Running a Real Holiday: Journaling 135 Days of Joyful Vacation
- Thread starter Staccs
- Start date
October 25th 2014 - Day 10
Won't be doing anything today. Discussed the key points of my next post with a couple friends. There were a few parts of the conversation which they took a little while to grasp. That's something I need to keep in mind when writing it.
125 days left
Won't be doing anything today. Discussed the key points of my next post with a couple friends. There were a few parts of the conversation which they took a little while to grasp. That's something I need to keep in mind when writing it.
125 days left
Yo this Hemingway app doesn't like commas and adverbs. It fees like I'm going back to middle school to write again. No introductory clauses either. I have to change my thought process entirely.
Also I feel stupider. I have to rewrite sentences in my head. Most of the time I think using an introductory clause.
October 26th 2014 - Day 11
Just finished cleaning my office which is also my bedroom. Not ideal for sleep, but I find cleaning it (vacuuming, wiping shelves, declutter) twice a week helps. Tomorrow it's back to full days. My alarm is set for 6:35am.
124 days left
Just finished cleaning my office which is also my bedroom. Not ideal for sleep, but I find cleaning it (vacuuming, wiping shelves, declutter) twice a week helps. Tomorrow it's back to full days. My alarm is set for 6:35am.
124 days left
I always had the impression that you were a big baller here; I remember reading your posts and I even bought some links from you back in the day.
Congratulations on this new adventure Staccs. I've completely abandoned this business and it's very very nice to read this kind of posts again. I'm subscribing to this thread and checking it daily. I wish you succeed in this project.
Congratulations on this new adventure Staccs. I've completely abandoned this business and it's very very nice to read this kind of posts again. I'm subscribing to this thread and checking it daily. I wish you succeed in this project.
October 27th 2014 - Day 12
I'm going away from Thursday night to Sunday this weekend so I need to put in a solid 4 days this week.
I had a terrible time trying to sleep last night. I stay up all night every weekend. Transitioning back to the weekdays is often a struggle. I hit snooze on my 6:30am alarm and got up after 10am. I'll try again tomorrow.
I finally started turning all the research I did into the actual blog post today. I've got the intro completed and am ready to get into the meat of it tomorrow. I find the introduction the hardest part to write and often find myself rewriting it again once the article is completed. I've read that some writers recommend skipping the intro until the article is entirely completed, but I can't do that. I suffer from the inability to write rough drafts. It takes me a long time to put together a post I am happy with, but it's the final copy the first time.
Before I completed the introduction I grabbed a bunch of quotes and citations from my research phase I want to include in the article. When I was first learning about this stuff I never included any outbound links out of fear readers would leave and never come back. I now know the solution to that problem is to create a better website. I believe citing sources in a niche where facts are important gives you credibility that far outweighs any sort of traffic leak you create. You earn points for providing the reference to the good information source regardless.
I probably put together 3 hours of work today. Tomorrow will be much better, my entire schedule is empty aside from some routine chores that shouldn't suck away more than a couple hours. Best case scenario I complete this post, then complete all the planning for the next one on Wednesday. The other posts I have planned won't have be as research heavy as this one was, so it will be nice to get this done.
123 days left
I'm going away from Thursday night to Sunday this weekend so I need to put in a solid 4 days this week.
I had a terrible time trying to sleep last night. I stay up all night every weekend. Transitioning back to the weekdays is often a struggle. I hit snooze on my 6:30am alarm and got up after 10am. I'll try again tomorrow.
I finally started turning all the research I did into the actual blog post today. I've got the intro completed and am ready to get into the meat of it tomorrow. I find the introduction the hardest part to write and often find myself rewriting it again once the article is completed. I've read that some writers recommend skipping the intro until the article is entirely completed, but I can't do that. I suffer from the inability to write rough drafts. It takes me a long time to put together a post I am happy with, but it's the final copy the first time.
