Last week I finished a marathon event, Echo Conference. It consumed my day from waking to sleeping (and even some of sleeping). But one of my other projects was looming in front of me. August 1st was right around the corner, and I had a whole issue of Sunday| Magazine to layout, edit, and launch. (Along with making sure advertisers were accounted for and taken care of.)
I launched it! Successfully. And the coolest thing about it was that I didn’t lose my sanity over the convergence of the two projects.
How’s that, you ask? I planned early on for my sanity.
I knew Echo Conference was going to destroy all my time. And I knew Sunday| Mag was going to hit at the exact same time. So I began the footwork to prepare way in advance for the two projects. Four months out I began pushing my deadlines earlier and earlier, so when Issue 18 was in the works, I could get it 80% finished two weeks before Echo even hit.
So this extremely busy season of my life, was very stress-free.
See, many people – knowing they’re approaching a busy season – might say no to new projects. They might choose to let some things drop. But you miss out on a great opportunity when you do that. I had the opportunity to get everything done that I wanted to.
And because I stretched myself, I’m able to keep my productivity high. Over the next month or two I’ll be redesigning CSDI, two other sites, and finally publishing my devotional for creatives. Plus I have a few other secret projects brewing in the back of my head.
And there’s no stress. When you plan for sanity…think through your upcoming schedule and be gracious to your future self…good things happen.