daughter. On the weekends, I write my posts for the week, but I can’t get it all done in the evenings, so that only leaves the day time when I should be playing with Rosebud. It makes me feel guilty because I want to be successful with this blog, but I want to spend time with Rosebud as well. What is more important? Obviously, it’s Rosebud. She’s only little once and I don’t want to regret not spending enough time with her. I may not even have this blog in the future, so while it’s important to me right now, it might not always be. While my blog is tied in with my long-term goals, it’s not essential in this moment. When you are thinking of changing something in your life, ask yourself if it will get you closer to achieving your long-term goals. If not, then you have your answer.
Self Care
There’s that all too common phrase, self-care. It gets thrown around a lot, but it is important. you definitely need a break if whatever it is you are doing stops you from taking care of yourself. Even if you are busy, you need at least a few minutes each day to recharge. When I stopped to think about it, working on the blog has taken up so much of my free time. For the past two years, I’ve barely written in my journal, stopped doing most of my other hobbies and don’t get enough sleep. It has felt good to do other things again. I’ve actually been able to write in my journal, watch some new tv shows and have started a new friendship. It’s been nice to do something different. I’ve also needed to focus energy on my future home business which has been a huge factor in my break from the blog.
How does it feel?
Do you feel energized? Do you love what you are doing? Are you excited about it? Does it bring you joy? If your answer is yes to these questions, keep doing what you are doing. Does it make you feel depleted, overwhelmed, tired, down or just plain bored? If you answered yes to those questions, it’s time to change it up. If you are blogging, maybe you need to find a new topic that you are passionate about. If you are still passionate about your topic, but just need some new inspiration, a break out in the real world can do that. If you are doing something other than blogging, you can ask yourself these same questions to figure out what you need to do.
It’s often overlooked, but really take the time to notice how your body is feeling. I’ve been feeling drained and practicing some self-care has helped. What does self-care look like for you? Does it consist of a warm bubble bath or an early morning run? Self-care is different for everyone, so try a variety of things to see what works best for you.
Now that I have some of my struggles with blogging out in the open, I feel less guilt about not posting. It’s okay to step back. It’s okay to take a break. It’s okay to drop something altogether. Most things are not  permanent decisions. To summarize, here are some questions to ask yourself before taking that much needed break. Is it causing too much stress in your life? Is it negatively impacting your relationships? Do you have time for self-care? Is it essential for achieving your long-term goals? Finally, how does it make you feel in your body? The answers to those questions can help you take the next steps and make the decision that is right for you. Are you struggling with burnout or knowing when to take a break? Tell me in the comments.
Fall is officially here and it will be Thanksgiving before you know it. Although Thanksgiving is a time to be grateful, we should be practicing gratitude every day. Just noting what you are grateful for each day can help boost your happiness and takes less than five minutes. There actually are several scientifically proven benefits of gratitude. Most people start by being grateful for the big things like having a roof over their head or spending time with loved ones. There is the small stuff too like breathing in the fresh air outside or a positive interaction you may have with a stranger. Too often, we all take the wonderful things in our lives for granted which is why I’ve made a list of journal prompts for gratitude to help us all stop and remember everything good in our lives.
Gratitude for Others
1. Who are you grateful to know and why?
2. What is one nice thing someone did for you today?
3. What is one nice thing you did for someone else today?
4. What traits do you admire in others?
5. How are you able to help others?
6. What’s one thing that someone has given you that you are grateful for?
7. What are you thankful for in your community?
8. What are your favorite traditions?
9. Who has had the biggest influence on you?
10. What am I able to offer to others?
Gratitude for Yourself
1. Make a list of things you are grateful For at this moment.
2. Make a list of things you love about yourself.
3. What experiences have made you a stronger or better person?
4. When were the happiest times in your life?
5. What would you like to attract in your life?
6. Make a list of things that make you happy and keep adding to it.
7. What have you accomplished so far in life?
8. What are you looking forward to?
9. What place are you most grateful for?
10. Is there a book, movie or song that has really inspired you?
11. What’s one mistake or failure that you are grateful for?
12. What do you appreciate in nature?
13. What do you like about your job?
14. What quotes inspire you?
15. What’s the funniest thing you saw or heard today?
16. What makes you smile?
17. What do you take for granted?
18. What material things are you grateful for?
19. What life lessons are you thankful for?
20. What was one big life changing moment for you?
Are there any other gratitude prompts you use in your journal practice? Tell me in the comments.
