The 5 A.M. Secret: How to Balance Blog and Family

Friday, May 22nd, 2009 | Blogging, Christian Living

I have a FULL-time job. A family of four. A close-knit group of friends. And a robust blog writing schedule. 

That seems to impress some of you. 

What’s my secret? Simple. Call me at 5 in the morning… 

Or 9:00 P.M. on a Friday night. 

True, I don’t have a social life. Am rather dull. Fond of solitude and books

But all my leisure time–meaning children are asleep and the wife is folding laundry or out with the girls–is spent with my nose in a book. My hand on a pencil. And a notebook on my lap.

And you know what? I wouldn’t want it any other way. 

At some point, usually early in the morning, I sit down with the laptop and knock out a blog post or two.

Trust me: I’d love a short cut. But in all my years of writing, I’ve found the only shortcut is truly the long way: hard work. 

And the way I see it, if you work harder than everyone else…you learn more about your craft. You become faster, stronger, smarter.

Even happier. 

About the Beatles Malcolm Gladwell said, “Talented? Absolutely. But the Beatles also simply put in more hours than anyone else.”

It helps that I love what I do. From family to work to friends to blog. And I keep a ruthless focus on ONLY those four. It’s a planned neglect of everything else.

Christ naturally gets the bulk of my time, attention and adoration. But when I’ve got down time, I crack open the books, sharpen the pencils and hunker down for some good, old-fashion work.

That’s my secret to balancing blog and family. What’s your secret?

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6 Comments to The 5 A.M. Secret: How to Balance Blog and Family

Abigail
May 22, 2009

My secret: blogging with a baby on my lap and with two kids having adventures at the table next to me. :) Learning to make my points quickly and carefully or not at all..

I’m game for trying the 5am thing.. but I think I’ll wait a few years, till my sleep is more regular.

Demian Farnworth
May 22, 2009

I love it: “Learning to make my points quickly and carefully or not at all….” That’s about right. Fortunately, blogging is beautiful for that format.

By the way, I’m an early bird, so early works for me. My wife, on the other hand, is a night owl. She’s hitting her stride when I’m falling asleep, circa 9 PM. Like two ships passing in the night. ;-) Have a great weekend, Abigail!

Trevor
December 7, 2009

Both my wife and I are night owls, and we live in an apartment where the only place to really sit down and write is in a common area. I’ve traditionally been the kind of writer that needs quiet to avoid becoming easily distracted. Naturally, my blog has suffered from this.

I’d love to do the 5 a.m. thing, but it’s tough when we’re both up late. Another wrench: I write for a living, so sometimes the last thing I want to do when I come home is stare at a computer screen and continue battering my brain.

Maybe I just need a hefty dose of discipline.

Demian Farnworth
December 7, 2009

Trevor: It’s indeed a balancing act. And I know what you mean when you say it’s tough to write for something else when you do it for a living. Kind of like the house painter who’s house isn’t painted.

How often do you write for your blog? Maybe you just need to set different expectations, like publish once or twice a week or even less. See if that doesn’t help. [It has me!]

Derek
December 7, 2009

As a new blogger I have found it hard to try to find that balance,so far.Trying to spend time with the family and trying to come up with a blog post or even research a topic.I don’t have many friends so my social life is the last thing that would ever get in the way.I found I may get a few post done a few days in a row then something comes up were I am away from the computer for a few days.Plus working full time,sometimes you come home a just want to relax the last thing you want to do is try to write a blog post.I got into blogging because I think it would be a great way to meet new people and practice my writing.The last thing I wanted blogging to become was a chore or something I should try to fit in somewhere.I guess these things I need to overcome to get going. By the way I really like the name of your blog!

Demian Farnworth
December 8, 2009

Derek, yeah, blogging does suck when it becomes a chore. That’s one of the reasons I took the break. Needed to refresh. It also helps to pace yourself…just promise to write one article a week…something like that. Take care and thanks for stopping by!

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