Putting on my ‘Top’ Hat…

by @AnnieDaylon

Ever struggle with wondering if you are doing enough, or if you are doing the right thing as an author? I certainly do.

A while back, I attended a workshop by successful indie author, Jodi McIsaac, who listed twelve hats that an indie author must wear, among them: writer, editor, bookkeeper, webmaster, marketer, distributor, etc. Sometimes my head is spinning with choices: Which hat today? Do I need to update my site? Do I focus on marketing? Do I work on my budget? It’s dizzying!

I have come to realize that I cannot do it all; when I try to wear too many of these hats in one day, my writing (quantity and quality) takes a hit. I have to set priorities.

Recently, I found two helpful posts that deal with making such choices:
What Learning to Say No Really Means by Alexis Grant, and
Fighting Overwhelm: How I am Learning to Refocus My Workload by Joanna Penn.
Both talk about managing workload, about focusing your time, about giving up some things, even things you don’t want to give up.

The key for me?
Deciding the most important thing and doing that FIRST and FOREMOST. Right now, that happens to be writing the first book in a novel trilogy. I am immersed in it, writing every morning for a minimum of three hours.
Yes, I tweet. Yes, I blog. But mostly, I write.

If you are juggling too many hats: stop, focus, prioritize, and choose the hat that best fits right now.

For me the right thing, right now, is the write thing. That’s my ‘Top’ Hat!

What’s yours?

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My best to you,