Mami Needs to Write! 10 Tips for Creating Your Own DIY Writing & Strategic Planning Retreat (Part 3/3)

Part 3/3: 10 Tips for Creating YOUR Own Retreat

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This post is the third in a three part series. In case you missed them, here are Part One and Part Two. Be sure to sign up for my newsletter to receive blog updates in your inbox!
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As I discussed in Part One, I was inspired by previous retreat experiences to book a night in a hotel and take some time to plan out and make progress on my summer and fall goals and projects.

In Part Two, I talked about how the books You're a Badass at Making Money: Master the Mindset of Wealth and The Business of Being a Writer inspired me to focus on strategic planning while on retreat. I also shared some highlights and pictures from my night away.

Here in Part 3, I’d like to share some tips based on my experience.

Enjoy!

10 Tips for Creating Your Own
​Writing & Strategic Planning Retreat

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TIP 1: JOIN REWARDS PROGRAMS & RACK UP SOME POINTS
You never know which rewards program will earn you the most bang for your buck, but since most of them cost nothing to join, you should take advantage and sign up.

Then be strategic. If your work usually books you in a hotel chain you like, try to use that chain when you travel with your family as well. 

Over time those points can really add up. 

My night in the hotel was purchased entirely using (years worth of) points. Yay!

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TIP 2: SET SOME GOALS FOR THE RETREAT ITSELF. . .
After I booked the room, ideas of how I would use my time kept popping into my head:

I could work on that application,
or on my poetry collection,
or on that guest blog post that's due at the end of the month,
or on my next newsletter,
or I could make changes to my website,
or I could watch a webinar on book marketing,
or I could complete that Manifesto for the Artist Residency in Motherhood,
or I could read.

Or I could just take a nap.

Yeah.

I would be in the hotel for only 21 hours or so. I needed more than an avalanche of ideas to structure my time.

I needed clear and specific goals for those hours, and then I needed a specific plan for executing.

I realized that with so many projects in my head, I wanted to spend some time Planning & Strategizing.

At the same time, I knew I wanted to end the weekend with some concrete progress on at least one project.

With those considerations in mind, I settled on a few specific projects and goals:

— Yoga

— Strategic Planning
- Long & Short Term Writing Project Goals
- Long & Short Term Professional Development Goals
- Long & Short Term Financial Goals & Planning
- Projects & Editorial Calendar (6 months minimum)

-- Sustainable Arts Foundation Grant Application (First Draft)

— Artist Residency in Motherhood (Manifesto & Register)

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TIP 3: . . . MAKE AN ACTUAL SCHEDULE FOR TACKLING THOSE GOALS (& REVISE GOALS AS NEEDED)

That list looked ambitious, but doable.

Then I started making a schedule and realized I was lucky if I got half of it done!

I cut the last bullet point entirely and then divided my retreat into two days:

Saturday for Strategic Planning and Sunday for my Grant Application.

Side note: it’s worth noting that if I had more than one night, I would have scheduled in more down time, more time for sponteniety.

Saturday Goals:

• a 90 minute yoga practice
• an outline of short & long term goals
• a Project & Editorial Calendar for the next six months

Sunday Goals:

• Sustainable Arts Foundation Aaplication: Portfolio & Artist Statement

The detailed schedule I created is below (notice I include a pumping schedule #keepingitreal #normalizepumping #mamipumps). As I discussed in my last post, I was able to stay pretty much on schedule and accomplished a lot of what I set out to complete.

SATURDAY
AM
10:00am Residency Begins
10:00am - 11:30am: Breakfast & Read & Journal
11:30am - 1:00pm: Yoga

PM
1:00pm - 1:30pm: Quick Lunch
1:30pm - 3:00pm: Strategic Planning: Financial Goals
3:00pm - 3:30pm: Pump & Shower
3:30pm - 5:30pm: Editorial Calendar Course

EVENING
5:30pm - 6:30pm: Dinner
6:30pm - 10:00pm: Strategic Planning: Writing Goals, Professional Development Goals, Editorial Calendar
After 10:00pm: Pump, Chill & Bedtime


SUNDAY
AM
8:00am - 9:00am: Pump, Shower & Breakfast
9:00am - 11:30am: Sustainable Arts Foundation Grant: Portfolio

PM
11:30am - 12:30pm Pump & Quick Lunch
12:30pm - 3:00pm Sustainable Arts Foundation Grant: Artistic Information
3:00pm Residency Ends

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​TIP 4: SHARE YOUR PLAN & SCHEDULE (HELLO ACCOUNTABILITY!)
I don't know if I would have been quite as productive if I hadn't posted my plans online.

