Looking for a few good writers   

January 21, 2009 | Comments

I’ve been up to my ears in a new project, and am looking for writers and Channel Editors to help make it happen. I’ve talked to several great folks, but I want to cast as wide a net as possible, so I’m asking for your help. If you’re passionate about any of the following topics and can write a reasonably coherent sentence I’d love to talk to you!

Money Management / Budgeting / Personal Finance
Food
Entertainment
Holidays
Household Management
Kids
Environmentalism
Travel - NEW
Shopping - NEW
Health and Fitness - NEW
Household Maintenance - NEW
Car Maintenance - NEW
Budget Decorating - NEW
Going Off The Grid - NEW

Take a look at Budget Artists for more information!

Sprinting in a Marathon World   

February 25, 2008 | Comments

I’m a sprinter. As in, give me a short project that requires 100% of my time and energy over a long-term thing that only requires 10% any day. Unfortunately, life is all about the Marathon. So how does a confirmed Sprinter manage to finish a Marathon?

She starts by breaking down a Marathon project into Sprints. Take this blog for example. You might have noticed that despite my best intentions, I don’t post nearly as regularly as I’d like. I tend to be sporadic. I’d love to post something insightful or useful every weekday.

Ok, so now we have the starting line and the finish line mapped out:

Starting line: sporadic posts whenever something useful crosses my mind.
Finish line: useful posts 5 days per week.

At this point you’re probably sitting there asking, “So what’s the problem? Take 10 minutes and post - how hard is that??”

(It’s ok, I’m not offended. I’ve asked myself the same exasperated question over and over.) The only answer I have is this: “I have no clue why I can’t seem to sit down and write a simple blog post every morning.”

Wait! There it is - a clue to the problem. My original goal (starting small) was to post twice a week. That means, I have to sit and think about it. Did I post yet this week? I know, everybody tells you to start small, don’t set unrealistic goals at first. But I’m going to stand here and say just the opposite. Set big goals that fit into your routine. For me, it will be easier to post every single day than it was to post once a week. Why? Because I don’t have to think about it. It will become a habit - every afternoon, I’ll post something to the blog, then move on to working on the next short story or the current chapter in my nonfiction book.

So here’s the next question. If you’ve read my blog, what would you like to see more of? What types of issues are you curious about? I’m working on an editorial calendar so that you’ll know what to expect when you swing by on a Tuesday afternoon, and so that when I’m staring at the blank screen on Friday I’ll at least have some idea of what to write about.