Methods to help you capture your blogging inspiration
I both admire and despise the people you see sitting in Cafe Nero (or Starbucks) at 11am on their Macbooks (when the rest of us have to go to work). For those of us who have full time professions to maintain as well as our websites, here are a few ways I make sure I capture my inspiration wherever I am.
The list in the top pocket
This is something I've been doing for a few weeks and it works just as well for blogging as it does everything else; I have a business-card sized piece of paper in my shirt pocket that contains a to-do list. This list dictates what I need to do that day/week/etc and it's a very useful tool. If you suddenly think of a great idea for an article you can just add it to the list and forget about it. I've found the list far more useful for remembering to pay bills and call suppliers than for blogging, but it's a very good habit to get into.
PDA
Before I broke my O2 Exec PDA phone I was able to jot ideas down with the stylus; so if I was away from my desk I could jot down an idea, maybe even with a doodle and either save it for later or email it to myself.
Email yourself
Sometimes you're at your desk but unable to write (when I'm at work). Therefore I find emailing myself is a great way to capture the idea. If I get an idea I send my seopher.com address an email explaining what I'm thinking. When I get home later that night and check my email I'll be reminded and have something to write about.
Dictate
I've seen plenty of people do this but I rarely do it; largely because I've never found a suitable situation where I wouldn't look out of place doing so. I can't exactly walk around shopping centres trying to dictate an article about monetisation - I'd look crazy. However when you're out on your own or in business districts then it's perfectly acceptable to dictate notes to yourself. In fact most mobile phones have this functionality these days.
Asus EEE-PC / Uber-small laptop
When I took a first look at the Asus EEE-PC I called it the ultimate blogging companion because of it's minute size and low price. Having a tiny-form laptop is a great idea if you're serious about staying connected on the move because it's only slightly too big for your pocket. I'm in posession of one now and it gets used a lot in our household. I really must get around to giving it a proper review...
This post was a little disjointed, I've been really busy this week (hence the lack of posting) but felt that I should try and put some content up before Google forgets about me. Got any methods I've missed out? Interested in an EEE-PC? Hit the comments.
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