A Day In The Life Of A Part Time Blogger

If you are a part time blogger then you probably have asked yourself the same questions I’ve asked. How do people find the time? What does a typical day look like? When do you work on your blog, and social media, and be able to grow? 

I actually only recently took on the label of “part time blogger” and I love it. It makes it feel like blogging is a job for me instead of just some “little hobby.” Since taking on this label, I have started taking myself and this blogging venture a lot more seriously!

I started Googling part time blogger and started to see so many blog posts and articles that made me feel *seen* and not so alone on this journey. However, the more I started reading the more I realized that some of these “part time bloggers” really weren’t, or at least not in the typical sense. Many worked flexible jobs or part time jobs. I wanted to read more about the bloggers going to work 9-5 every day and still making it work (and growing)!

So, that is what led us to this post. I want to share my day in the life and how I make it work in the hopes that it will resonate with other full time workers, part time bloggers.

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A day in the life of a part time blogger

A disclaimer: I work Monday to Friday, a do not have flexible work days/hours, and I do have to commute to work. I would say that this is a very realistic day in the life but I also understand that outside of work I have little responsibility (kids, family responsibilities, etc.)

5:15am – Wake up

I start the day nice and early at 5:15am. I absolutely hate it and wish I could sleep in until at least 7 haha. But alas, I turn off the alarm and I drag myself out of bed.

5:30am – “Mindless work”

I grab my water or smoothie and head to the couch to wake up a little more. Some mornings I will do a quick stretch to get the blood flowing but it doesn’t always happen depending on how tired I am. I don’t force it.

I also spend some time watching a YouTube video and usually checking in on social media/ Pinterest (answer comments, dm’s, pin, etc.) I tend to do more mindless things since I’m usually just waking up

6:00am – Get ready for work

I’m actually pretty quick at getting ready. I do my morning skincare (very basic), makeup, hair, get dressed, and all the other things you do to get ready lol. I usually pack a lunch which I have pretty much ready to go the night before (gotta be organized)! 

Some other things I do in the morning before I leave:

• take care of my cats stuff (feed, litter box, etc.)
• water the plants
• tidy up any mess left in the kitchen from the night before
• unload the dishwasher (if I have time)

6:45am – Leave for work

It’s about a 30-40 minute drive to work every day. I like to be early so I do leave a little earlier than I need to but I’m a stress case when it comes to being late! 

I also have this really bad habit of going to Tim Hortons before work and getting a coffee. It started during COVID when I was only in the office 1 or 2 days a week as a treat for going into the office but now I still do it but I’m in the office every day… lol need to work on that.

7:20ish am – Arrive at work

I’m one of those people that need to just sit in the car for a bit before work to mentally prep for the day lol so I spend until 7:45am in the car either working on social media posts, engaging with people on Instagram, working on a blog post… just whatever I feel like at the time. Depends on where my mind is at!

7:45am- 4:30pm – Work, work work

I will sometimes do some blog work during lunch but my job can be all over the place so some days I’ll be in the office for lunch and others I will be driving back from a client’s home. It’s not always the same. So, some days if I have time I will get some stuff done during lunch but others I don’t!

4:30pm – Off work

I drive home at 4:30pm and it takes me about an hour to get home (stupid traffic). So home by 5:30pm usually.

5:30pm – Workout time

I quickly change into my workout clothes when I get home and do a 30 minute workout. Right now I am doing the 4 weeks for Everybody program by Beachbody! 

6:00pm – Start dinner

I have a quick shower (or sometimes if I wasn’t super sweaty I do it after dinner). Then, I start dinner. Nick works until 6pm so he doesn’t get home until around 630pm. I don’t like to eat dinner too late so I try to have dinner ready around the time he gets home. Sometimes it’s a little later though depending on how tired I am lol

7:00pm – Start winding down 

I start to wind down around 7:00 and do some of my nighttime things. I will either have a bath or just get comfy on the couch. 

