To try and avoid another of those New Years resolution “of course I’ll be better this time” posts which drivels on for the best part of forever I’m going to keep this short, hopefully the level of posting will speak for itself.

I can say that although my posting here has been lacking I have made good progress with my other projects and I’m pleased to say that I’m finally ready to launch one of my new sites www.cateringpenguin.co.uk, I’ll give a detailed overview of it in a future. The next step is going to be a marketing/SEO drive which I’m looking forward to going into detail of my successes and failures here.

So until next time (which I hope won’t be quite as long!).

Picture the scene, I’ve just finished eating dinner after a session as the gym, it’s 9:30 and I’ve got some free time. What do I do:

1. Get an hour work done.
2. “Quickly” look at something on YouTube and suddenly realise it’s past 11.

Not hard to guess is it? Having started working full time I’ve been hit by how little free time you have, it’s incredible how quickly the end of another week can roll around again without you realising, I’d go as far as saying rather scary actually.

So I’ve put together a weekly schedule for myself to try and optimize my time a little better. Firstly I outlined a realistic amount of time I want to try and dedicate towards my internet goals every week alongside anything else that I plan to do on a weekly basis. I then split everything up and added it into my calender trying to make sure that I’d left sensible gaps for breaks etc. I’ve attached a screenshot of the result below (click to enlarge).

As you can see I’ve split my time into three sections: work, internet, sport / training. The first two are to be expected, the third might not have been as obvious to those who don’t know me as well. Exercise is a large part of my life, I’m one of those masochists that actually enjoys it! The reason I’ve chosen to include it into this schedule is I’m hoping to start doing some triathlons in the future which is something that require a rigid training schedule. Previously I’ve done a fair bit of running but there’s something about the idea of triathlons that has really captured my imagination.

What this schedule doesn’t include is activities which don’t necessarily happen on a weekly basis, for instance I play a fair amount of racket sports but you could never plan this in such a rigid way. Therefore this schedule will definitely have to be fluid depending what I’m planning during a week, for instance a game of tennis might replace a gym session, I’m simply planning to use it as a basis for a “normal” week.

I do want to make sure I manage the number of hours I have outlined for each activity though, the relevant bit for this site (OMTI) sums to 20 hours a week. Initially I plan to note down the hours of work as I do them and reschedule any parts of my schedule I miss to ensure I make the total. I’m planning too add my totals to a monthly/weekly report alongside goals and a few other points.

One important thing to note is that I don’t want to go over this time if I can help it either. Making sure you have free time is almost as important as the time for work itself in my opinion, hence the large amount of time I have free during the weekend. Life’s for living not working and although I’m hoping to be fairly dedicated to this internet experiment there’s so much else I want to do, the weekend it my time for that. Whether it be mountain biking or going on a trip somewhere the plan is to try and make the weekend “my time”.

I’ve also started to think about how I’m going to split my time up but without starting this process it’s proving rather difficult, for instance how long does it actually take me to write an article? I’m planning to keep track of where my time is spent once starting this schedule so I can analyse how well it’s been used. This should help me to allocate this time in the most efficient way over time.

So that’s my schedule, I’m sure I’ll update you over time about how it’s working and what changes I’ve made etc. What do you use to organise your time? The other thing I’m really interested in is what tools you’re using, currently I’m using Google Calender but I’m sure there’s probably some fantastic tools out there which are more niche. Let me know in the comments.

Well what can I say, it’s been a while and a half since I last wrote anything here, cue a lengthy list of excuses which completely vindicate me on all counts..!

The truth is I don’t really have any, I’ve just been distracted by a whole variety of things with the thought “I should really write a post or two” stuck in my head without actually doing anything about it. What it has drilled home though is how important having a schedule is for me if I really want to make progress with my goals. To show you what I mean I submit a post I wrote in May titled “A plan of action” as piece of evidence 1a.

In summary I basically said that I was worried that writing for this blog was distracting me from my actual goals and that I’m going to take a more relaxed approach going forward. The result? Well I was certainly relaxed! I wrote three subsequent posts within a couple of weeks and haven’t been back since, think I’m safe in classifying that as an absolute shocker.

Fortunately I have managed to make progress with my other internet projects whilst I’ve been PIA (Procrastinating In Action) on this blog but still not as much I hoped. The conclusion? Time to crack out a more rigid schedule again to get things back on track.

I think the trick is to start with a very manageable schedule and slowly add additional items in over time, I shall label this the softly softly catchy monkey approach (yes that’s correct, I have no issue with stealing sayings and bending them for my own uses!).