As I’ve mentioned in previous blog posts, I love journaling. I find that journaling has a lot of benefits. It helps clear the mind, look at things from a different perspective and lets you reflect on your past. It’s a great way of keeping track of your goals, remembering dreams, showing gratitude, preserving memories and if you are a writer, it’s one way to create content. Journaling helps me relax before I go to bed, but I’ve been so focused on this blog, I haven’t been journaling as much. That’s something I want to change because I was thinking about how I’ve been writing to preserve memories for Rosebud. When she was a baby, I wrote so many things down, but for the past year, I’ve definitely been slacking which brings me to the topic of journal prompts for moms. I’ll divide them up into categories and hopefully this will help all of us to start or to continue our journaling practice.
Prompts to Preserve Memories
What was your child’s birth story?
What was your family life like growing up?
What lessons did your parents teach you?
What do you wish they would’ve done differently?
What have been the most memorable experiences so far with your children?
Make a list of firsts and write the stories behind them. First words, first food, first steps, first birthday party, first day of school, first night away from home etc.
What was your first memory from your childhood?
Where was your favorite place as a child and where is your favorite place now?
Who were your childhood friends?
What are your child’s favorite toys?
What were your favorite toys as a child?
Did you have any childhood pets? If so, what were they like?
Make a list of things you love about your children.
Exploring the Future
What are your hopes and dreams?
What are your short-term and long-term goals?
What is the most important lesson you want your children to learn?
Write a letter to your older self.
Write letters to your children.
Where do you want your life to be in ten years?
What are your hopes and dreams for your children?
Self Discovery
If you could have any career, what would you do?
What places would you like to see?
If you won ten million dollars, what would you do?
Who do you look up to and why?
What relaxes you?
Make a list of things that bring you joy.
If you could live anywhere, where would it be?
What do you love about yourself?
If you’re in a relationship, what do you love about your partner?
If you are not in a relationship, what do you look for in a partner?
What are your biggest secrets?
What is your biggest regret?
What does your perfect day look like?
What new activities or hobbies would you like to try?
What does self-care mean to you?
Prompts for Daily Life
What are you grateful for today?
What happened today that made you smile?
What was the worst thing about today?
What’s on the menu for the day or week?
Write a story with your child.
What conversations did you have with your children today?
Is there something about today that you wish you could have done differently?
What is your morning routine like?
What is your fitness routine like?
Did you have any dreams that you remember?
Free Writing Prompts
Some people use a word as a prompt and just write whatever comes to mind. It’s a stream of consciousness exercise. I’ll use some words that may pertain to motherhood.
Motherhood,
Growing,
Working,
Change,
Time,
Happiness,
Expectations,
Wonder,
Plans,
Wishes.
Do you have any go to journaling prompts when you get stuck? Tell me in the comments. If you are looking for a new journal, here are some different styles to choose from. Happy journaling!
If you keep a digital journal like me, check out my favorite journaling app.
Today, I have a wonderful guest post for you by Andee Schmidt who is working on her new blog. When it is up and running, I will add the link to this post. I often talk about personal development and the importance of self-care for moms, so I was happy when Andee approached me to share this post on affordable self-care for mothers. Thank you, Andee for writing this post and sharing with my readers. If you’re on a budget and are in need of some affordable self-care ideas, you’ll definitely want to check out Andee’s self-care suggestions.
Unless you live under a rock, you’ve probably heard the term self-care being floated about. Many times this idea conjures up a “treat yourself” mentality of shopping splurges and face masks, but that’s not always the case. Self-care can be accessible.
But, as mothers, it might feel like there’s barely any time –or money– to focus on you. Read on in this list of affordable self-care ideas to find out how mothers can prioritize themselves, because health shouldn’t be a luxury.
Self-Care for Mothers
Moms have the toughest job in the world. You’re probably feeling overworked and overtired, and that’s precisely why it’s important that you take care of both your mental and physical wellbeing.
Ultimately, self-care is the practice of taking action to improve your own health. Honoring your body, mind, and spirit will help you activate the best version of yourself you can be by improving your physical, mental and/or emotional health.
Although it probably sounds impossible to prioritize an hour for just you, treating yourself to time alone has been proven to improve overall wellbeing. In fact, according to VeryWellMind, it can even make you a better caregiver, because it reduces the feeling of burn out.