I like to think that I would have taken advantage of the time away.

That being said, knowing others knew I was working and that I planned to share an update post-retreat motivated me to stay on task.

You don't have to post your schedule for the whole world to see, but even sharing it with a few close friends will up the accountability factor and help you make the most of your retreat time.

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TIP 5: FIND THE BEST RESOURCES TO HELP GUIDE YOUR PLANNING BEFORE YOU GO
I didn't want to spend my time during the retreat googling "strategic planning for writers" to figure out the best way to spend my time.

I did my googling BEFORE my retreat.

I didn't want to find the grant application materials and deadline while on retreat.

I downloaded that information BEFORE my retreat.

Once I was clear on my top two goals, I gathered helpful resources.

For example, before the retreat I downloaded a Free Author Business Plan Template.

There are so many free or low cost resources out there, so there is no need to reinvent the wheel.

Figure out your goals, then find and organize useful resources BEFORE your retreat.

That way you can dive in as soon as your retreat starts and use your time for putting those resources to good use!

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TIP 6: INCLUDE SOME SORT OF SELF-CARE OR DOWN TIME IN YOUR TIME AWAY

I went to Yoga.

I drank wine (byow!)

I sipped hot tea.

I enjoyed a waterfront view during dinner and breakfast.

If I’d had a longer retreat, I would have scheduled in even more time for pausing and relaxing.

Do at least one little thing that makes you happy, makes your body feel good, or in some other way feeds your soul.

Yes, retreats provide time to be productive, but don’t lose sight of what’s right there in the name:

Re-TREAT.

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TIP 7: TAKE (& SHARE) PICTURES
You don't have to share your day with anyone else, but document it for yourself.

Snapping photos helped to make my short escape more "real," and the pictures motivate me to make time and space in my life to do it again--hopefully soon.

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​TIP 8: SCHEDULE YOUR NEXT RETREAT OR CHECK-IN
I won't be able to do overnight retreats on the regular, but I can do regular check ins.

Since this first retreat was in June, just shy of the summer solstice, I've decided to plan on a Quarterly Check In / Planning Session sometime around the time each season changes.

Even if I can’t get away for an overnight, I can schedule a block of time each quarter to check in and adjust my plans.

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TIP 9: RETREAT HOWEVER YOU CAN... EVEN IF YOU CAN'T GET AWAY OVERNIGHT

I’m lucky and super privileged.

We had enough points to pay for my night away.

My nursling takes a bottle and his father is a champ who isn't afraid of a cranky kiddo in the middle of the night.

I can get away for a night or two on occasion and that is a gift not all nursing mothers have — especially early on.

Even if you’re not a nursing mother, there are countless reasons why an overnight might be out of the question right now.

If you can’t swing an overnight--for whatever reason--all hope is not lost! With a little creativity, you can make space for a bit of a retreat.

First, decide you want to carve out a few hours for your writing life, schedule that time, then be creative about finding a location that gives you that "retreat feel."

Some ideas to get you started:

Can you use a friend's home for a day while they're at work or out of town?

Is there a library you can work in? Try to venture beyond your local library to give you that sense of being away. For example, some college libraries are open to the public and have wonderful places to write and work.

Is there a coffee shop you haven't been to that will give you that "retreat" feeling?

How about a coffee shop in a hotel? That might give you the feel of staying at the hotel without having to actually book a room.

Childcare can be the trickier piece. If you don’t have family or friends who can help out or with whom you can exchange child-care services, try to find ways to bring the retreat to you. Can you, for example, do the “nap residency” Ramona Ausubel describes in Poets & Writers?

If all else fails embrace where you are in your creative journey. Instead of bemoaning your inability to retreat right now, use retreating as something to look forward to when your little is a little older and goes to school or can be left with other caregivers more easily.

Be creative. Give yourself permission to take the time—or to embrace where you are right now. Then make the retreat, or even the prospect of one day retreating, work for you!

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TIP 10: PAT YOURSELF ON THE BACK
You did it! 

You made time for YOU. 

For your work, for your plans, for your writing life. 

You planned your work! Now go work your plan!

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Li Yun's Library

You are a Badass at Making Money: Master the Mindset of Wealth
by Jen Sincero

“A cheerful manifesto on removing obstacles between yourself and the income of your dreams.” --New York Magazine

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The Business of Being a Writer
by Jane Friedman

“While countless books and classes exist to help writers improve their craft, few focus on the practical aspects of maintaining a writing career over time. Friedman’s wise and wide-ranging The Business of Being a Writer offers essential and extremely helpful advice on how writers can survive and thrive in the current publishing landscape.”
- Dinty W. Moore, author of The Story Cure