Before I completed the introduction I grabbed a bunch of quotes and citations from my research phase I want to include in the article. When I was first learning about this stuff I never included any outbound links out of fear readers would leave and never come back. I now know the solution to that problem is to create a better website. I believe citing sources in a niche where facts are important gives you credibility that far outweighs any sort of traffic leak you create. You earn points for providing the reference to the good information source regardless.
I probably put together 3 hours of work today. Tomorrow will be much better, my entire schedule is empty aside from some routine chores that shouldn't suck away more than a couple hours. Best case scenario I complete this post, then complete all the planning for the next one on Wednesday. The other posts I have planned won't have be as research heavy as this one was, so it will be nice to get this done.
123 days left
Good work for trying to be productive but I do not see how this is a real business. You struggle to get your ass out of bed. Your conversations are about writing a single post. This is not a business. If you want to hold your feet to the fire then start with acting like an adult. Reading this makes me think of a college kid struggling to get to class but then hitting snooze and skipping only to later get up after 12 hours of sleep and claim productivity because he got up before noon. 3 hours of work? That is a business to you? Uggg Good luck. Fortunately you are in Canada and there is a massive social safety net for the lazy and worthless
October 28th 2014 - Day 13
I didn't get anything substantial done today. I slept in, so this is completely valid criticism:
I can't disagree with anything you said. I'm forcing myself to be brutally honest about what I got done everyday and the result is pitiful. If I were proud of my productivity I wouldn't have created this thread.
I would like to touch on the amount of time I spent on each blog post just to stress how much of an effort I put towards making these articles quality. Unlike past sites, this is a resource I'd happily point friends and family to if they had interest in the topic.
That being said... realistically I should be capable of pushing out 1 a day if I'm giving it my complete focus. I have been allowing distractions, of both the unpreventable and the preventable kind, to keep that from happening.
One of my biggest fears is being an underachiever (in any aspect of my life) and it's clear that's the destination my current work ethic has me headed.
I appreciate your posts in this thread very much, but appreciating them alone doesn't get me any closer to my goals. Instead of thanking you for your honesty and saying "gee, I really need to work harder!", I will list a couple rules I believe I need to follow in order to come closer to running a real business.
1. Real businesses don't tolerate late employees. I need to set a time and stick with it. I think it would be just as wise to set a "go to bed time", because that is what creates the waking up issues.
2. Real businesses don't allow employees to get distracted. They have distracting websites blocked and a manager hovering around overseeing everybody to make sure they are on track. I think utilizing something like the Pomodoro method would be a good fit here because it would allow me to get my housework and chores done on the short breaks.
3. Real businesses separate work from play. I am really bad at turning around a day I didn't start off right. If I sleep in too late, my internet is down for the entire morning, or I'm stuck running errands and doing chores for the majority of the day, I find it really hard to turn on work mode and get to work at 3pm. Creating a "start work ritual" and a "end work ritual" is something that could help with that. I don't immediately have an idea for this. I'll come up with something and start tomorrow.
I deserve to be called out like this. I created this thread for the purpose of holding myself accountable, hoping that I could count on somebody from WF to catch me slipping while I candy coat my lack of productivity. I hope this thread will show that you can turn things around and recover from a quickly degrading work ethic.
I may only have a couple hours at home tomorrow, but I will be out of bed at 6:30am trying to make the most of them.
Thursday will be the same (limited hours at home), and I will be out of town on Friday/Saturday, maybe Sunday as well. Next week is when I'll be looking to turn things around.
I feel this is a well thought out reply that solves key issues preventing me from reaching an acceptable level of productivity... but words are just words. I need to step up and prove that I'm capable of accomplishing something significant.
122 days left
I didn't get anything substantial done today. I slept in, so this is completely valid criticism:
I can't disagree with anything you said. I'm forcing myself to be brutally honest about what I got done everyday and the result is pitiful. If I were proud of my productivity I wouldn't have created this thread.
