• About Greta
  • Life
    • Beauty
    • Dogs
    • Decor
    • DIY
    • Food
    • Learn
  • Style
    • Fall
    • Spring
    • Summer
    • Winter
    • Holiday
  • Travel
    • Nashville
  • Shop My Instagram
    • Bloglovin
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

Greta Hollar

Nashville, TN

  • About Greta
  • Life
    • Beauty
    • Dogs
    • Decor
    • DIY
    • Food
    • Learn
  • Style
    • Fall
    • Spring
    • Summer
    • Winter
    • Holiday
  • Travel
    • Nashville
  • Shop My Instagram

How-to Stay Organized When You’re a Blogger (And Have 50 Other Things to Do)

January 20

I am one of the few souls on Earth who enjoys being ridiculously busy and always having fifty million things to do. A few of my jobs include…

  • Wife to Timothy. All wives know all of the things this entails! Cleaning, grocery shopping, laundry, meals, packing lunches, making sure bae has everything together.
  • Dog mom to Gatsby, my doxador. This job includes games of fetch, walks, belly rubs and snuggles. I’m blessed with a pretty low maintenance dog, she loves to lay beside me and sleep/snuggle while I work.
  • Full-time state employee. Yes, I work a normal 9-5 job! I’ve been a social media coordinator with the state for two and a half years. They pay the bills and grad school and I work with an awesome group of people.
  • Part-time Grad Student. I’m currently on a slow track to get my Masters in Corporate Communications at Austin Peay State University.
  • Full-time Blogger. I am always actively blogging and networking. I blog three times a week and have at least 20 drafts in my queue right now! I’m constantly thinking of content that I think my readers would enjoy.
  • Full-time Small Business Owner. If you hear me talk a lot about shopping local, it’s because I’m a small business owner! I own the online based Five Sparrows Boutique. My husband does the business side while I do all the social media and buying.

Last year I was consumed with all of these things and felt like I was constantly struggling to stay organized, meet deadlines and remember everything I needed to do. I had no time for family, my husband and friends. If I did try to stop working and hang out, my nose was buried in my iPhone responding to emails and staying on top of my social media sites. I also had trouble sleeping at night with my head full of everything to do, I’d wake up in the middle of the night and be right back on my phone trying to catch-up or stay on top of work. This is clearly unhealth and unacceptable so I decided to make a change.

If you’re like me and blog while you have 50 other things you do, I have a few tips that might help.

  • Make a schedule – The cute planners weren’t enough for me. I needed to see my whole month and write what I wanted to post on which day. I also committed to posting consistently on Sunday, Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. Central. This helped know what to prepare for the week ahead and what to start thinking about in the coming days before I write a post. See I scheduled today’s post on the 20th!
    Processed with VSCOcam with c1 preset
  • Dedicate a day to blogging – Saturday is my blogging day. My husband and I get up, grab breakfast and scout locations for photos. Once we have three locations, I go home and get my outfits together. Once I have tried on and accessorized my looks, I pack it all up and take it with me. From there my photographer and I will do three different sets of photos. While I hate changing in a car, it forces me to get everything done in one day. Once that’s done, I’ll go home and edit the photos, upload them to WordPress and resize them. I usually do this while watching a movie or catching up on a TV show. Or this time of year, watch football or hockey!
  • WordPress is your best friend – WordPress is great and allows you to schedule posts that also link to your social media accounts. I write up all my posts on Saturday, link them to similar or the actual pieces, do a short write-up, spell check, proof-read and schedule. I do usually proof read my posts and check the links a day before scheduled as well. If you link your social media accounts, WordPress will let you do a short blurb of what you want to say on your social media pages. This has been a lifesaver! Before I would either forget to post on my Facebook and Twitter pages or spend forever posting individually on each site.
    unnamed
  • Don’t forget about HootSuite – My online stores social media accounts run on HootSuite. Sunday afternoon I take an hour, usually after church, and get all of my Facebook, Twitter and Instagram posts ready for the week. I do features, sales, giveaways, blogger spotlights, you name it. Then I set everything up for the next couple of days, hit schedule and don’t think another thing about it.
  • Make a checklist, but not on your phone – Is it just me or is it easier to follow a checklist after you write it on paper? It’s so satisfying to cross it off! I tried doing checklists on my phone and would either forget about it or not actively look for it. If a piece of paper is in front of me I read it and it stays on my mind to complete the task.
  • Make time for Family and Friends – I enjoy the occasional spontaneity, but I found that if I was a little too spontaneous it threw off my schedule. So as strange as it sounds, I mark off my calendar and make a special time for family and friends. When I do this I don’t unintentionally schedule something else like a meeting, conference call or other activity, I make it a point to have time just hanging out with my husband, family and friends.
  • Power Off – This is the hardest for me since I sleep with my phone next to my bed. I used to fall asleep looking at Instagram or doing research on trends for the store. I’d literally fall asleep in bed with my phone in hand. One of my goals for 2016 is to cut-off my phone by 9 p.m. No social media or internet! Read a book, do a devotion, think about your day, pray, talk with your husband. Just rest and be.

