One of the biggest challenges for many copywriters is simply how to manage time effectively.  It’s important, of course, because deadlines have to be met and if you’re working for yourself you can’t afford to waste time.

Working from home poses particular challenges because, well, it’s just too easy to get distracted.

So how do you overcome these challenges?  Here’s a few things that I’ve found helpful.

Firstly, map out a plan and a schedule.  Both for the medium term and the short term (by which I mean today).  It’s amazing how much you can get done when you start the day with a very clear list of things to do.

For me, one of the very best time management strategies is one that is reputed to have come from consultant Ivy Lee.

In the early 1900s, Lee was a management expert who knew the industrialist Charles Schwab.

Lee offered Schwab an idea about how to manage his time better. Put simply…

1. Every night before going to bed, set out the 6 most important things to do the next day.
2. Make sure they are put in the order of most important first, next most important second and so on.
3. The next day, tackle the items in the order listed. Don’t move on to an item until the previous one is finished.

Schwab put this idea into practice for 6 months. The results were extraordinary. So much so, that he paid Lee $25,000 for the idea (a fortune at the time and around $500,000 in today’s terms).

To me, the appeal of this idea is it’s simplicity.

There are many other “systems” of course.  One that’s also very good is Mark Joyner’s “Simpleology”.  It’s an excellent program, in my opinion. Best of all, the basic version is completely free.  (Of course, when you sign up, you will be offered a number of “One Time Offers”!  But hey, they’ve got to make money and Mark’s products are generally very good and reasonably priced.)

OK, once you actually have a plan in place, the next thing is to get to work and implement.  And that means…cut out distractions!

One of the great ironies of working online is that much of our online world is a terrible time drain.  It’s just too easy to get caught up with email and web surfing.  And “Web 2.0″ with social media sites and all the rest just makes it worse.  The latest craze “Twitter” just seems insane to me and an absolute waste of time.

Tim Ferriss in his book “The 4 Hour Work Week” has some good, simple suggestions to cut out distractions.  Couple of examples…

• Only answer email twice a day;
• Don’t answer the phone during “working hours” (block off time to return messages or make your own outbound calls)

For myself, when I’m writing the phone is off the hook and I shut down my email and usually web browsers too.  I may have a browser open for quick research and fact checking, but that’s it.

So, plan your play and play your plan!  Sounds trite, I know, and it’s often easier said than done.  But you’ve got to do it if you want success as a copywriter.