Aria @ Book Nook Bits will be the new host for Let’s Talk Bookish! If you aren’t following her yet, good check out her blog and give her a follow!
August 26: Balancing blogging and life (Aria)
Prompts: How do you manage balancing blogging and life? In what ways do school and work get in the way of blogging? Are there any ways that blogging can help with everyday life? Are there certain times of year when blogging becomes harder or more overwhelming?
Welcome to a late LTB here at DTRH everyone! Today’s topic is particularly appropriate, since it may be exactly the balance between blogging and life that leaves me late to the party in the first place. Actually, I am blogging from the opposite side of the world that I’m usually on (vacation!) so that could explain it. Still, if I commit to it, I should really do so. But I digress. I want to hear all about you all too!
Balancing blogging and life is honestly pretty difficult. It’s not like you just sit down whenever and churn out a blog post (though that is certainly one way). Especially with the two of us here, at least a bit more planning and forethought has to go into it, and we also of course want to produce quality content for our readers (and ourselves, of course). And as both of us get older, responsibilities pile up, as I’m sure you can all relate. So first and foremost, it’s definitely hard! The main tool that we use here is scheduling though. Just generally knowing what we’re going to post really helps to narrow down decision paralysis, and helps keeps things easier to organize. Time management will always be the biggest asset here, but I know for me personally life can just be so crazy sometimes that even scheduling only accomplishes so much.
If blogging were only jotting down some thoughts, I think I could manage it without a sweat. But when you’re creating content or doing book reviews, we all know here in the community it’s not just the post that takes time. Books have to be read, ideas have to be spun, and if my blog post only takes 15 minutes it’s honestly a miracle (who can relate?). Work and school both just take up blocks of time, and it can be hard to read in small 15-30 min breaks that present themselves. Not to mention that my eyes are usually tired already from the work/school, and that just makes me want to rest just for a bit before getting back into it.
I think the fact that blogging forces me to think a little bit more about my schedule is really helpful for me. AND it helps me read more too! I really enjoy the part of me that has developed every since blogging. Therefore it’s definitely not a regret, and is certainly something I want to continue doing for as long as I can, life shenanigans be damned. I think just being in better connection with books is an improvement or value-add to my life, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Exam season for school is the first thing that comes to mind for hard periods. Same with work, if there’s a particularly busy time. Time is one of those things which you only have so much of, and when things pile up, sometimes it really just is impossible to do all that you want to do even with perfect planning, and it falls to you to re-prioritize. It’s not that I find blogging unimportant, but I do find that it often tends to take the first fall in priority if I don’t personally hold myself more accountable. Not sure if any of you feel that way too! It’s balancing that “hobby” which should be able to be put on hold, versus the fact that if you just let everything trump it in priority, you’ll literally never do your hobby.
How do you all manage blogging when the going gets tough? Let me know in the comments below!
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