I’m writing another book, a memoir. I may or may not publish it, but I’m writing it for my family and myself. At first, it seemed like an overwhelming task, but now that I have committed to writing it only in 15-minute chunks each day, I am progressing at an amazing rate and the stress level has decreased.
I’ve been inspired to finish projects by reading a book by Samantha Bennett entitled, Get it Done in which she talks about the 15-minute chunk. I had a manuscript I wanted to publish at the beginning of the pandemic. I had sold a PDF version, but I needed to put it in publishable book form. Inspired by Bennett, I contacted a friend and former colleague, Mame, dubbed her my business manager and, within a short period of time, we got it done. Now, it’s selling around the world on Amazon.
Writing a second book seemed more daunting than the first and it’s much different than working for an organization and writing to their deadlines. I decided to try the 15-minute chunk each day.
It’s working!
Want to write a book? Write for 15 minutes each day, no slip ups. No, you don’t have to spend all morning or all afternoon, or all day, just be consistent with 15 minutes a day.
Want to get that mess in the craft room cleaned up? Spend 15 minutes a day on it, then close the door and walk away until tomorrow.
Judy was tasked with the project to clean up her parents’ home. A lot of memorabilia needed to be labelled, catalogued, and put into a form that the family can understand and enjoy. An overwhelming process? Not so bad, says Judy, when you only do it 15 minutes a day.
The thing is, doing things in small chunks isn’t new. My friend Polly always has such a neat and tidy home. I asked her one day how she did it. “I just clean up after myself,” she said. “I don’t leave it to do it all at one time. That’s too much work.” I tried it. No one had told me I could do it that way and I discovered it worked so much better than piling things up for Saturday morning!
In the summer, I read a book about meditation I had picked up at a garage sale. How to Sit by Thich Nhat Hanh. I felt overwhelmed just thinking about learning how to meditate but I decided to break it into small pieces. I read a page a day and shared it with my Facebook friends. Every day for 54 days, I read and posted what I had learned from this book. The book consisted of one-page chapters with only one thought per chapter. I didn’t spend more than 15 minutes a day on the reading and the writing. I now have new knowledge about a subject I had wondered about for years, and so do a few of my friends.
I am writing every morning, as I usually do, and 15 minutes of the time is for putting words into my memoir. I’m writing less and enjoying it more – and getting more accomplished with less stress.
Maybe there’s something you want to get done that could benefit from the 15-minute chunk. I recommend it!
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Laurie Mueller, M.Ed is retired and living in Victoria with her husband, Helmuth. She recently published The Ultimate Guide on What to Do When Someone You Love Dies, available on Amazon. More about Laurie can be found at www.lauriemconsulting.com or on Facebook.