Making Money Online: Making Writing Goals, and Sticking to Them

I write articles online to make money. But I won't make money if I don't write. And with my somewhat naturally care-free and undisciplined personality, I often have trouble getting down to the business of work. While writing is not exactly a chore for me, it isn't one of my top favorite things to do. I like reading. I like visiting with my family and friends. I like socializing on forums, and painting and playing around.

There is virtually an endless supply of fun distractions I could create to avoid working. So what is a girl like me to do?

To start, I've never been able to stick with things, even if I really enjoy them. There are a lot of things I like to do. I'm great at starting projects, and planning them, and getting them going. But as soon as the motivation wears off, the "project", whatever it may be, gets dropped into the Big Pile of Unfinished Stuff. Luckily for the sake of hygiene, this is a only a metaphorical pile.

So in order to get my writing done, I need some type of external motivator. Just desiring an income isn't enough to get me going when it actually comes down to it. I'm a visual person, and need visual stimulation to get me into the mood. For me, it's "out of site, out of mind".

One way I get myself motivated to write is to have actual visual reminders of what exactly I want to get done. To start with, I write a list. One of my quirks is that if I write a to-do list, I almost always feel compelled to cross things off of it. And the best way to get my crossing-off fix is to actually do the thing.

I might be being a bit facetious here, but the point is real: figure out something that WORKS for you. Mine is to-do lists. Yours might be something totally different that would never work for someone like me, and vice versa.

Another thing that improves my chances of completing my writing goals is to break things up into the smallest components possible. Start with a major goal, say "write 40 articles this month". Then break it down. Make a plan to write ten articles per week. Break it down even further, to two articles a day. Then break down each article into different parts, such as research, outlining and so on. Then when it gets down to the actual work, you only have to deal with a bit at a time.