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ly using your muscles helps keep your body strong, and profits about how you can contribute to their causes.
even light physical activity a few times each week can
Especially as funding for charitable organizations has
help keep your cardiovascular system fit for better heart
dropped, volunteers are still essential to most nonprofit
health. Regular exercise can also provide a range of posi-
organizations, whether the help comes in person or virtu-
tive mental health outcomes, including reduced stress,
ally. Even from a distance, you may be able to help with
anxiety and depression, and improved memory.
tasks like making calls to donors, assisting with mailings,
or planning fundraising campaigns.

Learn a new hobby or skill.
Another way to fill your
free time, and reap some
positive energy, is to ex-
plore a new hobby or skill.
The personal satisfaction of
learning and focusing your
mental energy on some-
thing that interests you can

Volunteer in your community or consider virtual volun- help offset the disappoint-
teering. Helping others is a way to release feelgood en- ment of bring away from
dorphins for yourself. While your limited social calendar those you love.
may afford you some extra time, inquire with local non-

ing information for your brilliant idea right away, it’s
going to take ages. Let that topic sit for a few days,
How to though, and you can add new ideas as they occurs
to you – and when you’re ready to write, you’ll al-
Write an ready have all the supporting info you need.
3. Edit before you start

Article in You’ve probably got twice as many ideas as you
need at this point, so it’s time to be brutal. Cut out
any supporting idea that doesn’t fit with the main
20 Minutes topic of the article. Remember, we’re talking about
how to write an article in 20 minutes, not an epic.
You can always use the ideas you don’t need for
later posts.
1. Keep an idea list. 4. Use bullet points
When inspiration for a post strikes, scribble it down Bullet points, or numbered points like “10 Ways to
in a notebook or a word file. For many bloggers and Get More Subscribers”, can make writing an article
content creators, finding the topic to write about a lot simpler in terms of organization because you
takes up half the time. Keeping an idea list lets you no longer have to figure out transitions from one
leap in to a new post quickly when you’re ready to idea to the next. The great side benefit is that read-
write. ers like lists; they’re easier for the eye to follow.

2. Let your ideas incubate. 5. Keep it short
If you try to force yourself to come up with support- (Continued on page 21)

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