No, wait, that’s Katy Perry’s “Firework” song. Let me start again.
Do you ever feel like you’re trying to do too much?
Recently I’ve felt that way.
What do you do when you feel that way?
I want to do whatever is helpful and makes people feel happier. I also need to support myself and attend to other obligations in life.
As this newsletter has evolved, I’ve added new things to it (such as the recent focus on NFTs for newsletters). Of course, I want to continue much of what I’ve done before on the newsletter.
There’s only so much time in a day or week. With the new activities on top of the old, I’m feeling scattered.
Some people like what I’m doing and have signed up. Some subscribers have left. Am I taking two steps forward and two steps back?
“Six ways from Sunday,” as I see it, means trying to do or consider something in every way possible. The effort may be sincere; but results may vary.
I feel like I’m trying to address a complex issue – how to have a successful Substack newsletter – six ways from Sunday.
I assume you’ve faced similarly challenging issues, with your newsletter or other aspects of your life.
I want to ask your opinion on how I should proceed – or how you’ve proceeded. How should someone attend to everything needed without doing too much?
My suggestion: Radically reassess how you assume people are reacting to what you're creating.
This is where I've been at the last couple of months.
Realizing more and more that people are being driven out of their minds by infoglut, info-overload, info-effluvia. When my Substack arrives in their inbox is it experienced as yet another obligation or something else?
My question for myself is then: What can I do or make or generate that will have the OPPOSITE effect. An 'event' that will feel fun and inviting and worth whatever five minutes of their dwindling consciousness they can gift me with.
I don't EXACTLY know how that will play out as a finished product, but this is the mindset I've slipped into with my creative efforts. Realizing that a radical reassessment is necessary. Then I'll see what comes from that baseline.
First of all, what are NFTs? Secondly, I have no idea. I'm foundering, too. It's near impossible to build a vast email base without a vast email base, it seems. So far I've had two people drop out of my emails and it feels like a personal blow. With a blog, I have no idea who's in or out, but with a normal blog it may be even harder to start from scratch.
I have no idea how to build a newsletter readership, let alone a paying newsletter readership, so I'm looking at everything to measure it all and see what works for me.
In fact, that's why I'm here today. To see if anyone else has any bright ideas.
Gosh this hits close to home. I’ve always been the same way. I want to pursue/say yes to every opportunity that comes my way, but I end up getting stretched thin on time, cash, and f***s to give.
As I’ve gone through this cycle over and over, I’ve started realizing what my happy balance is. For my situation, it’s work from 8 to 4, do things around the house for 1-2 hours, work on personal projects for about 3 hours, and chill for about 2-3 hours before getting 5-6 hours of good quality sleep.
Not the best schedule in terms of sleep health, but it’s working for me at the moment. So I guess what I’m trying to say is experiment with how you allocate your time between different things. And 100% invest in yourself. I use Calm to fall asleep on restless nights and if I’ve had a bad day, I take a break from doing other regular things like my projects.
Just make sure you’re not sacrificing self care for things you don’t really care about. Prioritize what’s most important to you and give yourself enough time to relax.
I am currently doing THE MOST. Two jobs, two kids, writing multiple styles (short fiction, short story, essay), professional strategic planning…
Recognizing the weight of the load is the first step because I never think to put down some weight, only condition myself to be stronger. I push, contort myself, do a Spartan yell to Olympus, then realize maybe I am fighting too many battles at once.
I have to write things down, either in my journal or with a pen just to get them out of my head. Once I do, it becomes easier to know where I need to withdraw my energy. It also helps me see where I need to get more organized. It’s hard, though. I committed to a lot of things (and keep saying yes) that I have to start distancing from. It’s a process and I’m working through it.
This is SORT OF answering your question.
My suggestion: Radically reassess how you assume people are reacting to what you're creating.
This is where I've been at the last couple of months.
Realizing more and more that people are being driven out of their minds by infoglut, info-overload, info-effluvia. When my Substack arrives in their inbox is it experienced as yet another obligation or something else?
My question for myself is then: What can I do or make or generate that will have the OPPOSITE effect. An 'event' that will feel fun and inviting and worth whatever five minutes of their dwindling consciousness they can gift me with.
I don't EXACTLY know how that will play out as a finished product, but this is the mindset I've slipped into with my creative efforts. Realizing that a radical reassessment is necessary. Then I'll see what comes from that baseline.
First of all, what are NFTs? Secondly, I have no idea. I'm foundering, too. It's near impossible to build a vast email base without a vast email base, it seems. So far I've had two people drop out of my emails and it feels like a personal blow. With a blog, I have no idea who's in or out, but with a normal blog it may be even harder to start from scratch.
I have no idea how to build a newsletter readership, let alone a paying newsletter readership, so I'm looking at everything to measure it all and see what works for me.
In fact, that's why I'm here today. To see if anyone else has any bright ideas.
Gosh this hits close to home. I’ve always been the same way. I want to pursue/say yes to every opportunity that comes my way, but I end up getting stretched thin on time, cash, and f***s to give.
As I’ve gone through this cycle over and over, I’ve started realizing what my happy balance is. For my situation, it’s work from 8 to 4, do things around the house for 1-2 hours, work on personal projects for about 3 hours, and chill for about 2-3 hours before getting 5-6 hours of good quality sleep.
Not the best schedule in terms of sleep health, but it’s working for me at the moment. So I guess what I’m trying to say is experiment with how you allocate your time between different things. And 100% invest in yourself. I use Calm to fall asleep on restless nights and if I’ve had a bad day, I take a break from doing other regular things like my projects.
Just make sure you’re not sacrificing self care for things you don’t really care about. Prioritize what’s most important to you and give yourself enough time to relax.
I am currently doing THE MOST. Two jobs, two kids, writing multiple styles (short fiction, short story, essay), professional strategic planning…
Recognizing the weight of the load is the first step because I never think to put down some weight, only condition myself to be stronger. I push, contort myself, do a Spartan yell to Olympus, then realize maybe I am fighting too many battles at once.
I have to write things down, either in my journal or with a pen just to get them out of my head. Once I do, it becomes easier to know where I need to withdraw my energy. It also helps me see where I need to get more organized. It’s hard, though. I committed to a lot of things (and keep saying yes) that I have to start distancing from. It’s a process and I’m working through it.