Just a few weeks ago, I was sitting in my Head of School’s office talking to him about this blog. He had proposed the meeting because he wanted to know some of the strategies I use when writing.

During our conversation he asked me a question along the lines of, “Do you have a schedule for writing your blogs, and, if so, how do you keep up with it?” I thought about it for a second, then I answered with something like, “I try to post every week to two weeks. My strategy for that is, when I have some spare time, to write a few blogs that don’t have any time sensitivity to them. Then, when it’s time to post and I haven’t had time to write a new one, I just post one of those. When I have time, or there’s an issue that’s fresh, I write for that week. That seems to work for me.” He seemed to like this answer, and we kept talking.

That was just a few weeks ago and I didn’t even question my ability to stick to that plan. I didn’t question it so much that I even gave advice to the person in charge of my whole school. He wrote about it here.

Well, now here I am. It’s almost Winter Break, and I’ve been through about half of my first year in middle school. And my confidence in that strategy has slowly drained. Between the transition to middle school this year, and being the stage manager for my school play that just ran, I’ve been way busier than when I initially set that goal. I’m no longer free after school most days. Weekends are always moderately hectic. And my blog-writing strategy has had to change.

I no longer have lots of free time to get way ahead. I now just write one whenever I can. I still believe in my “get-ahead” strategy, though, that’s why, even though I love school, I have come to appreciate breaks like my upcoming Winter Break, which will give me a chance to relax slightly and catch up on things, such as my blog.

I’ve also learned valuable lessons on time management. I need to learn to look ahead and take advantage of the slower, easier times to take care of tasks that may not make it during the more hectic weeks.

There’s another lesson too and, Dave, if you’re reading this, I’m a little embarrassed. When I offered my tips on staying current with the blog, even though it was just a few weeks ago, I had not yet experienced what it seems adults deal with constantly — not enough time. In just a few weeks I’ve learned something about time management and maybe something about empathy too.

Do you ever feel like you don’t have any free time to get ahead on something, or just sit back and play your favorite game? What’s your strategy for keeping up with something you have to do periodically? Let me know in the comments below, and happy holidays!

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