Over the next couple of days I’m going to put this schedule together which should give me time to play around with it etc. Once I’m happy I’ll post it up here for to make me nice and accountable.

So there you go, my first failed experiment, the casual approach does not work, at least not for me. Do you manage quite happily with a more casual approach, if so how on earth do you do it!? (Can’t have an article without a cheeky interrobang) If not I assume you’re more like me and need some sort of structure, have you actually created one though or has it been on your ever expanding to do list like me? If so there’s your homework, go on I dare you…

You would have a hard time arguing that increasing your productivity when working to make money online is a bad thing, in fact I’m going to stick my neck out and say you would be plain wrong, if you disagree we can fight it out in the comments later! I’ve dedicated last week (and the upcoming two) entirely to working on my some of my online projects before starting my new job. Describing myself as hugely determined to not waste my final weeks of freedom does not do it justice and a week in I’ve become aware of three easy things I can do to improve my productivity.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not one of these mental health nuts that’s going to proclaim that the regular consumption of a 2-week old carrot under a full moon whilst standing on your head in a bucket of ice water in your underwear is going to help you get more done with your day… I’ve just noted some pretty obvious things that I imagine many of you, myself included, may be in the habit of forgetting. Cue the list!:

1. Exercise

I don’t know whether it’s the same for everyone but I find it so much easier to concentrate after exercise, not only that I actually enjoy doing it!

Hopefully you don’t see the word “exercise” and immediately get reduced to a shaking lump, horrible memories of weekly gym lessons suddenly fresh in your mind. What I’m trying to describe is anything which gets your blood moving, whether it’s a quick walk down the road or something more hardcore in the gym I don’t think it matters.

As human beings it’s only recently that our everyday lives have become about sitting down in front of a computer answering emails, not so long ago we were running about it loin cloths chasing food around with a pointed stick (fresh fruit wasn’t good enough for us… if you don’t get do check out Monty Python). Give your body what it was designed for and I find you reap the benefits afterwards.

Yes it does use up some of the time when you could be getting something done and if the weather’s awful it’s hard to psyche yourself up, but I find I get far more done with what’s left than I would have done if I hadn’t exercised.

2. Diet

As I’m sure you know athletes spend a lot of time worrying about what they put in their bodies. This isn’t because they are worried it will make them fat, it’s because some food is better than others in terms of supplying energy for exercise. When working / problem solving etc you consume far more energy than when you simply set your mind idle. I don’t have any numbers to back myself up but I’m sure you’ve noticed how much more hungry you are by lunch after a morning of hard work than you are on a lazy Sunday morning.

If I’ve been eating healthier I find it much easier to concentrate for extended periods of time and I swear I get more done in that time as well. The problem is if you’re fully focussed on something it’s easy to forget about cooking properly and to start snacking on bad foods. Putting in the time to make proper meals really makes a difference to me, maybe it’s just a mental thing… all I can say is so what, do what works!

3. Have fun!

Ah finally, the explanation for that picture! One thing I’ve been particularly guilty of during this last week is trying to ensure that I use every last minute of my time for what I deem “useful stuff” i.e. work. I can only guess but imagine this will become even more the case once I start working full time.

Not leaving time to go out and do something you enjoy just isn’t a good plan. Life’s for living, so from now on I’m planning to ensure I regularly get out and do something I really want to do. Don’t get me wrong, this make money online hobby certainly classifies but you’ve got to mix it up or everything can become stale.

If you’re in a good mood and enjoying life it’s so much easier to be productive when you are working. The old saying “the busiest people have the most time” certainly rings true.

Obviously this isn’t even close to an exhaustive list of productivity tips, but if you’re struggling with your productive I highly recommend you try them out. What else do you do to maximise your productivity? Let me know in the comments below:

How many years have you wanted to watch a live video stream of a colossal nose at will? Many I bet…

A bit of a random one but as you may have noticed I’ve decided to add a video stream to this site of my desk when I’m working on #OMTI related projects. Not the most interesting of things to watch I agree, but that’s not really the point!

What I’m hoping to do is create a more social experience with visitors to this site, if I’m online the hope is that you’ll drop into the chat to say hi, ask me any questions you might have, give feedback, tell me a horrendous joke etc… anything is great, I’m just keen to interact more with the visitors here.

I know it’s a bit strange, I’ve stolen the idea from a guy called Chris Pirillo, even if you don’t recognise the name you’ve probably come across one of his videos at some point, and it’s helped him to build up a fantastic community of like minded people. I’ve decided that it’s high time I see whether it can do the same for me!