I’ve only been blogging seriously for about a year but these are a few tips that have really helped! If you have any tips that have helped you with juggling life and blogging leave it in a comment below!

logo

Tweet
Share
Pin9
Share22
+1
31 Shares

25 Comments / Filled Under: ., Learn

Related Posts

Girl’s Brunch Eggo Waffle Bar | Greta Hollar
Girl’s Brunch Eggo Waffle Bar
How to Make the Perfect Charcuterie Board | Greta Hollar - the Perfect Charcuterie Board featured by popular Nashville lifestyle blogger, Greta Hollar
How to Make the Perfect Charcuterie Board
Designing Your Dream Closet with California Closets | Popular Nashville fashion blogger Greta Hollar
Designing Your Dream Closet with California Closets
I Don’t Know About You – But I’m Feeling 26
Little Octopus

Comments

  1. Homegrown Adventures says

    January 20 at 8:49 am

    I am just like you. I love being busy and I wake up at 4 am every morning. When I’m not busy, I feel I’m not being productive. I love that my husband helps me make time for relaxing. After 5:30 pm. I have to relax. You inspire me. I bought a large calendar like you this year. It has really helped me stay organized and see the whole month. Thanks for inspiring. I’ll have to look into hootsuite. 🙂

  2. Chelsea says

    January 20 at 9:17 am

    WOW!! You’re a busy gal! I loved reading about how you manage it all, and it was especially fun to read about how you manage your fashion posts. I struggle getting those done during the week so I may have to use your routine! Does your husband do your blog pictures?

  3. gretahollar says

    January 20 at 10:00 am

    He does! He’s gotten really good at it too. It’s a great fun thing we do together.

  4. Shelby says

    January 20 at 10:24 am

    This is so helpful! I’m not near as busy as you are yet I still find myself losing time and not staying on top of posts! Great tips!

  5. Latonya (@lilthisthat) says

    January 20 at 10:25 am

    This post was so helpful. I like the way you have a blogging day. I am trying to get the hang of this for myself by having Sunday as my blogging day. I am working on scheduling social media for the week. I start of doing well then I run behind. Thanks again for the inspiration.

  6. Crystal // Dreams, etc. says

    January 20 at 10:29 am

    Great tips! I have a demanding full-time blog, a part-time job, a pup to hang out with and I’m a fiction writer on top of being a blogger. I have to put everything into a schedule and make lists in order to keep track of everything. And I’m finally learning to power off… slowly but surely. I totally identified with everything that you wrote here.

  7. Ashley (@hiashleylamar) says

    January 20 at 10:45 am

    I love the Editorial Calendar plugin on WordPress. It’s my blogging BFF and it is a huge lifesaver when it comes to scheduling and staying organized.

  8. Chelsie Carr says

    January 20 at 10:56 am

    I love your tips! I have been working on getting all my posts done for the week in one day so that I can spend the rest of my week working on other projects, like eCourses, Pinterest and social media!

  9. gretahollar says

    January 20 at 10:57 am

    I want to take your eCourse when it’s ready!

  10. juliab412 says

    January 20 at 11:42 am

    These are such great tips. I really need to set aside a day for blogging to knock out all posts for the upcoming week. Thanks so much for sharing!

  11. ljbellows says

    January 20 at 1:09 pm

    I love these! I adore to be super busy as well, so I need all these things. Especially with my huge planner; with five kids I need every single space of that;)

  12. Lauren English says

    January 20 at 8:49 pm

    So many good tips! I’ve found using Coschedule is a great way to get all my posts and social media stuff organized so I don’t go crazy trying to manage it all. The advice to unplug is so important too…I’m so glad you guys do that as well!

  13. jennyblaisdell says

    January 20 at 9:45 pm

    I’m the same way!
    My plate is similar to yours including full time job, grad school, and full time blogging…and a fiance to tend to instead of a husband. haha + wedding planning.

    These are all great tips 🙂

    xoxo, Jenny

  14. gretahollar says

    January 21 at 8:01 am

    Wedding planning is a whole new level of stress! It’ll be worth it but you’ll be exhausted for a while afterward and panic when you have free time (because you feel like you should be doing something). Good luck!

