Several people have asked recently how I manage to blog as frequently as I do (currently 5 posts per week), so I thought I’d share some strategies.

1. Make a committment

First of all, you need to like blogging. If you don’t enjoy it very much, this first step is where you’ll likely stumble.

Everybody wants to post more frequently, but not everybody commits. If you can make a commitment to a concrete goal, you’ll be well on your way.

You need to be specific. “I will blog more frequently” is not specific. “I will blog once each week, on Fridays” will be far more powerful.

But I think the bigger secret may be that the goal does not need to be long term. It just needs to be long enough to establish a habit.

“I will publish a blog post each Friday for the next two months” is a powerful goal. You’ll have set specific, easily measurable guidelines for yourself, and you will have established an end goal. At that point, you can circle back and re-evaluate.

2. Be flexible

Once you’re reached your short-term goal, you can set a new goal, making adjustments where needed.

You should try different goals and different approaches but stick with each experiment long enough to determine if it’s working for you.

Good startups pivot. They retain their mission, but adjust strategies (sometimes radically) as needed in order to evolve their business model. Your blog is a startup, so you should approach things the same way.

Your commitment to whatever it is you hope to accomplish through your blog remains steady, but your commitment to the goals for publishing need to adjust periodically.

3. Build a habit

As ironic as it may sound, routine breeds creativity. The best writers will tell you that the discipline of writing is really the hard part. It’s not about sitting around thinking great thoughts, nor is it about awaiting inspiration. Rather, “the muse honors the working stiff” is often their mantra.

Trust that the ideas will come, and focus instead on establishing writing habits.

Figure out when and where you will write and then work to build a habit of doing so. It will not be fluid or natural at first, but as you persist a pattern will eventually be established. And this pattern will become key to unleashing your creativity and to simply getting the work done.

4. Be flexible (again)

A disciplined routine is key, for sure. But you’re really trying to use that routine to establish a habit. A habit that persists even when components of that routine cannot.

There are a bunch of things that can throw you off your routine. Travel, work, family, or even the weather can force you out of position. But, if you’ve established the habit of writing, and you’ve retained your commitment to doing it, you will find a way to adjust. And they you’ll get back to your routine.

It’s important to make these adjustments when necessary. Do not give yourself a pass, as it will only weaken your habit.

5. Use smart tactics

Maintaining discipline and a routine can be challenging. Even when you’re flexible, circumstances will sometimes be impossible to overcome. So why not stack the deck in your favor a bit by using some simple tactics?

When the muse appears and things are flowing well for you, write an extra post or two and set it aside for a rainy day. Publish those when circumstance won’t allow for your normal routine.

Similarly, you can build a habit of writing posts in advance. Most blogging platforms will allow you to schedule them for publishing at a later date. This way, you can stay ahead of things and not feel like you’re always writing on deadline.

And you can experiment. Trying a new type of post or writing on a different but related topic can really get the juices flowing and help you to generate new content. It’s another way of being flexible.

Committed, but flexible

Making a strong commitment and establishing habits and routines is going to get you a long way. Being flexible when needed will help you keep those commitments and habits in place.

Soon you’ll be generating more content and publishing more frequently. And hopefully that will all work in service of your larger goals. If it doesn’t, you need to adjust.

Remember, it’s ok to pivot. In fact, it’s critical that you do. So work diligently enough so that you have something meaningful to assess, but then change it when needed.

Photo credit: Stephan Mosel