Turning Off: 5 Ways Bloggers can Unplug and Recharge

Before I started blogging, for the most part I had unplugging down to a T. My favourite thing to do was get cozy, pour myself a hot drink and dissolve into the world of Instagram explore. I could spend hours lost in the lives of other people, wanting wishing and dreaming of things I never thought possible. For me, this was my way of turning off because I had nothing to do with blogging. Watching other people blog was how I shut myself off from my life. I would come out of my Instagram spell inspired, refreshed and ready to try something new. However, since starting a blog, this technique is no longer therapeutic. Social media is no longer my escape. So how do I turn off? Let me tell you 5 ways bloggers can unplug and recharge.

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Blogging Realities

The truth is, blogging is a task that requires you to be very ‘on’ all the time. Not necessarily because someone is requesting something from you at all hours of the day, but because our brains are our own worst enemy. How can you stop the fact that you may be in the middle of doing something completely un-related to blogging, and then an idea will hit you out of nowhere? That’s the thing. For the most part, we can’t turn off the creative aspect of blogging, as we never know when an idea may strike.

In addition to being very ‘on’, blogging is a job. Blogging is within itself work, and hard work at that! Not to discredit the fact that blogging is SO much fun, and I absolutely love everything I do to grow my blog. But, at the end of the day (even if it doesn’t feel like it), you’re still putting in hours and hours of work. Whether it’s engaging on social media, writing up a new post, organizing content for next month etc, it is still work (even if it’s a labour of love).

Is This a Bad Thing?

Absolutely not! For some bloggers, blogging is their full-time job! And for some of us, we already work on top of working as a blogger! It’s not a bad thing to consider blogging work! Blogging has become my passion and I love every thing I’ve done to grow, improve and enhance my blog. I regularly use the term ‘working on the blog’ and I acknowledge that hard work does go into maintaining a blog.

Where Problems Can Arise

Like anything else, we can have too much of a good thing. When we are constantly on, we can get sucked into working on our blogs for several hours a day. When we go to turn off, we may turn to social media to explore, and get sucked right back into blogging. And while I’m a fan of working for what you want in life, we need to step back sometimes and take a break.

I myself have personally felt the strain of blogging, and have had to take days off at a time to give myself a break. I know I’m not alone either. Through other social media platforms I can see that people get tired, they burn out, they absolutely love what they do but aren’t giving themselves a much needed break. Sometimes I see my blogging friends feel strained, want to give up, and suffer from the strain of constantly producing content, constantly being on social media and constantly offering a piece of themselves to the world.

When we ourselves don’t catch a break, we ultimately suffer. We suffer internally, we suffer physically and emotionally, and our content eventually begins to suffer. We need to take care of ourselves first so that we can continue to take care of our blogs, our friends on social media, and our many duties and obligations.

You need to put on your own oxygen mask first before you can help someone else put on theirs.

It’s So Hard Though!

I know! I hear you! This isn’t a personal attack, this is me trying to reach out to you, and check in with you! This is a wellness check, and I’m here to ask if you’re okay, and if you need a break! Repeat after me: It’s OK to take a break.

I’m not saying go off the deep-end, throw your phone into the ocean and migrate to the nearest deserted island. I’m offering you some of my favourite tricks to turn off for an hour or two to be able to give yourself that break (so that you can go back to being the kick a** blogger we both know you are). If you’re still with me, you probably realize how much you need a break! Now, let me share with you my 5 tips for unplugging and recharging as a blogger.

*Note: these tips and tricks are not exclusive to bloggers, and I recommend anyone do them. I specifically mention bloggers because these tips are geared directly towards stepping away from social media and the computer to be able to refresh and recharge. I’m always happy to help others recharge, and if you’d like my tried and true tips, click here.

Turning Off: 5 Tips for Bloggers to Unplug and Recharge

Schedule Time For Yourself and Yourself Only

Grab your planners and pencil time in for yourself each day. Seriously. If we don’t physically make the time for ourselves, it’s easy to forget. I even had to put a little checkbox beside it in my planner to make sure it get’s done (can’t leave a box unchecked!).

