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5 Ways to Find More Time to Learn

If you’re not learning you’re not growing. And as bloggers and business owners, it’s important to keep up and educate yourself on what’s new.

But finding the time to learn in today’s busy world of never-ending to-do lists can be tough.

In this post, I’m going to break down 5 easy ways for you to squeeze in some learning. And no, I’m not going to suggest you stop watching TV.

1. Listen to Audiobooks

Books can be a great way to learn, after all getting your formal education likely involved a bit of reading. But finding the time to sit down and read probably doesn’t happen as much as you’d like.

You can listen to audiobooks pretty much anywhere. While driving, working out, cooking dinner, even in the shower if you’re that committed.

Most of my audiobooks I rent from the library (using the Libby app). But I’ve also used subscription services such as Scribd and Audible.

If you’re looking for what to listen to – check out my list of the 10 best business books.

2. Time Block Your Schedule with Boundaries

Time blocking is where you set certain times to get things done. But where you can run into trouble is if something takes longer than expected.

This is where it becomes important to use boundaries. Trust me when I say this, you need to take breaks.

Cut yourself off, if your time block is up. In most instances whatever you’re working on can wait another day to be done.

That includes finishing that chapter, or that lesson in a course, or writing that blog post.
By using time blocking, and sticking to it, you can add in time to learn.

But it’ll only work if you take your time blocks seriously, and cut yourself off when time is up.

3. Listen to Podcasts

There is nothing quite like learning from those who’ve been there. Hearing how other bloggers and entrepreneurs moved past problems and found success is incredibly inspiring. It also is a great way to get your wheels turning on how your business could operate better. The best place to find these kinds of stories and lessons – podcasts.

Just like audiobooks, you can listen to them pretty much anywhere and always find time to squeeze them in.

4. Only Multitask When it’s Productive to Do So

If you haven’t gotten the memo, trying to do a bunch of things at once is most often counterproductive. Stanford even says so. Don’t have your email open when you’re trying to write a blog post. Or text your friends when trying to come up with social media copy.

As you’ve likely found, you won’t get very far and/or the quality of your work may not be that great. But that doesn’t mean you can’t multitask in order to get some time to learn built into your schedule. I’ve found it works well to multitask learning with a physcial activity.

So I can listen to an audiobook while working out, without losing focus on what I’m listening to. Or I can plan to listen to a podcast when taking my dog on a walk. So if you want to make more time to learn, stop multitasking, unless you can ensure you’ll actually be productive.

5. Rethink How You Do Things

If you’re struggling to find time but also find yourself doing the same things over and over again, see if you can automate it instead.

Or is there a tool, paid or free, that can automate it. While it may cost money is the return of having time to learn so your blog and business can grow worth it?

Social media posting is a great example, I love and us Missinglettr because it saves me a ton of time. But there are free options too, like Recurpost or dlvr.it.

I also have a system in place that allows me to enter the title of a post, click a button, and it spits out three different pin images. A little tweaking and I’m done, it takes maybe 5 minutes to make all my Pinterest images. Building out systems and automating can help you free up time to work on your blog rather than in it.

Bottom Line

Continuous learning is important for growing your blog and business but it doesn’t have to be difficult to find time for it. You also don’t have to give up your beloved Netflix binge.

Find more time to learn by listening to audiobooks, podcasts, and multitasking when it makes sense. Use time blocks with purpose and take them seriously. And finally, set up automation and systems where you can.

I hope these tips help you to find more time to learn, if you have any more suggestions – let me know in the comments!

Related: 13 Best Free and Paid Courses for Bloggers

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