Something interesting has happened to me lately. I’ve finally discovered the holy grail of time management. Wanna know the secret? Compartmentalization. Yep. No joke.

Compartmentalization means putting the various demands on your time and attention into different compartments of your day and letting nothing, not even thoughts, interfere. For me this means I decide what compartment of the day is for writing and I don’t worry about any other thing I “should” be doing. For two hours every morning, I write. Period. I don’t schedule appointments or playdates, I don’t clean the kitchen and I don’t let mommy-guilt kick in and convince me I should be playing with my boys. It’s my writing time.

When writing time is over, then I can set aside my manuscript, synopsis, query, or whatever I’m working on and go about my day. When I’m with my kids I am now with them, not thinking about how I should be writing. Likewise, when I’m writing, I’m not thinking about how I should be with my kids. Each has it’s time in my day and I can feel happy about the time I devote to both.

Sure, you might be thinking, but what about those of us who have to work a full-time job? It’s no different really. In fact, you’re already doing it, to some degree. The time you spend at your day-job is the compartment of time that you devote to that job. You aren’t worrying about your kids or your writing at that time because you are present in that moment, doing your job the best you know how. When you go home, you probably devote those three hours or whatever you have to dinner and family. After the kids are in bed, the next compartment of time is devoted to your spouse, your writing, or your mental health (reading a book, watching TV). You have already started compartmentalizing your day. Maybe all you need to do to find time to write is to shuffle responsibilities around or ask for help from family members. If you can’t find a compartment of time for writing during the week, maybe Saturday afternoons are your writing compartments. That counts, too.

My challenge to you is to take a hard look at your day. Figure out if you can change things around, set a schedule, and stick with it. Your kids and family will learn to respect your time (because you teach them to respect it. It may take a little while, but they will learn and you will get your time). When you’re feeling like skipping writing one day, don’t. Just do it. Don’t think about it, just sit down and do it. You’re going to feel so much better when you’re finished.

Naturally, this advice can be applied to anything: a side business, a hobby such as scrapbooking or painting. Sleeping. Reading. Volunteering at your favorite charity. Decide what matters in your life and give that a compartment of your time. Let everything else go.

So now you’re probably wondering what compartmentalizing your day has to do with writing faster. When you have a devoted amount of time every single day, and you know you can’t do anything else but write during this time, you will start producing more pages. You won’t have people, thoughts, or other demands pulling you out of your writing. You are fully present in this time.

You’ll be happier, more efficient, and if you’re like me, you’ll have another finished book to sell. Happy writing!