Here’s a few of the things I use to make creating blogs, for Homelab Experiments, smoother. Everything I have set-up is for removing frictions and cutting down the steps needed to do things + Keeping things mostly organized so I don’t have to think about it, I just start! (I’m ‘lazy’, so I like to work more at the start to make things easier for me later.. BUT STILL SO MUCH WORK, WHAT DA F** -fuh.. no cursing XD)
1- I use a pen and paper to jot down ideas and brainstorming to expand on an idea (in the initial phase). I personally find it easier to think of ideas and expanding on new stuff, while writing on paper. This is mostly for general stuff > I have this huge white paper spiral notebook where I like to make all my general planning/idea exploration. I really like having the big white space and no lines. (for my creative writing, I prefer using notebook with lines lol) but for IT stuff and broad ideas, this big notebook is the way to go.
When I have more clarity on what I want to do, I bring things into Notion
2- For me, Notion is pretty much a replacement for Google Notes (which I still often use on my phone), Google Cal, Microsoft Word, And a messy Folder arrangement for all my stuff XD Now, no more headache trying to piece things together. Only converted to using Notion full time since I have a lot more projects and ideas to keep track of and organize (paper and pen ain’t enough anymore..) I still use them, but less, since I prefer having everything Centralized. I love my paper calendar tho <3
For my IT workspace > I modified a social media management Template and made it suit my taste (I had to remove A LOT and add a few things). Basically, I have All the Tittles/Steps Needed on the Left Tab, Status in Middle, ETA and Complete check on the right. And There’s an option to expand the Tittles into a new page when I’m ready to draft out a blog/make detailed Steps > It’s really simple, yet very effective for me.
Thanks to this workspace, I can go from Listing ideas for a post, or anything, to finishing a whole draft, all in one space. And I really like having the Status thingy. I have some custom status to keep track of things, or give reminder, so I don’t have to think much, the status reminds me what I need to do next.
3- I keep everything related to my IT stuff in one place > VirtualBox (It’s solid and there are a lot of resources online for it). I have all my VMs and things related to I.T. on there. If it can’t be a VM, I just put it inside one LOL (like getting packet tracer in Ubuntu VM, or getting Firewall IOS in EVE-NG). I really like having everything related to IT in one place. That makes it a lot more organized and again, less friction for my brain when I need to do something -It’s all just there. Also, there’s a VM for everything/some workaround to getting the thing into VirtualBox > I make it work to make my life easier LOL (tho the process can be wayyy harder XD.. Challenge accepted >__<). And Yes, VirtualBox over a dedicated server for a lot of reasons for me (Topic #1 on HomelabExp)
4- In my Stream deck, I have a shortcut set for Snipping tool (Shift+Win+S). This is SOO important for me because I take A LOT of screenshots for making tutorials. I can’t not have this thing XD. I also have shortcut buttons for all the folders I use often (download, screenshot, common F keys (cus of my keyboard LOL), a bunch of websites, etc.. The stream deck is also a must for me since it saves me a lot of steps. I also have a few thingies set on my mouse but it’s mostly for media and navigation stuff (Logitech G502 with all of its buttons!)
5- Last and but still make my life easier > I got this cheap drawing tablet thingy off of eBay (I think it was $20 somethin’) It’s for scribbling on the screenshots, which I do a lot of sooo it’s good to have when I’m ready to draft out the whole blog. I don’t want to struggle with a mouse for annotations..
And kinda not important, but still good to have > I customized my keyboard with fun tactile switches and some simple mods. After the mods, I really like typing on it. It is really nice to have a fun keyboard when I have to type on for hours at a time XD. The fact that I love typing on it make the process of putting my thoughts into writing a lot smoother.
The things I listed on here are what I have for my PERSONAL setup. Some of these things are more impactful than other, but they all play their part in creating a seamless experience for creating the learnings on my IT website –Homelab Experiments. With the creation process more or less Standardized, I can use most of my brain for struggling when I troubleshoot broken stuff in my VMs XD.. and for learning new things + finding ways to get stuff I use into VirtualBox..
The workflow I have for this are process and thingies I built up overtime, and I still working on improving. There’s always something you can do to make things easier, and more fun/less annoying to Streamline the process of going from Ideas to a finished product. (Just updated my Stream Deck shortcuts after this XD)