I woke up this morning to over 2,000 emails in my inbox. This is a few day’s worth, actually. I only answered the most pressing stuff from the past few days. I think it would take the better part of the day to go through all the mail coming in and handle other tasks. That’s why I’ve decided to implement a weekly administrative day.

I hear what you’re saying, I’m busy too. So busy, a monthly administrative day is no longer adequate. This week I’ve been working with a schedule that’s going so well, I can take Sunday and make it an administrative day. At this stage in my career it’s a necessity.

Let me explain…

1. Email: My email is totally out of control. I know there are people waiting for me to respond to their emails just as I know there’s mail I haven’t gotten to yet. I need a few hours at a time to sort through it all and respond.
2. Product Reviews: I receive products to review on a daily basis. These are all piling up in my office. On administrative day, I can at least go through some of the stuff and schedule the reviews on my editorial calendar. Which brings me to…
3. Editorial Calendar – I already take one day each week to plan my blogging. I have a large wall calendar and once a week I write in daily topics for all my blogs. With over a dozen blogs, an editorial calendar helps to keep things flowing.
4. Comments – I like to respond to the comments on my blogs. Administrative day is a good day to catch up.
5. Accounting – We should all go through the books on a weekly basis to make sure we’re being paid in a timely manner, and send a gentle reminder to clients who strayed from the schedule.
6. Feeds – I subscribe to over 300 RSS feeds. It would be nice to be able to take a day to catch up on them all.
7. Bookmarks – I don’t even want to tell you about my bookmarks. It’s embarrassing really.
8. Stats – I check my stats each day. Several times a day, in fact. What I’d really like to do is set aside some time each week to truly analyze my traffic.
9. Revenue – The problem with being so busy is that I don’t have the time I need to really explore revenue possibilities for the blogs i own.
10. Office Clean Up – My family would thank me if I worked a simple office organization into administrative day. By the end of the week press releases, product sheets and personal notes litter the area.

As you can see, I need at least one day each week to go through everything from email to bookmarks. To let it go is only asking for a bigger headache further down the line. Plus I want to look into other things. I want to learn more about the technical aspects of blogging and using video in my blogs, for instance. When else would I have time for this? Maybe I need a whole weekend…

Do you have an administrative day? What takes do you complete these days?

I have a problem. I’m a blogaholic. I regularly update over a dozen blogs and contribute to several others. Thankfully, I’m at the point where I’m not actively looking for work. Somehow though, work always finds me. This isn’t always a good thing. You see, by not saying no I put myself in a predicament. I have to keep up my end of the bargain and not fall behind. How can I continue to take the same time to create the same quality posts for my clients when I’m taking on new work. Fortunately, I’ve developed a system for saying no. Check out my check list.

Is this job something I can really see myself doing day in and day out for my client?

Choose your niche wisely. I know there are some writers and bloggers who feel it’s ok to wing it and write about topics they don’t know much about. That’s the best way to invite blogging burnout. If you don’t love a topic, pass on the offer. Now, if it’s something for which you know you’re perfect, rock on.

Is the pay worth the extra time taken from my schedule?

When you "don’t need" new clients, pay has to be really good for you to take on another bit of work. Don’t cause stress over a few dollars. Make it worth your while.

How much time can I devote to this project each day?

If you barely have enough time to devote to your present workload, how are you going to find time for another client?

Will I be happy?

Isn’t that what it’s all about? Will you be happy working for this client? Will you be happy with more on your plate? Will you be happy blogging about the same topic day in and day out?

One of the most enjoyable parts of being able to pick and choose is having the ability to turn down projects because they’re not worth the money or they’re not something you’d enjoy. By the same token, you’re also in a position where you can hold out for the really good gigs – the ones you’ll say yes to.

Image: stock.xchnge

If you blog for a network you probably have to meet a minimum number of posts each week or month. I’ve worked for some networks where at least one post every day for six days a week is cool. I worked for other places where they expected three to five posts a day, minimum. If you’re blogging for more than one network or person, this can be a little tricky. Fortunately there are ways to make it work.

1. Post Ahead – If there’s a specific day or time where you can work for long blocks of times undisturbed, do what you can to post ahead. For some of my blogs, I’ll do a week’s worth of posts at one time and time stamp them to appear on the appropriate days during the week. If I have time during the week, I can add extra posts if there’s news to share, but at least I have my quotas covered.
2. Work with an Editorial Calendar – I have a large wall calendar in my office and I use it to write in topics for each day. I also note upcoming holidays and news making events. This way I don’t have to waste precious time brainstorming or dealing with blogger’s block. I look up, note the day’s topic and get busy. I’ll generally write out the week’s calendar on the weekend.
3. Find Time to Work Undisturbed – For me, the most important tip I can offer is to find time to work when no one will bother you. I get up before dawn to work before my family wakes, plus I have three hours in the morning while kindergarten is in session and a few hours in the evening. My family and friends are aware of my working hours and know I can’t be disturbed unless it’s an emergency.
4. Use an Offline Blog Editor – If you read my other blogs you know I’m always singing the praises of Windows Live Writer. It’s such a time saver. An offline blog editor allows me to blog offline and post later, post ahead of time, and switch blogs without having to log onto the various platforms and dashboards.
5. Turn Off Distractions – My biggest distractions come from social networking, especially Skype and Twitter. If I’m really serious about getting work done I have to stay away from forums, other blogs, and my favorite social networking sites and tools. Once the work is done, you can socialize to your heart’s content.

Many network bloggers accept a gig with the best of intentions only to find they can’t keep up with the quotas. Before accepting any job make sure you’re not biting off more than you can chew. Sometimes, it’s just a matter of planning.

Image via stock.xchnge