Consistent writing–even at only one page a day–can significantly improve writing productivity and bring balance to your work-related habits. The key to consistency is setting a schedule! For writing, we recommend a flexible time set aside for about 2-4 hours per day, five days a week. Try starting a new page every day; start fresh and avoid the temptation to hyperfixate on editing what you already wrote–that comes later! Even if you only write one page during that time, building this habit creates pathways for improved writing productivity in the future.
*Imagine that you write one page a day, for five days a week. You take the weekends off. At the end of a week, you have 5 pages; at the end of a month, you have 20+ pages. At the end of the year, even if you take two weeks’ vacation, you have 250+ pages!
Don’t forget to work at a pace that suits you! Start small and increase your regularity from a manageable goal.
The following sections overview goal-setting advice, accountability tips, journaling and writing log suggestions, and link out to relevant tools and apps.
Set a Goal
In addition to SMART planning, you can also try to plan backwards. When is the assignment due? How long do you need for final edits? How long do you need to make a second draft? Plan your writing goals backward from the deadline. Create drafting and outlining goals based on your hard and soft deadlines.
Give leeway to your writing and keep the deadline in mind.
SMART Goals
Measurable: Making your goals quantifiable makes it a lot easier to track and record your progress. This will also help you gain a greater sense of when your goal is complete and when to move on to the next one.
Achievable: When establishing your goals, be sure that they are realistic or, in other words, achievable. Ask yourself if the goal you have set for yourself is something you can reasonably accomplish within a set time frame.
Relevant: Before setting your goal, think about your big “why.” Why are you choosing this goal now? Why are you setting the goal you have chosen to set? How will completing this goal move your project further?
Time-bound: Consider how much time you have or would like to give yourself to achieve this goal. Remember to build in time for receiving feedback as well as time for revision.
Hold Yourself Accountable
Below are some tips for holding yourself accountable throughout the writing process:
- Write down your goals and say them out loud to another person.
- Use obligations to meet deadlines such as meetings with an advisor, conference presentations, peer writing groups and accountability meetings.
- Use deadlines to take ownership of your projects.
Try Something Different
Journaling or writing logs are a good place to start when tracking your writing progress. Any time you sit down to write a substantial amount, reflect afterwards and track your project’s progress. In addition to logging basic information like the day and how long you spent writing, questions for reflection are:
- Did you write what you expected?
- What did you accomplish in your writing session?
- When is a good time to review and edit what you wrote?
- What do you hope to accomplish the next time you write?
Tools, Apps, & More
Organizational tools can be extremely helpful when working to accomplish big (or little!) writing goals. From focusing apps that challenge you to work for a stretch of time (before rewarding you with a satisfying break) or planning apps that get you ready to take on any task – there’s an app or tool for everyone. Many of the apps and tools listed below offer free or discounted monthly memberships to students.