Time is precious, and yet we all tend to waste it (including myself here). Time management can be a tricky business, especially when you’re using social media. Here are some things I’ve learned from ten years managing social media for myself and others.

Use a Timer

A good timer, such as Noko (the one I use) helps you see in graphic format exactly where your time is going. If you don’t have the money for a professional timer or app, any timer will help. I used to use an egg timer, and that worked fine. Something about the ticking really did help. If you’re short on time, you might like: What if you only have 30 minutes for social media?

Plan Each Day

Before you start working, have a plan. Now, you may not follow the plan, but at least you have a structure to fall back onto when you think “now what was I supposed to be doing?” Because you will forget and become distracted without a plan. My planning takes roughly 5-7 minutes to do, either the night before or the day of. A social media content calendar is a very good idea, by the way. You can use Excel or you can use a social media content calendar, such as this one from Later.

Photo by jakuza

Prioritize

Once you’ve written down everything you have to do, prioritize. You probably have 5-7 things you must do each day. Decide which items are necessities. Then decide which you’ll do first, second, third, etc.

Have a Reason

Why are you on Twitter? What are you doing on Facebook? Stick to your reason, post, and have a definite period of time you plan to be there. Then get out before you get sucked in! Because you will get sucked in…there are a million billion videos of cute kittens just waiting for you.

Photo by Joi

Maintain Focus

Stay focused on your purpose for being on social media. Are you there to comment on others’ posts? Then do that? Are you there to check on your own posts? Do that and (again) get out!

Delegate

If you get distracted easily, you might want someone else to do your social media for you. Find someone who can post, or who can engage on your behalf. Need more time? You might want to Outsource Your Social Media.

Keep it Quiet

Most people thrive with a quiet environment, especially if you tend to get sensory overload from being online.

Photo by judy dean

Use White Noise

A white noise generator can also work if the sound of waves or wind help you. I like one that has birds (quietly) chirping, along with a few frogs.

Learn to Say No

Saying no is perhaps the most important tactic of all. Think of a few different ways to say no. In the article 7 Tips for Saying No Effectively, Joseph Albert suggests being assertive and courteous: “You might say, “I’m sorry I can’t right now but will let you know when and if I can.” This approach is polite, and puts you in a position of power by changing the dynamic.” Isn’t that wonderful? He also suggests standing firm when pushed, which leads me to the next suggestion…

Be Ruthless

Guard your time like a dragon guards its lair. It’s your life and your business, after all! Who else is going to guard it?

White Chocolate and Cheese Parfait by Warren Laine-Naida

Our topic for #Digiblogchat on Twitter for July 21, 2020 was Quarantine Cooking. We had so many interesting replies and recipes that I thought a summary might be nice. Join us on Twitter for #digiblogchat every Tuesday at 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time! Here are the questions, followed by some of the answers.

Q1. What’s the best dish or cocktail you’ve created during quarantine?

Q2. What were some strange ingredient substitutions you’ve made? 

Q3. What recipes or cooking ideas didn’t work out? 

Chinese Chicken Salad

Q4. Do you have any recipe that you’d like to share? 

Justine (@jpretorious) shared this recipe with NO stale fried noodles: A4) Chinese chicken salad https://nomnompaleo.com/chinese-chicken-salad… #DigiBlogChat

 

 

 

A4: @Omneya_Nabil shared her favourite 2-minute snack recipe.  

Q5. How often do you get take-out food (or do you only cook at home)? 

White Chocolate and Cheese Parfait by Warren Laine-Naida

Q6. What have you baked lately? 

Chef Warren Laine-Naida (@WarrenLNaida) shared his recipe for White Chocolate and Cheese Parfait. (This looks luscious!)

Beth (@AdventureGlass) said A6. no No baking when it’s so hot outside. 

And Justine Pretorious (@jpretorious) mentioned A6) Banana Bread with Blackberries and the rasberry oatmeal bars. My hubby loves his pastries! 

Poppyseed cake

Not to be outdone, @maricarjagger baked this poppyseed cake for a friend. It turned out very well, delicious especially with some raspberry coulis (another secret weapon in my cooking arsenal)

Q7. What’s the simplest meal you’ve made? 

Q8. Any tips for making fresh produce last longer? 

Larry (@LazBlazter) said A8. Grow your own if possible and pick it when you are about to eat. 

