Prolific.

It’s a buzz word thrown around online a lot, isn’t it?

If you’re a prolific writer, it means you produce a lot of content. Here’s a screenshot of the articles I’ve written over the past four years.

I’ve published over 2,684 stories, but don’t worry — many of them are comments.

Across all platforms, I’ve written over 1,000 blog posts since 2015 when I started.

What’s my secret? How can you also be this prolific? Here’s ten tips for you..

1. Wait 20 Minutes

“Tom, what are you talking about?”

I’ll tell you. The hardest part of writing blog posts is the first 20 minutes. It’s sort of like jumping into a swimming pool. It feels like ice, right? Of course your body isn’t going to be used to the water immediately.

We ease into it.

Same thing with writing. The first 20 minutes of writing are hard, but once you get past that, you’ll find words start flowing from your fingers like lightning.

2. Aim For 500 words

Who says every blog post needs to be 1,500 words? They don’t. I tell people to aim for 500 words because it’s attainable. It’s easier. They can publish 10 in a row and get into a rhythm.

So aim for 500 words at the beginning.

3. Go On An Adventure

We need ideas to write so many blog posts, right? I went on a 5-month road trip across America in 2016 and that experience alone was worth a year of blog posts.

I broadened my mind in San Francisco. I became one with nature in Montana. I became one with my taste buds in Texas.

If you don’t know what to write about, go on an adventure. I know, it’s a little hard to do that right now, but many countries have opened up some form of local tourism. For me, touring my own country was an amazing adventure.

4. Sprint To 30 Articles In 30 Days

A lot of being prolific comes down to momentum.

I used to play baseball as a kid and we’d see momentum swings every single game. The opposing team would score 4 runs in an inning, and we thought the game was over, then the next inning we’d score 8.

Life, in a lot of ways, is about building momentum.

Try to sprint to 30 articles in 30 days to build that initial momentum.

5. Rotate Topics Every Night

When I got started writing, I pledged to write 5 blog posts in 5 different categories every week. Travel, Productivity, Freelancing, Inspiration, and Relationships were my five.

Focusing on a different topic every day gave my mind a break.

It wasn’t always travel posts — I was able to explore many topics, which helped keep me full of ideas.

Do the same thing. Write down 5 topics you want to write consistently in, then do that.

6. Write Down Every Idea You Get On Your Phone

Or a journal. It’s up to you.

Many times while doing monotonous things like walking around, riding in taxis, or doing dishes, I come up with my next article idea.

I start thinking about things, right? A lot of people let their mind wander and don’t write down what they were thinking of.

This is the perfect blogging material. Make sure to be ready and write any ideas into the “Notes” app on your phone.

7. Use Conversations For Future Content

I sometimes use conversations I have with other bloggers as material for blog posts. We talk about the most interesting stuff that’s, many times, worthy of a full write up.

Pay attention to the conversations you have with other people.

Especially anybody who’s particularly interesting.

8. Copy Somebody Else

Okay, so don’t plagiarize. What I mean is, use somebody’s article that you like as inspiration for yours.

If someone talked about something that you want to talk about, use it. Sometimes reading other bloggers can help fill in the gaps when we’re burned out.

9. Don’t Freak Out When You Have Writer’s Block

You’re sitting at your computer waiting for words to flow. They don’t. You check Facebook, come back, and still no words.

What the heck is happening?

You got writer’s block. The worst thing you can do in this situation is freak out. Stay calm. I’ve been in this situation tons of times before and after 20–30 minutes of just staring at my screen (and staying calm), I get out of it.

Don’t freak out when you have writer’s block.

10. Still Blocked? Change The Topic To Something More Emotional

Sometimes I write the first 100 words of a post, get writer’s block, and even after 30 minutes of staying calm I don’t come out of it.

What works for me is, I’ll quit that draft and change the topic to something more emotional. You’d be surprised how great changing the topic can be for spurring on writing.

I always say to write emotional, whether that’s angry, sad, super happy, etc.

Try to tap into your emotions when all else fails, because if you do, you won’t fail.