Writing and Pseudo-Work

Pseudo working is all about engaging in activities that look like work but don’t produce much.

This is a common issue for writers as conducting research and using social media are all part of the writer’s world and it is easy to get distracted with non-writing activities.
The pressure to be more productive has a lot of us swept up in a mad fit of doing. Taking steps and actions and going nowhere very fast without reflecting on what our writing goals are and if there is a better way of achieving them.

I have often tried to juggle multiple writing tasks at the same time and complained about lack of time but have come to realise that the key issue is not time, but the amount of focus directed at the tasks.

When I looked at my own working patterns, I realised how easily distracted I was and how the amount of time spent on a project often had no connection with the quality or volume of the work produced.

 

How can we avoid pseudo working and make the best use of our writing time?

• Be honest by examining your work habits, making small changes and evaluating the results
• Be single minded, setting short writing goals and working in small focused bursts
• Do your research before you start writing
• Take regular planned breaks but when writing, cut out distractions and focus on writing even if you have only a few minutes
• Improve your working environment-clear your desk and turn of phones and notifications
• Practice improving your focus-set a timer to a comfortable, doable length of time, work to the timer goes off, then get up and do something else

It is only by being totally honest with ourselves about how we write that we can avoid long, painful stretches of inefficient work and the inevitable frustration that pseudo working brings.