So apologies for the video stream (do note that you can chat without actually viewing it, maybe a good plan!) but do say hello if I’m online, and you can let me know what you think about this addition.

It’s about time that I give you an update on the progress of “Project Penguin”. This has been the site I’ve focussed nearly all of my attention on over the last few months and I’m pleased to say I’m closing in on completion!

Project Penguin is by far and away the most complex site I have developed for myself and has therefore taken up a vast amount of time. Since January 2012 I have been devoting as much time to it as possible when not doing university work, now that I’m done with my studies for the last week I’ve been able to work on it full time and plan to continue that way until I start my job on the 6th of June.

This 6th of June start date has forced/enabled me to set myself a deadline as once at work my pace of development is obviously going to slow right down and I want the site ready as soon as possible, so I’m saying it right now…. Project Penguin will be complete by 5th of June 2012, something tells me I may regret saying that!

The vast majority of the site is already complete, giving me the confidence to announce a deadline because I’ve already implemented nearly all of the background functionality required by the site. When starting the project the time this would take was a bit of an unknown quantity, although I’ve done a fair amount of web development and coding in the past I’ve never developed a project of this size from scratch before. This meant that I had to decide on how the site should function, how to implement this functionality and learn a few new techniques to make it a reality. Evidently not the easiest of things to predict, having said that I did originally say that the site will hopefully launch in May and I’m not going to be too far off (pats self on back).

Work left includes the creation of a couple more pages which require some serious thinking, including adding a bespoke user messaging system which shouldn’t be too horrendous, updates to the site design that I’ve been planning for a while, security tests and modification of content. After that a fair bit of testing and tweaks and it’s time to rock and roll (did I really just say that); exciting times!

So that’s where I am, I haven’t included many specifics on how I’ve built certain functionality (or even what it is for that matter) as I’m not planning on using this site isn’t here to teach you how to code. A cheeky Google will find you many great resources online if you’re interested in how to develop websites, many of which are far better than I could manage that I’ve probably used myself over the last few weeks. Once the site launches and I’ve had time to look down some other online avenues I’ll have far more to say in terms of tips and tricks for making money online derived from my experiences.

Thanks for sticking with me whilst I focus on this site, motivational comments always appreciated!

Ben

This is the exact opposite of my aim for the site, to help motivate myself on a daily basis. I’m just back from a celebratory “I’ve finished university” holiday, which gave me time to ponder on how I should change my approach with this blog. I enjoy writing, and love to help people out and share my success/failures but what I’ve come to realise is that I shouldn’t view this blog as a project, but instead more of a hobby.

I didn’t set out to be a professional blogger, generating income from this blog was never my intention as is probably evidenced by the lack of adverts found on this site, but in the back of my mind I still wanted it to be a success traffic wise, I mean who wants to feel like they’re talking to a void! This meant that I started putting more and more attention into how to drive traffic, whether that be through social media, site optimisations, commenting etc which was starting to take up more and more of my time.

From now on this blog is for fun, as well as hopefully to provide that motivation for which it was originally intended. I’m not going to stick to a schedule, or intentionally write about topics I feel would benefit traffic levels or anything else, I’m simply going to talk about what I want, when I want. No this isn’t necessarily the best way to create a successful blog, but it will hopefully make it seem much less artificial and hopefully better for it. Most importantly though it should give me chance to make a real go of my other projects.

I’ve now got three weeks almost entirely free before starting my first job, I’m intending to dedicate a lot of that time to the projects I’m working on so I imagine you’ll probably hear from me before long… or maybe you won’t!

P.S. – One other thing that I’ve decided to try and do is take writing these articles much less seriously. In the past posts have gone through many revisions (I’m a bit of a perfectionist!) before I’m happy enough to hit the publish button. By writing more freely I’ll not only save a vast amount of time but hopefully provide you with a more personal, conversationalist account of what I’ve doing/thinking. I’ll glance over the articles before publishing to try and remove the majority of spelling errors etc but this does leave the potential for some fairly hilarious mistakes… apologies in advance!

I just wanted to leave a quick update here to let you know that I’m not going to be able to post anything this week, no one hates breaking a schedule as much as me but I’m in my final two weeks of university ever and the mountain of coursework only gets higher. Things should hopefully have become slightly less crazy by next Monday (26th) so I’m hoping to be back in the game by then, but depending how things go it may not be until the week after that.

Thanks for understanding, I’ll see you on the other side!

Ben

• Leaving Work Behind (Tom Ewer) – Do you use the most valuable commodity in the world wisely?

