I don’t need to tell you that the price of gasoline is going up, but did you know that the same tips that can help extend your gas mileage can help your writing, too?
- Don’t Speed. Go Slow and Steady.
Take your time. There’s no need to rush, just work steadily. You’ll get the job done almost as quickly as if you hurried, and chances are you’ll be less stressed when you finish, too. - Easy Starts and Stops.
You don’t have to start off at a run, take a few moments to think about what you want to write. Pause to collect your thoughts, picture what you need to say. Then gently put your pen to paper, and step on the gas. - Use Cruise Control.
You may not be able to write completely on auto-pilot, but it never hurts to use templates, or familiar formats to help ease the process along. Having a structure your brain and fingers are used to can help jog that creativity. - Check Your Tire Pressure.
Make sure your equipment is ready. Sharp pencils, plenty of paper, a full laptop battery … whatever it is that you need to get the job done. There’s nothing worse than a flat tire to keep you from getting where you’re going. - Turn off the Car to Avoid Excessive Idling.
Obviously, you need to work to get anything done, but sometimes you’re forced to stop. It might be writer’s block, it might just be so beautiful a day that you need to step outside. But when life sends you a traffic jam, you’re better off accepting it gracefully and just shutting the whole thing down, rather than wasting gas and energy sitting there without moving. - Lighten the Load.
It’s not necessarily a bad thing to have a large work load–in fact, it’s hard to complain about having too much work–and yet, it can be difficult to focus when you’ve got too many things to do, and only two hands to do them with. If you can drop a little of the extra weight, it might help you get more mileage. - Keep the Windows Closed.
Naturally, distractions should be avoided. Don’t stop to check your e-mail. Don’t get distracted browsing on the internet. Don’t let the kids drag you out to play (too often). If you want to get anything written, you need to write!
Incidentally, as a Public Service Announcement, if you want to read these and other tips for actually saving gas (because, if you have a car, who doesn’t these days? ), here are a few links for you. Change Your Driving Habits (and Save Gas!) is a good one, as is this Top Ten list, also from Edmunds. Then there’s this list of 30 tips, and this one of 29, many of which were new to me.
What do you folks think? Any tips to add?
And, what are the gas prices where you are today? My local gas stations are hoving at just about $4.00 per gallon–some stations are a few pennies are higher, some are a few pennies lower, but there you go.
We’re at $4.19 today. Yesterday it was $4.15. Tomorrow, who knows. I have a friend who was in central Oregon this week, and it was $5.50. Yikes.
Another tip: Be ready to change the itinerary if need be, in work AND driving.
I’m trying to scrounge the money to visit a friend in Vermont, and get to Montreal. With these astronomical gas prices I don’t know if I’ll be able to swing it.
These are great writing tips, Deb. I try to follow them, but it doesn’t always work. Lately I find myself veering off the road on a detour due to an unexpected project.
Ellen Wilson’s last blog post..Great Photo Tips From E
Sometimes you find the best scenery by detouring, it might not save you gas, but it can be worth it in so many other ways!
Do you know how much you save on gas when you work from home? Let me tell you, it’s a lot. I don’t think I’ve been to the gas station for over a month. These are great tips and I love the analogy 🙂 Vroom Vroom.
Melissa Donovan’s last blog post..What I’ve Learned About Blogging
@Melissa–Oh, sure, rub it in. Although, I am so grateful for my 4-mile commute to work!
Great post. I work for a company that manages and tracks gift cards and I’ve been following unconventional ways to save money at the pump on savvywallet.com. I took it personally to save money by getting my car converted to run on waste vegetable oil. It’s awesome. I haven’t paid for gas since Jan. As the gas prices go up, the more money I save. Gas in CA is about 4.67 and about 5.40 for diesel. EEK. At least this way we can save the environment!! You can check out my ride at austinchu.wordpress.com
Austin Chu’s last blog post..Coupon Clipping Safety
We’re around 4.15 here in Milwaukee! I love how you weave the car maintenance with the writing tips! Makes for a fun read. Thanks so much.
Nice analogy. It really stretches to mind to think in those terms!
Maria – Never the Same River Twice’s last blog post..Weekend SmallChange: Watch Music & Life
I defintely need to keep the windows closed, LOL! It’s almost an obsession. Nice post!
@PreSchool Mama–I was so tempted to use that as a pro-Mac/anti-Windows item, but since I actually use Windows myself, it felt too much like shooting myself in the foot for a minor joke (grin).
–Deb’s last blog post..MM: Semi-Colon
Great headline and article idea–with useful tips for writers. As for our gas prices…yesterday $4.89 and climbing. Diesel was over $5.20 last I checked.
Diana L Guerrero’s last blog post..Leo the Survivor (Michael Vick’s Fiasco)
Deb, this is great, love how you tied the 2 topics together and it makes perfect sense.
And re: gas prices…I get my gas at Costco, haven’t filled up for awhile but it’s probably close to 4.00 – means I don’t mow the lawn all the time, either! 🙂
JoLynn Braley @ The Fit Shack’s last blog post..The Sprinkle Diet – 5 Reasons it Won’t Work
One thing that has helped me MOST, is car pooling to work. It’s a 35 mile drive, and we have 3 of us in on taking a day each and driving.
Less GAS, wear and tear on the car and I enjoy the conversations we have while driving. Makes it seem like a short drive!
Wally’s last blog post..Three Old Ladies
Gasoline in the US has always been ridiculously cheap – we currently pay about $9 a gallon in the UK. Throughout Europe thats a middling price (Spain $7.50, Norway $10.50). I’m sure your fuel prices used to be about 33% of ours, so perhaps you’re catching up!
David Rogers’s last blog post..Procrastination at 50
@David–I know, it seems unfair of us to be complaining about it, doesn’t it? The problem, though, is not so much that we’re paying $4 for gas now, it’s that it went up from $3 so quickly! It went up 50-cents a gallon in just about a month and people’s budgets just can’t compensate quickly enough for so drastic an increase.
cute tips. It is very true that the same thing can apply to saving fuel.
@Wally, car pooling is great. That is one way to catch up and socialize. Or else, there is hardly any time to do so.