Free and Affordable Options
Flex your creativity
You don’t need to be artistic to benefit from an artistic hobby. In fact, the pleasure from art usually comes from the process of creation, not necessarily the final outcome. Whether it’s painting, knitting, drawing or sculpting, budgeting some time per week for a creative hobby can have very positive results. Finding your groove with something artsy is a great way to get into a flow state and let your mind relax.
Remember, coloring books aren’t only for children anymore, but you can always have your kids join the fun and color together!
Relax your mind
Meditation can be intimidating. I don’t know how to do it well or I get distracted are common concerns of those new to the practice. But, here’s the thing, meditating is just about listening to your thoughts and being present in the moment. You can even meditate while taking a shower or while winding down for bed.
Like anything else, meditation takes practice; but here’s a list of good –and free– applications that can get you started: The Mindfulness App,Headspace and Calm.
Become a yogi
You don’t need a large budget for yoga: as long as you have comfortable clothing and a nice quiet space for your practice, you’ll be good to go.
There’s no need to stress about flexibility, stamina or fitness levels. Yoga is more about the mind than the body: learn to be present and mindful of what your body is capable of without worrying too much about perfection. Plus, there are even positions that allow you to lay flat on the floor–mini nap anyone?
Oftentimes, reading is something that falls to the backburner when you have so many other things to worry about. However, reading can be excellent for self-care. Reading is a relaxing activity that helps you take a break from the stress of everyday. Plus, with the boom of audio books you can even read while taking care of your other tasks.
If you’re interested in learning more about self-care, you might want to start by reading some of the books on this list, or these, if you want to read about motherhood.
Take a walk
The good thing about walking? It’s free. And you can do it basically anywhere. Pop in your headphones, or put the kids in a stroller and just walk.
As long as you take the time to think about yourself and take care of your mind, you’ll be practicing some form of self-care. Plus, studies have shown that spending time outdoors can reduce mental fatigue, stress and elevate your mood.
Finding Time for Self-Care
Now this is all peachy… but, many of you might be thinking: how do I get enough time alone to do that?! Prioritizing yourself can be tough when you feel that every second is going to taking care of others. It’s certainly not easy, but here’s a list of quick tips you can use to find the time alone you need:
Occupy the kids
Use the time when your kids are busy as time to squeeze in your self-care. Play dates, nap time and after-school activities are great ways to both entertain your kids and get some free time for yourself.
Put it on your calendar
If you make alone time sporadic, it will feel abnormal for your family. But if you do it weekly and let your kids and partner know this is “mom’s time”, it will become part of their routine and yours!
Ask for help
The truth is, getting alone time while being a mother is nearly impossible, but don’t be afraid to ask for help. Make a plan with your partner or anyone in you support system so you can ensure you are getting what you need. Lean on the people in your life. Also, if you are able, there’s nothing wrong with hiring a babysitter to get a few hours to yourself.
Many of these activities can also be done with the whole family: take your kids out for a walk, to the movies, or the park and you will soon find yourself with time on your hands to think. But if you are able to get some precious alone time, don’t feel guilty for enjoying it. Remember, moms need to be taken care of too!
About the author:
Andee is a recent college graduate from Arizona State University with a love of writing, the outdoors, and funky cafes. You can usually find her hiking or planning her next trip. She is passionate about traveling, frugal living, her family, and the perfect cup of coffee. She is the writer behind the blog : xx . Find her on Instagram as @andee_schmidt or Twitter @andeeschmidt.
If you’ve been following my blog for a while, I’ve talked about creating a set schedule and sticking to it. Posting on a regular schedule is an important part of a successful blog. That way, your audience knows what to expect. I’ve been trying hard to get my posts out on Tuesdays and Fridays, but things have been different over these past few weeks. I’m lucky to get posts out on time if at all. I know there’s been silence for about two weeks now because honestly I’ve had no motivation to write. I’ve still been actively promoting my blog on social media, updating old affiliate links and creating new pins, but I haven’t done what I love most, writing and creating new content.
My reality is that I’m a working mom and I don’t want every waking moment that I’m not at work to be spent on this blog. While I love blogging, I still need to spend plenty of time with Rosebud and I need time for myself. Time where I can just relax to enjoy a book or a tv show instead of typing away on the keyboard. I’ve worked on my blog almost every night for a year straight and I finally needed a break. I’d look at my long list of post ideas and none of them stood out. Then I felt guilty for feeling unmotivated and lazy. Yeah. I could just drag myself out of bed even earlier again or stay up past midnight to force myself to write another post that my heart isn’t in or I could just take a break and come back refreshed. Obviously, I’ve made the second choice. I wondered if other bloggers were dealing with burn out, so I reached out to one of my mom blogger groups on Facebook. I asked them what to do when I feel overwhelmed with blogging. I asked what I should do when my motivation isn’t there and I just can’t get it together. They gave me some great ideas and I wanted to share them with you.