I would like to touch on the amount of time I spent on each blog post just to stress how much of an effort I put towards making these articles quality. Unlike past sites, this is a resource I'd happily point friends and family to if they had interest in the topic.
That being said... realistically I should be capable of pushing out 1 a day if I'm giving it my complete focus. I have been allowing distractions, of both the unpreventable and the preventable kind, to keep that from happening.
One of my biggest fears is being an underachiever (in any aspect of my life) and it's clear that's the destination my current work ethic has me headed.
I appreciate your posts in this thread very much, but appreciating them alone doesn't get me any closer to my goals. Instead of thanking you for your honesty and saying "gee, I really need to work harder!", I will list a couple rules I believe I need to follow in order to come closer to running a real business.
1. Real businesses don't tolerate late employees. I need to set a time and stick with it. I think it would be just as wise to set a "go to bed time", because that is what creates the waking up issues.
2. Real businesses don't allow employees to get distracted. They have distracting websites blocked and a manager hovering around overseeing everybody to make sure they are on track. I think utilizing something like the Pomodoro method would be a good fit here because it would allow me to get my housework and chores done on the short breaks.
3. Real businesses separate work from play. I am really bad at turning around a day I didn't start off right. If I sleep in too late, my internet is down for the entire morning, or I'm stuck running errands and doing chores for the majority of the day, I find it really hard to turn on work mode and get to work at 3pm. Creating a "start work ritual" and a "end work ritual" is something that could help with that. I don't immediately have an idea for this. I'll come up with something and start tomorrow.
I deserve to be called out like this. I created this thread for the purpose of holding myself accountable, hoping that I could count on somebody from WF to catch me slipping while I candy coat my lack of productivity. I hope this thread will show that you can turn things around and recover from a quickly degrading work ethic.
I may only have a couple hours at home tomorrow, but I will be out of bed at 6:30am trying to make the most of them.
Thursday will be the same (limited hours at home), and I will be out of town on Friday/Saturday, maybe Sunday as well. Next week is when I'll be looking to turn things around.
I feel this is a well thought out reply that solves key issues preventing me from reaching an acceptable level of productivity... but words are just words. I need to step up and prove that I'm capable of accomplishing something significant.
122 days left
Rule #1:
"Early to bed, early to rise"
Simple and old but that will make you a better businessman.
Once mastered your time management everything will be simpler.
Good luck
"Early to bed, early to rise"
Simple and old but that will make you a better businessman.
Once mastered your time management everything will be simpler.
Good luck
This. Why spend a full days work writing 1 blog post when you can pay someone to write it for you for $10? Your time is much better spent doing things that will actually make you money like marketing your site and driving traffic to it.
I haven't written a word of long form content in probably 2 years and it's one of the best decisions I've ever made.
OK I got it and maybe I was harsh, but talk is cheap, action is what counts. If you want to learn a good work ethic then work with someone who has a good work ethic. I would suggest you get a job on a farm, or with a guy that makes his living with one truck and hard work, someone who is at the shop before the sun comes up and is parking the truck after all of the lazy bitches in the world have twisted off a six pack. A guy that is responsible and has no mom or dad or government social net to carry his ass when he is hitting the snooze button for the third time.
"I have learned one thing. As Woody says, ‘Showing up is 80 percent of life.’ Sometimes it’s easier to hide home in bed. I’ve done both."
This is YOUR life, and if you think so little of it that you want to put staying up late, sleeping in in the morning, partying on the weekend before creating a rewarding, accomplished life then so be it, I only wish you could change the subject of this post from Running a real business to Documenting my Adolescent Behavior
"I have learned one thing. As Woody says, ‘Showing up is 80 percent of life.’ Sometimes it’s easier to hide home in bed. I’ve done both."
