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| A photo of a stranger's dog from Pixabay to represent my metaphor |
The last month or so has been quite the doozy. It began when I had an idea for a Substack featuring podcasters looking for guests. I launched it, not sure about the time investment or whether it was worth it, but I wanted to give it a try.
In a few weeks, I went from roughly 400 to about 800 subscribers. That's remarkable, right?
Well, when I had a really bad day that hit me really hard, I knew something had to give with my schedule. I ran across someone's newsletter that asked, "Is your schedule full but not increasing your income?"
In reality, I think they were selling a course or their coaching business, but that question came back to me on that particularly bad day. The few weeks of reaching out to podcasters did require extra time. It took several hours on Saturday to find and compile the information.
And it wasn't just that feature on my Substack that drained me, as I was also doing a fairly regular "Weekend Care Package" post. It was all fun...but...had I really just built myself a dog run?
I think it's my need to control my circumstances that sometimes leads me to create a busyness that feels productive but doesn't really go anywhere. That doesn't fit my goals. That is really taking up space without leaving room to really grow.
So, I sent out a more solemn-than-I-meant-to Substack post advising people of my pause on all features, including my posts featuring podcasters looking for guests. I braced myself, because I knew I'd feel guilty. And I did. I mean, someone even volunteered their time to help me when they read my announcement.
But I thought to myself: give it time. I asked myself to reflect at the end of the week to see if there really was room for this feature. Maybe I could go back if I felt it really benefited me this way (hey, it's a marketing funnel to the podcast service, really! my inner busyness addict said).
Well, now that a week has gone by, I've come to accept I made the right choice.
And if you feel like you are too busy to write, or even more importantly, too busy to rest, make sure you haven't accidentally generated a busyness for yourself that is just a dog run.
And you have to know what's right for you. For example, some people do fantastic with their newsletters. And it works for them. They had the time and room in their life for it to grow, and it's now a success. But we shouldn't base our goals on what worked for someone else. Don't be afraid to accept that something isn't right for you.
In an ironic twist of fate, soon after that, I ended up picking up an extra writing gig, and another might start next week. It made me realize the importance of leaving room for things.
So if you feel like you are running around like a chicken with its head cut off (I knew one day that metaphor would enter into my writing), pause, do a busyness inventory, and see what you can stop doing for a while. See if it works and leaves you with breathing room.
Nicole Pyles is a chronic busyness addict who promises she'll stop adding unnecessary things to her plate. Check out her writing blog for updates at https://worldofmyimagination.com. Or say hi on threads at @BeingTheWriter.
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