  I’ve been following Tom for a while and he frequently posts great, personal accounts of his experiences making money online. This post really struck a chord with me, time is something people are far to happy to give up.

• The Smart Passive Income Blog (Pat Flynn) – third annual passive income report

  A really inspiring post detailing Pat’s success developing multiple passive income streams. In particular the attached podcast is well worth a listen.

• Problogger (Darren Rowse) – Make Money Blogging

  A great post written by the king of blogging himself which gives a good overview of how to make money online with a blog. I’d never come across it before as it isn’t a normal blog post but a page he links to in his sites navigation bar. What can I say, I’m evidently blind!

• Rosemary Jayne – How to write an affiliate disclaimer

  Rosemary posts lots of short, useful pieces of advice, primarily aimed at blogging. This is an example of one of her articles I read which I benefited from, writing a disclaimer has been on my to do list for far too long!

So I hope I’ve pointed you in the direction of some great articles you would have missed out otherwise. I’m constantly on the look out for new reading material myself so please do make suggestions, whether it be your own blog or someone else’s that you’ve been enjoying.

Do you value 5 minutes extra sleep a day for the rest of your life at £4.2 million ($6.7 million)? Of course not right? Well you may be surprised:

I’m currently in my final year of university, which as well as being rather hard work, means that a lot of my friends are rather strapped for cash and are struggling to pay their rent and bills. What I can’t get my head around though is that a very obvious way that many of them could start saving money is staring them in the face, quite literally, when they eat lunch.

Simply put, why are they buying lunch every day?

I’ve noticed it everywhere, not just at university and it may well apply to you. No matter what you’re saving for, whether it’s to ease the burden whilst you pursue your latest business adventure, saving for a holiday, new car or house one good way to start saving some cash is to stop buying lunch everyday.

Now I’m not saying you shouldn’t eat lunch, far from it. What I’m trying to get across is you can save money by making it yourself, i.e. the good ol’ packed lunch.

For whatever reason most people I suggest this to think I’ve gone a bit strange, they’re not at school any more, why on earth would they bring a packed lunch into work?

I don’t get this, I think the problem is that people tend to only see the short term gain rather than the long term. Here’s some numbers which demonstrate my way of thinking:

Let’s say that by buying lunch every single day that you’re at work, university or school it costs you an additional £2 a day compared to if you’d made your own (£1 = $1.6). I’m trying to be conservative here, I think the difference is probably a lot more but it’s obviously different for everyone.

Now £2 doesn’t seem much, I frequently get told by someone that they like their sleep too much to spare 5 additional minutes in the morning to make sandwiches!

First of all those 5 minutes effectively equate to working for £40 an hour, a rate hardly anyone earns doing a regular job (many of my friends who buy lunch also work for £6 an hour in the evening). Secondly it’s amazing how much this can add up to over time.

Let’s say you work for 48 week a year, if you buy lunch every day that equates to 240 lunches. Multiply that by your £2 that you could save a day and that £480 ($768) saved in a year.

Not a small amount of money any more right? Well then take into account your entire working life. If you invest all the money you save on a yearly basis and get a 5% return (whether this be in bank accounts, shares or your own business) over a period of 40 years (a standard working life) the amount saved works out at almost £61,000 ($97,600). That’s a lot of money to make just by getting up 5 minutes earlier every day.

This works on two principals and reminds me of the English saying “look after the pennies and the pound will look after themselves”. First of all saving a small amount of money from an unnecessary expense regularly over a period of time can rapidly add up. Secondly compound interest is a fantastic way to increase your saving massively, without evening realising it.

Most of us don’t really feel the interest you can generate on money is worth much, and it’s true, in the short term it isn’t. But when you consider a longer period of time, like the lunch example I’ve just given it starts to make a massive difference.

Without investing the money the lunch saving would equal £19,200, still a nice lump but less than a third of the amount investment returning a “measly” 5% would return. Crank up the numbers to what you could potentially return from your own business, say 20% and your lunch is worth £4.2 million ($6.72 million). Do you see why I love the idea of compound interest now!?

Obviously we can’t all expect a return of 20%, but 5% is almost manageable from a high street bank and is easily possible in higher risk ventures. If you apply my lunch method to other un-necessary weekly expenditure you can easily create a significant amount of savings during your life.

Does this strike you as common sense, have I managed to open your eyes or do you really value 5 minutes extra sleep a day at £4.2 million? Let me know in the comments below.

P.S The title image is of my girlfriend’s lunch box and I think it’s pretty fantastic. If you want one here’s a link to them on Amazon – I am not a suspicious package lunch box