I started this habit of writing my social media captions and ideas while in the bath. I do that about once a week and batch all the captions so I don’t need to worry about it during the week. Btw, I got this bath tray recently and I’m OBSESSED. 

And then, I will spend the evening working on blog posts, promoting the blog, working on new ideas, etc. I tend to be more creative at night so this works for me right now!

9:00pm – Head to bed/ Hang out with Nick 

I am not a night owl and start getting super sleepy around 9-930. So, I tend to go to bed around that time. Nick and I will usually watch a show or movie at night and just chit chat about things until we go to sleep. 

Making use of the weekend

If I had one tip for fellow part time bloggers it would be to make good use of your weekends. Not saying you need to work all weekend but if you have some free time it’s a good time to focus on taking pictures for the blog and social media and also creating video content if you do that! 

If you noticed, I didn’t mention anything about pictures and video content during the week and that is because I generally don’t do that. Before work, there isn’t enough time and after work, it’s getting dark. It’s not exactly prime time for photos! So, usually, I will spend a few hours (if necessary) on pictures and videos on Saturdays! Sunday I keep wide open and don’t really work on anything. If I want to I will but if I have other plans then I don’t worry about it.

Other tips for part time bloggers

Plan ahead 

When you are busy all the time it’s important to have a plan ahead of time. When I first started I was horrible at this. I would plan things but it would be week by week and then I didn’t have time to get the pictures I needed or would forget to write a caption for Instagram or not have time to schedule the post. 

I’ve found that writing better lists has helped me so much. Not only do I have better plans but I actually get things done in my limited time. 

Batch content 

Everyone gives this advice but I suggest batching everything, not just pictures. As I mentioned above, I will write all my social media captions in one go. It just makes my life so much easier! You can batch your blog posts, photos, video content, captions, Pinterest pins, etc. If you dedicated some time to each of those tasks it would make your week less stressful for sure.

Google docs/ Google sheets is your friend

I like to use Google docs and Google sheets because then I can access everything I need on the go. For example, I have my blog content calendar on Google sheets. Sometimes when I’m working on a blog post during my lunch break it’s very helpful to be able to check my content calendar and see what I need to get started on. 

Same with Google docs. I write all my blog posts on Google docs so then if I start something at home but want to pick up on it before work while I’m sitting in my car, I can pull it up on my phone and keep going. 

Create a content calendar 

It may seem like a lot but honestly, you need a content calendar for more than just your blog posts. You need it for your social media as well. Time gets away from me during the day and the week. If I didn’t have a content calendar for Instagram I would never post anything. Even if you just jot down a couple of ideas for the days you want to post so you can then look at them during your content shooting days, it will help a ton!

Treat it like your job

If you are able to switch your mindset from having a hobby or “just a side hustle” to “this is my job” then you will find it easier to make time for it. The reality is, you are going to have to MAKE the time for your blog or influencer job. Some days you will have to skip watching the show you want to or just lounging around. It doesn’t mean that is a negative thing but it’s a change, that’s all. 

Keeping it real

At the end of the day, its not super easy balancing a full time job and being a part time blogger. I used to work my full time job and coach cheerleading 2 days a week on top of it. Honestly, even though I had to physically be somewhere to do that it was still easier. The reason… I HAD to be there, I was being paid. The motivation to blog after work some days is really not there but I push myself to do it because I know this is something that is important to me and is a big goal of mine.

So, if you are in the same boat as me, just keep going! Even on the days you are exhausted, even when you feel like nothing is working. You ARE making progress every single day that you show up. Whether that’s a new blog post be published, posting something on Instagram, or simply responding to some comments. Your effort is not unnoticed and you can do it ❤️

From one part time blogger to another: you can do the hard work that it takes to be successful, both in your full time job AND in your blog!

Let’s chat!

Do you blog part time or even full time? Do you have any tips to share?