Roast Chicken with Lemon Butter and Garlic

Q9. What’s your laugh-out-loud go-to meal and why? 

Omneya @Omneya_Nabil  said A9: My specialty roast chicken with lemon butter and garlic. It’s the first dish I ever cooked with my roommates at my college dorms. We always take photos and send them to each other when we cook this dish.

Justine said A9) Frozen cauliflower pizza because it only takes 12 minutes :)

Pampered Chef Chopper

Q10. What’s your favorite, most-used kitchen appliance? 

Beth (@AdventureGlass) said A10. Pampered Chef Chopper – love that thing #digiblogchat

And several people mentioned that their coffee maker was their favorite! There was also a vote for a refrigerator.

When clients want to overshare from their personal lives on something that has nothing to do with their target audience, I wonder if quality is an issue. Sometimes a cat photo is the perfect thing, sometimes not. And we don’t always want to hear the details of every surgery. Do we? I don’t. Maybe you don’t, either.

Who’s Your Audience?

The only way to really tell if what you’re doing works or not is by seeing how your audience responds. Sometimes sharing inappropriate stuff can be helpful. We’re all human, after all. But when every image is out of focus and of bad quality? When every other tweet is one where you’re asking people to buy sunglasses at a *super* discount? How is that anything other than noise? You might like this article about oversharing: What Happens to Your Audience When You Overshare. (Can you tell this isn’t my first rant on this topic?)

Social Media Can Be Noisy

Of course, the Interwebs is a noisy place. We’ve all seen it getting noisier and noisier. But do you turn away when there’s too much of it? I think a lot of people do. All the political screaming is getting worse. And with November around the corner, will the noise lessen? Probably not. I like this article about creating content that cuts through the noise, from Forbes. Yes, it’s more than two years old, and still relevant. Anyway, like others, I doubt that sharing on social media ever changes someone’s mind. Has it ever changed yours?

Pay to Play

If you really need to get your (high quality) content out to an audience, you might consider pay to play. It’s one way to ensure that people really do see your message. Of course, check that you are really targeting the correct audience, edit your article, and make sure it’s something your audience wants to see.

If Quality Isn’t An Issue?

If quality isn’t an issue, then posting any old thing is just perfect. A picture of an old rotten lemon? Perfect! Out-of-focus pix of the neighbor’s back fence? Why not? But it isn’t 2001 anymore, and there’s a lot more competition online to get it right. People really do want quality. And you might like this article: What Happened to Quality Versus Quantity on Social Media?

What if Quality IS An Issue?

You can stand out from the crowd by posting things of higher quality, rather than lots of posts of lower quality. Maybe consider posting less, but of higher quality. Some brands only post 2-3 tweets a week and maybe post only once on Facebook each week. Could that be you? Or do you feel obligated to keep up with the Jones?

Tweetchats, Part Two: How to Get Started

Want to know more about Tweetchats? I’ve been writing a longish guide, with part one below.

• Tweetchats, Part One

When Hosting Tweetchats, A Shorter Name is Better

Now you’re ready to pick a name for your tweetchat! Here’s where brainstorming comes in. Remember that every character you use takes away from the 280 characters that you have as your basic real estate. And don’t forget your user name also eats up some of those characters. And so does your hashtag!

Register Your Hashtag

Register Your Tweetchat’s Hashtag

Before you decide on a name for your tweetchat, do a search on Twitter.  Ensure that no one else is using the name, in particular for something unsavory. Once you’ve picked a name, you can register your hashtag on Twubs or hashtag.org. Here is a complete guide to creating a hashtag. As you can see, the hashtag for my tweetchat, #Digiblogchat, has already been registered (by me!). Although this doesn’t have any legal weight, it does add legitimacy to your hashtag.

Decide If You Want a Partner or Partners

It’s much easier to have a tweetchat if you have a partner or two. If you go on vacation they can fill in. If you have a holiday, they can help out. And if you’re sick, that’s another reason to have a partner to help out. My partner, Larry (@lazblazter on Twitter), is in the U.K., and his holiday schedule isn’t the same as ours in the U.S. So occasionally he’ll lead the chat while I’m on vacation and vice-versa. If you choose a partner, make sure they have the same interests as you. For instance, on #Digiblogchat, we talk about all things digital, blogging, plus a host of other topics that are crowdsourced. Does your partner have the same agenda as you? Also, your partner will probably have different followers on Twitter and can promote the chat in different timezones with varying people, too. I highly recommend having a partner.

