​Here are 4 hacks that make writing easier summarized so nicely in this Podcast by Omar Zenhom at the $100 MBA Show. The objective of these hacks is to get your ideas down and get the ball rolling. Once you get more comfortable, you won't need these writing "training wheels" anymore.

Blog Writing Hack #1: Go for the "peak" first 

• start with the climax of the story first (i.e. peak of the mountain), the meat of the article
• now work backwards and write the introduction moving towards the peak (i.e. incline of mountain)
• now work on the decline of the mountain, i.e. conclusion or summary

Blog Writing Hack #2:  Speak it, don't write it

• use your phone dictation app and pretend you're being interviewed 
• once it's in text format, you can edit/rearrange after
• there are some best selling authors that actually write 'real' books this way!

Blog Writing Hack #3:  What, Why, How, Your Thoughts
Jot down your thoughts under these 4 headings, then rearrange/edit later.

• What are you talking about? What question will your article answer?
• Why is this important? Why am I writing about this?
• How do you actually do what you're trying to teach? List steps.
• Finish with your thoughts. What is your experience? Your opinion?

Blog Writing Hack #4: AIDA
From the book: This Book Will Teach You to Write Better

• [A]: Get people's ATTENTION right off that bat
• [I]: Get their INTEREST, give some interesting facts or ideas
• [D]: Get them to DESIRE whatever you want them to do
• [A]: Clearly outline the ACTION, what do you want them to do next? i.e. email signup

I'm also just starting to get into the habit of blogging (as you can tell by the small number of articles on this site currently) and I'm finding these hacks are extremely helpful with "getting it done" instead of procrastinating. 

So, tell me, what tricks/hacks do you use for blog writing? 

If you're like me, you have a bunch of aspirations to get all this stuff crossed off the To Do list every weekend, only to be disappointed Sunday night that 2/100 things were completed (or nothing at all). But what if you could have a relaxing, fun weekend AND get some shit done? You can! You just need to get organized by following this simple approach:

If you consistently dedicate 8hrs per weekend to work on your project/business, you can really maximize your efficiency on the two days that matter most and see some real progress towards your goals.

MONDAY "Get Organized" - 30min
Do some planning early in the week so you can digest it all week and gather supplies/resources needed on the weekend.

1. List tasks. What do you want to get done on the weekend? 
2. Estimate time per task. Then multiply each estimates x 2, since it always takes longer than you think
3. Prioritize. You've only got 8hrs on the weekend, so identify the most important items to finish

FRIDAY PM "Get Started" - 1hr

1. Block off an hour after work to get started on something. Create some momentum and that way Saturday you'll be able to quickly pick up where you left off
2. Get to bed early! Save the partying / late night for Sat night if that's your thing

SATURDAY AM "Early Bird Gets the Worm" - 4hrs

1. Get up EARLY. For us that's 4am so we can have 3'ish hrs before the kids wake up. TIP: When kids do wake, cue Cheerios and Sat am cartoons (I mean it didn't kill us as kids right?)
2. Rest of the day is yours to enjoy

SUNDAY PM "Over half done, don't blow it off now" - 3hrs

1. Dedicate another 3hrs in the afternoon or evening to finish up your tasks

REPEAT 
Start the cycle on Monday again, but ensure you spend a few minutes to evaluate how things went the previous weekend. Did you get everything done on your list? Get honest with yourself, why not? How can you do things differently next weekend so things go better?


References:
$100 MBA Show Podcast: How to Make The Most of Weekends to Build a Business
Blog Article: How to Make the Most of Your Weekends to Grow Your Side Business
The Complete Guide to Imperfect Homemaking: A Thorough Spring Cleaning Checklist