No time for content planning?

"Stressful work" is the worst work. Find ease instead in Q4. 🙋‍♀️

Welcome to The Content Brief 💼, a fan club for making meaningful work without burning out—delivered in brief, straight to your inbox. 

New here? Welcome! Subscribe free.

---

⏪ Last time, we shared our posting plans for September. That’s here.

⏩ Today, how to avoid the hidden costs of chaos.

---

I’m allergic to three things:

1. The sound of someone digging around a popcorn bucket.

2. People who miss deadlines (especially ones they set).

3. Doing something I call "stressful work."

But first, the sound: Back in the days of going to the movie theater, there would be the inevitable moment when over the deafening sound of the speakers you could still hear people digging around their popcorn bucket. How?! Why? It’s as if they stick their full fist in and spin it around to find *the* perfect piece of popcorn nearly two-thirds of the way down. What was wrong with the piece of popcorn sitting right there on top, I’ll never know. 🍿

The other thing I'm allergic to: People who miss deadlines, especially their own. You know, you hired them to perform a specific service. They provided an estimate and a project plan to which you agreed. The deadline arrives and … nothing. You inquire. They respond as if you’ve annoyed them. Then days later, they send late the work you agreed to receive at an earlier time. Without explanation. Without apology. Without some horribly drawn-out story about their dog eating their homework. How?! Why? If you say you’ll do something by a certain date, do it! Or at the very least, be upfront about extending the deadline ahead of it. 🤓 

And, the third thing I'm allergic to?

Based on everything I’m always talking about here, this should come as no surprise: “Stressful work."

This is work I define as "doing things the long, scary, tediously overwhelming way because you are under some false delusion that it will mean you have earned it."

Not that I’ve ever been guilty of that! 😆

There was a time when I sat frantically at my laptop, eyes darting from one window to the next, not sure of what to work on but jumping between any task that caught my attention so I was doing something. I do not recommend.

Making meaningful work does not need to feel scary, stressful or overwhelmingly time-consuming. Imagine the sense of relief in creating with confidence, knowing you simply need to work your plan. You might even *enjoy* becoming a valuable resource for your audience. 

One of the best things I ever did was to pause and map out a sketch of what was to come, a plan to create with *intention,* separating "stressful work" from "meaningful work." I eliminated the distracting work that felt so urgent! I started creating on purpose the kind of work that would last, that would actually be helpful and that would make my life easier. 

Now, that’s the work I prioritize, while notably creating less. Because those investments build upon each other, and continue working for you.

And listen, I KNOW…when you’re already busy, the idea of dedicating any time to planning might seem overwhelming. 

Your life is full. If you're like many of the creatives in this community, you're high-achieving and purposeful, with responsibilities to your job, family, friends and community. And of course, the daily work involved with eating and cleaning and sleeping and simply living. 

But if you’re familiar with that last-minute scramble, or the mental and emotional toll of a deadline you’re not ready for, you’re already on the road to burnout.  

The truth is: Setting aside say two hours a quarter for content planning isn’t just about organizing your ideas and adding them to a calendar—it’s about avoiding the hidden costs of chaos. 

Set aside just two hours once a quarter to pause and think about what you’re going to create, how you can be most helpful to your ideal reader and how it all fits together in your publication.

Then you can embrace the flexibility of having a plan that functions as a guide rather than a constraint, with room for creativity and change as things evolve. 

How? 

• Start small with a simple planning process.

• Choose tools that allow for easy updates.

• Regularly review and adjust your plan.

Let me help you. 

Get access to the Quarterly Content Planning Party for Q4 as a paid member of The Content Brief and we’ll create your content plan for the next 90 days.    

If you’re already a member of the club, everything will drop right here on Substack this Saturday at 7 a.m. PT. 🎉

My planning process is an invitation to share meaningful work with ease. The best part? It’s a system you can follow to get your work out there in a way that feels good.

You can create in a way that values your time, energy and joy—and is valuable for your community.

And that's something I'll never be allergic to.

Rooting for you,

Christin

💌 P.S. Feeling that back-to-school buzz? ⚡️ Join the club and come to the Q4 Content Planning Party dropping this Saturday for paid members of The Content Brief.

Thank you for being here! I pour a lot of love into this space and I hope you can feel it. It wouldn’t be the same without YOU! 🫶

⚡️