Totally a newbie here, but I had to really take a step back and reset my priorities. As much as I love blogging and influencing, I had to realize it was taking away from what matters most – my kids and leaving me COMPLETELY overwhelmed. I am still overwhelmed every single day but at least there isn’t guilt of not being with my kids on top of that ! lol no advice.. but definitely can relate!
Honestly, I just take a break. Probably not the best thing to do but I do. I’m working now to build up some posts that I can have ready to go and saved that would be applicable at anytime so that I can schedule those if I am having an off week or 2.
Repurpose Old Content
Heather whose blog is still brand new and under construction suggests repurposing old content? Hire out a blog post? I’m struggling with a husband working random hours (nurse; so he’s on 3 days, off 4 and in my hair!), plus one kid in school, the other I’m working with preK stuff till he starts preK this fall. I’m trying to batch work. And getting up early. But take time for you, too. If you’re burnt out you won’t be good to anyone. Write random thoughts about that down (maybe you’ll be able to bring it together for a post of burnout/reviving yourself). Start posts and ideas randomly, as you can, so you have something underway in the future. You can always add to it and then finish it up in weeks like this. Do a quick ‘live’ video for your audience. Something to say hey, I’m a mama, taking some me time but I’ll be back. Update an old post and repost it. I hope some of these ideas are helpful.
Don’t be too hard on yourself because life happens. Maybe try writing just to write vs trying to “write a blog”. I’ve had to do that a couple times and ended up with a couple blog posts at the end of it because I felt like I was being real.
What I did is wake up earlier than the kids. They sleep very late, like 11pm-12 midnight, and wake up late around 10-11am. So I wake up at 7am or try to… Sometimes I wake up at 9am and work on my blog during weekdays. I find it helps that I only publish every other week. I’ll do weekly soon, but for now I can’t put so much since I’m still on the foundation/learning stage. I still am overwhelmed, but having a daily&weekly schedule to follow helps a lot.
I am in a wonderful group on Twitter and we do guest blogs and such when we find we are burnt out. It happens more than not. II work a full-time job as well as parent. You get the point. I took a two month break from writing anything but continued to share content on my social network and repost older posts. My traffic hasn’t declined and my audience is understanding….
When I do get in the mood I write forever 🙂 Last week I wrote 10 blog posts! I also keep a calendar to schedule them out. I do one post each week because that seems to be what I can keep up with. I always do the month in advance, that way if I get in a rut I know that month is at least taken care of. So in May, I’m working on June’s. So if I don’t write at all in May because I wasn’t feeling it, May was already done in April and I still have time before June gets here!!!
I also keep a LONG list of ideas. So if something pops into my mind while I’m driving or shopping I jot it down and keep a list at the end of my calendar. Then when I need an idea I write that in in the calendar. If I can’t get into it when the time comes I’ll push that idea out a few months and pick another topic.
I used to try to write each post as it came to me and that was so stressful. Writing in advance and scheduling my posts is SO. MUCH. EASIER.
I write the article, do the featured image and pin on Canva and add them in, then schedule it. The day or day after it posts, when I have time, I pin it a few times and get it on the share schedules. 🙂
You can’t expect yourself to always be motivated. Find a way to organize things so that it works according to your schedule.
I only have one child and stay at home, but I still have other responsibilities. I spent about 30-90 minutes daily on my blog. I do it with my cup of coffee while my toddler eats breakfast. This is when I do the share threads. I set aside one nap time each week to work on writing. 🙂 That’s it.
Really, it’s all about organization. Once you figure out a schedule it isn’t hard.
I want to thank these amazing bloggers for their suggestions. They gave me the push I needed and gave me inspiration to put this post together. Blogging is more difficult than it looks. There is a lot more involved than most people imagine, but when my creativity is flowing, I really enjoy it. Burnout can exist no matter the job or activity if your life is out of balance. This wonderful post written by Beth from Balancing Bravely lists 8 Surprising Lessons About Burnout that are Essential for Working Mom Success. Is there anything we missed? How do you get through blogging burnout? Tell me in the comments.
Disclosure: I am an affiliate with Ultimate Bundles and if you make a purchase through the links in this post, I may make a small commission at no additional cost to you.
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Prompts for Daily Life