  15. Dana Peller (@Pellerini) says

    January 21 at 8:01 am

    I love Hootsuite, but I need to block off time to schedule out for the week – I am really bad at that. Sundays are my blogging days 🙂

  16. Bree Hogan says

    January 21 at 9:12 am

    Great tips, it can be hard juggling it all! Scheduling has become a must for me and I write all my to-do lists out on paper now. I had too many notes going on the phone and was losing track!

  17. Becky @ Disney in your Day says

    January 21 at 9:58 am

    I have 50,000 jobs as well haha! I try to do most of the things you mentioned. And by the way, I love that your dog is named Gatsby 🙂

  18. Beth | Daily Dog Tag says

    January 21 at 10:36 am

    Wow, I’m so impressed that you are able to manage all these things! Thanks for all the tips.

  19. Kristin Cook says

    January 21 at 12:36 pm

    Question: So Hootsuit allows you to make an instagram post and schedule it before it’s ever been posted? (Did that question even make sense? lol). I have only used a scheduling app for twitter and facebook, so I don’t really know how that works. Also, can I make a blog post go live with hootsuit?

  20. Becky @ Project Domestication says

    January 21 at 1:29 pm

    Great tips! I agree on dedicating a day. I get a lot done when I have a dedicated time.

  21. Erin says

    January 21 at 4:34 pm

    I find that keeping a planner and scheduling my social media in advance are the two best ways to stay on top of everything! I just use a paper planner, and I love Buffer for social media!

  22. sveeteskapes says

    January 21 at 10:16 pm

    OMG, this is some great list babe, adding to my bookmarks!
    xx, Kusum | http://www.sveeteskapes.com

  23. Angie Scheie says

    January 22 at 1:45 am

    You are amazing! Truly! I can’t believe how much you take on. I love large calendars like that too, but I have the worst time getting my blog posts done ahead of time. I plan when to post them, but then I don’t get the actual work done soon enough and I’m left the day before trying to figure out how to make it work. Argh! I’m going to try to make Saturdays more of a blogging day too. There is just so much to do and so little time!

  24. Ashley says

    January 23 at 12:02 am

    I’m working hard on getting a schedule done! I have a lot going on but I don’t want my blog or family to suffer! Great tips!

  25. Cara says

    January 27 at 9:04 am

    Great tips! I agree that having a consistent blogging schedule is key to staying on track, and having a dedicated blogging day really helps me focus. I usually try to do all my photography for the week in one day, and then go back in to fill all the writing. Thanks for sharing 🙂

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

greta / 20-something / nashvillian / blogger / traveler / lover of shoes and tacos / dog mom

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Popular Posts

Be Ready For Adventure: What to Have Packed in Your Bag | Greta Hollar

Be Ready For Adventure: What to Have Packed in Your Bag

March 31 By gretahollar

5 of My Favorite Wineries in Charlottesville, VA | Greta Hollar| Wineries in Charlottesville featured by top Nashville travel blogger, Greta Hollar: Stinson Vineyards

Top 5 Wineries in Charlottesville, VA

November 14 By gretahollar 6 Comments

5 Ways to Keep Your Skin Hydrated in the Winter - Winter Skincare: 5 Ways to Keep Your Skin Hydrated by popular Nashville style blogger Greta Hollar

Winter Skincare: 5 Ways to Keep Your Skin Hydrated

February 26 By gretahollar 8 Comments

Archives

Shopbop.com

Fast Free Shipping Worldwide

  • JUST ARRIVED
  • SHOP TIGHTS/STOCKINGS
  • SHOP BELT BAG

 

JUST ARRIVED

  • Stella McCartney

    Buy Wide Leg Jeans from Stella McCartney

  • Mallarino

    Hortensia Golden Galore Earrings at Shopbop

  • Rachel Zoe

    Rachel Zoe on Sale

< >

SHOP TIGHTS/STOCKINGS

  • Wolford

    heart Wolford Loop Tights

  • Falke

    Buy Net Seam Tights from Falke

  • Commando

    heart Commando Shine Sheer Tights

< >

SHOP BELT BAG

  • Tory Burch

    Fleming Matte Belt Bag fashion

  • VereVerto

    heart VereVerto

  • KARA

    Buy Now at Shopbop

< >

Shop White Sleeveless Blouse, Tan Slides, Tan Wedges Heels, Short Sleeve Blouses and more. Get this widget.

Shop now!

ShopBop
Cinq A Sept
Free People
View All Brands


Copyright © 2019 Greta Hollar · Theme by LuxiBee