Pick a Time and Day

This can be a little tricky if your partner is far away. You want a time that’s convenient but doesn’t interfere with work schedules. Mondays and Fridays are often rolled into holidays for three-day weekends, so for #Digiblogchat we chose Tuesday. Besides, Tuesday is the best day of the work week! It’s not Monday (Ugh! Monday!) and it’s not Friday (is work over yet?). That’s just me, though. You may have your own reasons for scheduling your chat on a Monday or a Friday.

Another tricky thing is the time change. Twice a year Pacific Time is out of sync with BST, and that can mean a headache. Our 1:00 pm Pacific Time slot is good because I can get a bunch of work done in the morning, and it’s after Larry’s job is done, since it’s after dinner in the U.K.

Social Media Examiner suggests that you “Use a tool like Followerwonk to figure out when your followers are most active, so you’ll know the best time to host your chat.” Here are their other suggestions: How to Create a Twitter Chat: 4 Suggestions.

More Parts Planned

If there’s something specific you’d like to see addressed, let me know! For now, though, I’m planning the following:

• Part Three: Promoting Your Tweetchat
• Part Four: Weekly Chores
• Part Five Measuring Your Success

If you’ve ever been on Twitter and have more than 100 followers, you know how chaotic it can be. Nobody likes to experience a firehose of content! And yet, some people keep their followers low to avoid the chaos. You don’t have to do that! Here are some ideas to make your Twitter experience a little easier.

Use Lists

Don’t just create lists, subscribe to others’ lists. And by use them, I mean check in on them daily. You can have many lists, and here’s a post you might like with all the details: Twitter Lists for the Power User. Yes, it’s five years old (but updated). And still a good guide. Additionally, use a scheduler like Hootsuite and create a column for your favorite list!

Photo by astro_matt

Participate in Chats

One way to avoid bots on Twitter is to participate in chats. You don’t necessarily have to participate in #DigiBlogChat, but get on one or two or three chats to find people who truly engage on Twitter. Then add those people to your own list and follow them there. By following the chat hashtag, you’ll weed out the other conversations happening on Twitter at the same time. A couple that I like are #KBtribechat (kitchens and baths) at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time on Wednesdays, and #Innochat (innovations) on Thursdays at 9 am Pacific Time. Twitter Chats: 101 Tips for Success.

Avoid Twitter Storms

A Twitter storm is something that can happen if you post something controversial. Of course, people say controversial things every day, but sometimes tweets land at the right (or wrong) times. If you ever are involved in a Twitter storm, you may want to read How to Survive a Twitter Storm. This may happen for the right reason or the wrong reason. Either way, it can be overwhelming.

Have a Strategy

That is, know why you’re on Twitter, use a timer of some type, and get out when the gettin’s good! A scheduler can help you avoid putting too much time into Twitter. One strategy that helps a lot of people is to have a daily strategy. So you may want to post about a certain topic for each day of the week. Unless, of course, you’re just there for fun–in which case, all bets are off! Sprout Social has a terrific post about Twitter Marketing: The Only Guide You Need. And they also have a guide to which Twitter metrics you should be tracking. Hint: don’t worry too much about the vanity metrics, such as followers. And by the way, Twitter has analytics built right into the platform, so you can use those.

Believe That It’s Possible!

That might sound silly, but it’s really possible to NOT waste your entire day on Twitter. Allot a certain amount of time, and get out. If you need to have a big buzzer go off when your time is up, do that. Put the big, bright shiny object down! Of course, you can contact me if you have any issues and I’m glad to help.

Since Covid-19 struck, you might have made some changes to your life. It’s reassuring to bake banana bread, and you might have even created a Jell-O salad or three in your effort to bring back the past. Sometimes those moments of traveling back in time can be positive. You might even wonder why you stopped doing some things that you really enjoyed. Is the newest, shiniest thing always the best you might wonder? No, it’s not! So let’s bring back some of these!

Writing the Old-Timey Way

One example of going backwards is writing in a journal. These days, the bullet journal has become very popular, especially on Instagram. But how about just plain ol’ journal writing? What’s wrong with that? Nothing, that’s what! You might like these 379 Bullet Journal Ideas.

