Last Updated on by Michael Brockbank
At my peak, I had a goal to write 10,000 words per day while using content mills. And although I didn’t make it on most occasions, there were days when I did. How difficult is it to crank out so much content on any given day?
I guess that depends on the day, really. Some are just going to be better than others.
So, what did I do to make sure I was cranking out that much content on a regular basis? Today, let’s dive a bit into how you can set your own 10K goals.
Did you know I have a book on Amazon about freelance writing? It’s the story of how I got started using content mills like Textbroker and became the success that I am today.
Get Your Copy of A Freelancer’s Tale Today!
What Contributes to Writing 10,000 Words in a Day?
First of all, I didn’t wake up one morning and decide to crank out thousands of words. It took a lot of effort and practice, especially since I was also maintaining a full-time job at the same time.
Still, there were pivotal elements that contributed greatly to my success.
Typing Skill
I’ve always had decent skills when it came to typing. In fact, I’ve been writing in one form or another since I was little. I mean, I was writing BASIC coding on the Commodore 64 at the age of nine.
Obviously, your ability to type is going to influence your overall speed when writing for clients. If you want to fine-tune this aspect, there are a lot of free typing test websites on the Internet.
Enough Time to Write 10,000 Words
Something else you need to consider is time. There are only so many hours in the day, and it can take quite a while to whip out thousands of words.
I wasn’t really able to hit 10,000 words in a day until I was able to quit my job at the school district. Once I was able to focus on nothing but writing all day, I was able to meet or exceed my goals.
Ability to Process Information Rapidly
When freelancing or blogging, it’s important that you learn to process information as quickly as possible. Especially if you’re doing a piece that requires a great deal of online research.
Every moment you spend thinking or deliberating some information is taking time away from creating content. You need to train yourself to absorb and create almost simultaneously.
It’s not as difficult as it may sound. And you’ll discover your own methods as time goes on.
Motivation to Actually Write
Perhaps the hardest part of writing 10,000 words per day is actually having the motivation to do so. There were days when I settled on 3500 words simply because I didn’t want to write anymore.
Though, I didn’t really make much money on those days.
Motivation, especially if you want to work from home, is often a hard thing to muster up depending on who you are. I still struggle a bit with it to this day, and I’ve been freelancing since 2012.
Plenty of Platforms to Use
The best part about reaching so many words per day is that you have access to a slew of outlets. I’m not just talking about content mills or private clients, either.
Blogging, using blog platforms like Vocal or Medium, even writing your own eBook can count towards reaching your daily goals.
The trick is to just keep yourself busy.
Keep this in mind, especially when working with content mills. There were days when the work would dry up on Textbroker. If there’s nothing to write, it’s hard to meet word-count goals.
How Can You Improve to Reach 10,000 Words?
OK, motivated to give it a shot?
Here is precisely what I did to set such high goals for myself. See if there is anything you can improve upon.
Set Daily Goals for Yourself
Every day, I would set daily writing goals to simply write more than I did the day before. If I had a 2,000-word day, I would strive for 2,001 the next. Of course, I would surpass that goal quite easily.
Come on, it’s only one word.
This method helped keep me motivated to continue as I kept breaking my own records week after week. It helps create a rhythm, keeps your mind focused on the work, and helps build up speed.
Start with your most productive day and create goals from that. You don’t want to set yourself up for failure by reaching a target you’re really not capable of hitting quite yet.
Keep Practicing to Reach 10,000 Words
When I wasn’t writing for clients on Textbroker, I was writing on other platforms. I started blogging more often, exploring other content mills, and even wrote several sample pieces for myself that no one ever read.
Every word you write today is only going to help you for tomorrow.
The only words I really don’t count are social media posts, emails, or chat messages. Other than that, anything that can help me move forward in my writing career is fair game.
The point is to keep yourself productive in some manner as a content writer.
Get a Good Workflow Going
It can take a bit of time to get a good workflow going for yourself. In fact, I’m still trying to hammer out time management. But that’s also because of the sheer number of things I have planned in my day.
When I was consistently writing 6,000 to 9,000 words per day, it was after I developed a good flow for how Textbroker and other content mills operated.
It’s all about making certain things habitual if you want to make enough to support yourself.
Unfortunately, this is something that is going to take time. And it’s completely up to your unique perspective, experience, and lifestyle. It’ll be a work in progress, but one that will provide great opportunities as you iron out the edges.
Don’t Get Discouraged with Yourself
And lastly, don’t get discouraged with yourself. Seriously, 10,000 words per day is an awful lot of writing. As I said, I didn’t always hit that high.
Instead, focus on just improving your own numbers as time goes on. Eventually, you’ll even surpass mine if you keep working at it.
Once you start getting discouraged with yourself, it gets harder to keep focused or motivated. This is why I suggest starting your goals based on what you’ve done recently in a single day.
Remember, You’re Only in Competition with Yourself
My numbers may sound impressive to some. But in reality, you’re not in competition with me. There is nothing other than bragging rights when you can crank out 10,000 words in a day.
Well, getting paid for most of them would be a nice reward. But it doesn’t always work out like that.
At the end of the day, it all comes down to what you can do and what you can learn to improve your chances for tomorrow. All you can really strive for is self-improvement.
And that’s all that really matters.
Be proud of your accomplishments and always work to better yourself. Before you know it, you’ll have more clients and income than you know what to do with.
What Are Your Daily Goals?
Nowadays, my daily goals have shifted. That’s because a large portion of what I do on a normal day relies on editing and video production. I don’t get to write as much as I used to.
Aside from this current 30-day blogging challenge I’m doing, that is.
Instead of focusing on 10,000 words per day, now I strive to be more efficient with my time. And yes, this is part of my spreadsheet that I use for tracking everything.
Set a goal for yourself tomorrow that is realistic and can help move you forward.
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