Marketing Yourself While Marketing Others

Among bloggers, we know to get your name out there you have to start your own blog. To make that blog a success, you have to write every day. EVERY DAY! And it's the truth.

Have I managed to pull this off? No. For me, it's just not realistic to put aside time for my own blog every day. I'm a single mother, and of my own choosing I do not work on the weekends. My work hours are M-F 8ish to 4ish. That's it. At the end of the day, I'm doing all this for him, to give him a life, so when he's with me I'm mom and no one else.

Freelancers and small businesses alike have this very same problem. How do you make time to market yourself when you're time is consumed working for your clients/customers? I still have no answer for this. The best I can come up with is do what you can when you can.

I've been swamped the past week and a half, a very good problem to have, and I just haven't gotten to it. Today I started early, so today I'm writing a bit for myself before diving into client work.

I also make it a point to not overly promise anything. I pad my deadlines with clients so I have wiggle room for unexpected occurrences and pleasant surprises for them when I finish something early. This helps create time to put into my own writing and marketing myself.

Fellow freelancers, if ever I find the perfect answer to this conundrum, I will share it with the world. Until then, this is all I got. Don't give up. When you've slipped away from your own work for a while don't shelve it. Get back to it and revive it. And for the small businesses, hire a freelancer like me to help. We'll be the first to sacrifice our own marketing to make time for yours.

Update on the 20 minute challenge: Days 1 - 3 were good. I saw the results I was expecting, more energy and productivity. My breaks were spent doing yoga, jumping jacks, chores, or I'd get up and run a quick errand. Days 4 - 7 I was so busy I completely forgot about the challenge. I resumed it today and for my first break practiced doing a hand stand. Only took me about five times before I was able to get my feet up over my head.