This is time you can use to do something other than blogging! If this to you means catching up on social media, make sure it is spent looking from a personal account/at friends you follow outside of blogging. This time can be spent reading, watching Netflix, catching up with a friend, cooking, cleaning, writing in a journal, shopping etc. THE TIME IS YOURS!

Whether it’s half an hour you can spare a day or an hour or two, take the time and unwind. It’s so important to spend time doing things with yourself and allowing yourself time to recharge. This is key in preventing burnout.

Turn Off Notifications on Your Phone

This has seriously been a game changer for me. This is one of the best ways for bloggers to unplug and recharge. Not only has it reduced stress, it reduces me spending all day on social media. It’s important to keep up with your followers as a blogger, but it’s so easy to get sucked into being stuck on social media for hours.

It may be easier to schedule times throughout the day to pop up on social media than to constantly be attached. Being constantly available to other people can be draining and isn’t good for your own well-being. It’s okay to not be constantly on.

If you can’t quite give up all notifications, try turning them off for an hour or put your phone on ‘do not disturb’ so you aren’t tempted to answer notifications as they arise. It’s okay to give yourself a break!

Give Yourself a Day Off

I know, it seems impossible to leave your blog for one day. But, realistically, would you work for a company 24/7? You are definitely allowed rest days, and you definitely deserve to take time off. Taking 1-2 days a week off and giving yourself a break may be necessary to ensure you’re getting the rest you need.

It can be hard to conceptualize, but realistically you do need a day off. If you’re scheduling and regularly posting this likely won’t affect your traffic/engagement rates on social media. You’re a human and human beings cannot run for 24/7 without running out of gas. You will likely come back from your day off refreshed, recharged and even more inspired to create the best content you can.

Share and Delegate

Are you managing multiple communities through Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest? Are you an admin/creator of blogger community groups on top of your own social medias? Often bloggers are apart of several other communities, and sometimes it can be a lot to take on. Would you be willing to considering sharing the tasks among friends/ask for help?

Often I see other blogger communities have more than one admin. This is so that one person is not solely responsible for managing incredible amounts of social media traffic. If you feel as though you’ve got too much on your plate, ask for help and reach out! No one ever chastised a group for having more than one admin! You’re doing great, but just remember many hands make light work! If you feel overwhelmed and swamped, another trusted friend within the community may be willing to help!

Automate What You Can

Ah scheduling things has become my new best friend. Have a day where you’re writing blog posts like hot cakes? Schedule those bad boys! Scheduling content in advance is the number one way to stay on top of social media, and can reduce the feeling of being overwhelmed (especially if you’re an advance planner like myself).

I like scheduling posts and content for when I know I’m going to be away from blogging, and don’t want to stress about getting a blog post done in the nick of time (especially after a 12 hour shift when I come home and am completely exhausted). Facebook and WordPress are both great at allowing you to schedule posts in advance (usually just in the settings before you publish it always asks if you want to publish now or later).

You can also use tools that are designed to schedule as well! I love using Tailwind to schedule my Pins in advance so I don’t have to worry about spending all day pinning (check out how you can get a free month here)!

I also personally like to bulk edit Instagram posts and then save them to drafts. This way if I’m in a pinch I can upload a ready to go Instagram post to save myself time! If you can’t beat the business of blogging, planning ahead is never a bad idea!

Takeaways

Blogging is a wonderfully magical experience to be a part of. There is nothing I would change about my blogging journey or the amount of blood, sweat and tears I have put into it! I do feel like it’s personally hard to walk away from my blog and give myself the time I need to recharge, and I find it hard to see my blogging friends go through the same thing.

As someone who is a major self-care advocate, it can be hard to sometimes follow my own advice! This is why I keep these tips close by and try to practice them every day. I’m hoping this helped you to realize the importance of stepping back and taking a break. Your body will thank you and your blog will absolutely be there when you’re back!

Did any of these tips help? What do you do as a blogger to step back and recharge? I’d love to hear in the comments!