We all have hobbies, interests, and side projects that we work on in our free time. I enjoy reading and writing on my blog. My cousin is training for the Boston Marathon. And a friend of mine in Chicago cultivates bonsai trees in his second story apartment window.
Some of these pursuits are done for the pure enjoyment that they bring. An opportunity to relieve some stress or express our creativity. Others are more serious and represent a personal milestone that we’re trying to accomplish. Perhaps they could open doors to future financial gain.
Regardless of what it is you’re doing, making progress on an extracurricular project in between a full work week can be a challenge. So here are four practical tips that you can try the next time you find yourself in the side hustle doldrums.
- Find out how your time is spent
- Schedule your priorities
- Build in accountability
- Manage expectations
Find out how your time is spent.
Record how your time is spent for a couple of weeks. Are you doing the things that are important to you? If not, identify activities that you can eliminate to create more space in your schedule for the things that really matter.
Schedule your priorities.
“Have a great day by noon,” is one of my favorite quotes from Gary Keller. His advice is to schedule your most important tasks early on in the day. If something is important to you, don’t put it off. Do it right away when you have the most energy and focus. For personal projects, that might mean adjusting your morning routine to get up an hour earlier before you leave for work.
Build in accountability.
Social pressure is a great way to hold yourself accountable. It’s much easier to wake up and go for a run if you know that your friend will be waiting at the street corner to meet up. I’ve learned first hand that even a small following of 50 blog subscribers creates a positive incentive to publish each week. Whatever project you’re working on, join a community, or make your progress public to build in accountability.
Manage expectations.
Finally, don’t let perfection get in the way of progress. Sometimes we let our own expectations of what we should be able to accomplish – in addition to being a rockstar performer for 40 hours a week in our day job – to be grossly out of whack with reality. Don’t set yourself up to fail. Take a hard look at how much time and resources you have to dedicate to a project, and then be reasonable. It’s better to let quick wins build momentum over time, than to let big goals squash your motivation before you even get started.
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