Thank You Cards

Paper ones–not virtual ones. Because who does that anymore? When was the last time you received an actual hand written thank you card in cursive? Probably Neverary! If you have a little extra time, why not send one? You might want to use Gratitude to power your social media campaign while you’re at it.

Cursive

Since cursive isn’t taught in schools anymore, using it has become a kind of secret code. To me, cursive is very, very cool. Make that very, very, very cool. Seriously, when you write that thank you card, write it in cursive! And if you have a kid who loves cursive, they might want to join the Cursive is Cool contest.

Actual Phone Calls

Remember when you used to use your phone…as a phone? lol Me, neither. Making phone calls is an excellent way to connect with people. You can even scare people by calling and not texting first. Again, nobody does that anymore. By the way, you might like this article: Yes, why not call your friends on the telephone? They might even think something is wrong if you just ring them up.

Knitting

Now knitting has enjoyed a resurgence lately, but if you’re locked down in quarantine, there’s nothing better than knitting. You can knit while you’re on a Zoom call, while binging on NetFlix, or any time. It’s fun and relaxing.

Strawberry Cake

Baking

Of course baking is hugely popular right now, and stores are even running out of yeast and flour. Who knew baking would be so necessary? And if you have to eat your own cooking, why not making it extra special? By the way, if you’d like the recipe for the strawberry cake, let me know. (I’m rewriting it as I finish this blog post.)

Conversation

No list would be complete without mentioning the art of conversation. To me, this is the most important of the lost arts. Being on our phones, watching YouTube videos, and texting each other doesn’t cut it. Do you agree? Engagement and conversation are what makes our lives better. In fact, many people have discovered that being closer to family is one of the best things to happen during the quarantine.

We’re all really busy, although since we’re mostly working from home some of us are less busy because we’re not commuting. And some of us are not working at all, which adds to our stress. We all have the same amount of time, yet how we spend it determines our success in life. Some of us may binge endless Netflix shows, while others overeat. Right now, balance is difficult for everyone.

Time Management

Many people determine what tasks get priority using the Eisenhower method of time management. You’ve seen the grid with the urgent versus the important, right? But are the urgent, not important tasks winning out too many times these days? Here’s the wikipedia on the Eisenhower Method. You can see that exercise, vocation, and planning are all in the urgent and important quadrant.

Where Is Writing in Your Quadrant?

If writing is one of those important and urgent tasks that never gets done, why?  Is there a way to shift that task so it’s higher up? And if it feels like such a chore to do it, why? Sometimes I have to ask myself what’s going on, and answering that question allows me to continue writing. So if there’s a block somewhere, knowing what’s causing it might also help you write more. And if that writing really never gets done, contact me because I know someone who could help (ahem!).

The Freshmaker!

What’s fresh in your world? That is to say, what do you consider to be fresh content? Pay attention to the articles that capture your attention as you look at other people’s blogs, or articles in your newsfeed that cause you to stop in your tracks. Could you write something similar? For example, you might like scientific articles with loads of data. Can you write about science and data for your own audience and make it interesting? Make sure that the types of articles you write will resonate with your audience, though. More about audience here: Target Audience and Social Media. Make sure to include your audience’s pain points when you write.

The Writing Itself

Which brings us to the writing itself. If you want your content to be fresh, make sure it sparkles. Edit and remove any excessively flabby parts. Be ruthless with that virtual red pen! And if editing isn’t one of your strengths, hire an editor–it’s well worth the price. You might like this article about editors: Eleven Ways an Editor Can Make You Fascinating. As you might have guessed, I’m a huge fan of editors.

Make it Fun

Without a sense of play, writing can become a chore. Do your readers enjoy themselves when they read your words? While it’s not always easy to measure, an occasional compliment from a reader can really help catapult you into writing more.

Writer’s Block

In her excellent article, How to Beat Writer’s Block, New Yorker author Maria Konnikova outlines several ways writers have cured writer’s block. Graham Green kept a dream journal for many years. Others turned to psychotherapy. Letting writers have an escape, whether through a dream journal or through exercises designed to unleash creativity allow words to flow more freely. Perhaps lowering stress through any means helps with writer’s block.