This is YOUR life, and if you think so little of it that you want to put staying up late, sleeping in in the morning, partying on the weekend before creating a rewarding, accomplished life then so be it, I only wish you could change the subject of this post from Running a real business to Documenting my Adolescent Behavior
October 29th 2014 - Day 14
I had a couple appointments today that split my day into chunks. I worked on a blog post for an hour, then started taking my keyword real estate for about 2 hours. I'm not sure how much I plan to build these properties out, but it's good branding to own them. I picked up all of the properties of interest. I use to use KnowEm as a guide and create every single social property I could, but the small ones are often dying out and aren't worth the time.
I spent a little over half an hour planning out how I'm going to use social media. I came up with content ideas for each social traffic source I want to use: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.
I create and wrote my About page. It accurately explains the site's mission statement and is a beneficial read for visitors.
I also finalized the post categories on the site. I have 3 categories total, plus one general "featured" category for long-winded comprehensive guides.
This is the last day I'll be able to work on this until Monday when I return home. I'll still post from my phone to fulfill the promise of posting every 24 hours.
A couple responses:
I don't plan to outsource content on this project because I don't believe anybody can meet my standards of quality for comparative value. I'm not ruling out outsourcing entirely, but it is unlikely I hire a writer until I have reason to.
I'll be back on Monday.
121 days left
I had a couple appointments today that split my day into chunks. I worked on a blog post for an hour, then started taking my keyword real estate for about 2 hours. I'm not sure how much I plan to build these properties out, but it's good branding to own them. I picked up all of the properties of interest. I use to use KnowEm as a guide and create every single social property I could, but the small ones are often dying out and aren't worth the time.
I spent a little over half an hour planning out how I'm going to use social media. I came up with content ideas for each social traffic source I want to use: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.
I create and wrote my About page. It accurately explains the site's mission statement and is a beneficial read for visitors.
I also finalized the post categories on the site. I have 3 categories total, plus one general "featured" category for long-winded comprehensive guides.
This is the last day I'll be able to work on this until Monday when I return home. I'll still post from my phone to fulfill the promise of posting every 24 hours.
A couple responses:
I don't plan to outsource content on this project because I don't believe anybody can meet my standards of quality for comparative value. I'm not ruling out outsourcing entirely, but it is unlikely I hire a writer until I have reason to.
I'll be back on Monday.
121 days left
Found a pretty decent content marketing/content writing guide.
Learn To Write Content like a Pro - The Advanced Guide to Content Marketing
Just in case anyones interested...
Learn To Write Content like a Pro - The Advanced Guide to Content Marketing
Just in case anyones interested...
This has the potential to be a really interesting thread to follow.
I am not sure the title of a "real business" is what we are seeing here, as pointed out by @doc .
However, for some people the allure of internet marketing is the freedom to live as you like, stay up late, sleep in till the sun has risen and fucked off again, not seeing daylight for a week and wallowing in your own filth, if that's your thing; but still be able to bring in as much or more as the 9-5 ers busting a gut to line some other assholes pockets.
Based on your current work ethic, I think the experiment is more likely to reflect the how to be a slacker but still make a living online, which still appeals to a certain audience.
To show how much could be achieved by running it like a "real business", perhaps you should extend the experiment to 400 days and call it "how to do 135 days work in 400 days" ?
It is also good to see you have not had to make any charitable donations yet.
I am not sure the title of a "real business" is what we are seeing here, as pointed out by @doc .
However, for some people the allure of internet marketing is the freedom to live as you like, stay up late, sleep in till the sun has risen and fucked off again, not seeing daylight for a week and wallowing in your own filth, if that's your thing; but still be able to bring in as much or more as the 9-5 ers busting a gut to line some other assholes pockets.
Based on your current work ethic, I think the experiment is more likely to reflect the how to be a slacker but still make a living online, which still appeals to a certain audience.
To show how much could be achieved by running it like a "real business", perhaps you should extend the experiment to 400 days and call it "how to do 135 days work in 400 days" ?
It is also good to see you have not had to make any charitable donations yet.