I have no plans for today’s newsletter. Usually, I’ll have an outline from which to jot down my Friday thoughts for you all, but even finding the time for that relatively small task has been biblically tricky this week.
The reason is pretty simple - we’ve entered one of the busiest times I can recall for this business, and I’m going on holiday at the end of the month.
If you’re a business owner, freelancer, or someone who just invests an immense amount of time, energy, and passion into their job, you’ll know exactly how I feel at the moment.
Holidays are so important. Taking time away from the madness that is everyday life is one of the healthiest and smartest things any of us can do. The problem is that finding time to do that and then fully switching off when you do discover a window in your diary is incredibly challenging.
I should make it clear that there is absolutely no martyrdom going on in today’s newsletter. As I’ve grown older, become wiser, and experienced some genuinely tough scenarios, I’ve realised that there is nothing smart about pushing yourself beyond all sense and reason at work. ‘Pulling an all-nighter’ is inherently stupid - as is the belief that you simply can’t find time for a holiday. We all can, and none of us are so much in demand that we can’t find at least one week out of the year to get away from it all.
I’m relishing this holiday, but I’m also conscious that for me to be able to switch off as cleanly as possible, we need to get an awful lot of work done before my departure on 25th June. The decision to go on holiday has coincided with what is easily one of the most hectic periods I’ve experienced while running this business. That’s no one’s fault, and the adage of there never being a good time to do anything absolutely rings true here, but it does draw a wry smile from yours truly. Nothing ever quite lines up perfectly, does it?
To give you an insight into what we’ve got to do this month, the June production calendar currently includes 13 videos. And that’s just the main YouTube videos - we also have content for the website, short-form videos, two weekly newsletters, a bi-weekly podcast, press events, and everything else that comes with running a business to contend with. Some of the aforementioned videos may be rearranged for July, but even if they are, we’re still facing a mountain of content that needs creating, editing, publishing, and monitoring.
Don’t get me wrong - this is a lovely problem to have and I am in no way complaining; I’d much rather it was like this than having to scrabble around for sponsored videos, affiliates sales, and AdSense revenue. But I will unashamedly admit that the hot seat is an uncomfortably toasty one at the moment.
The good news is I’m not doing this alone anymore. Trust me, I’ve been there, and it’s not a nice place to be when you have so much resting on your shoulders in terms of audience and sponsor expectations. Now, I have a team, the members of which are always utterly brilliant, but who have particularly come into their own this month. Video planning is a collaborative affair. Logistics are handled without my input. Video edits are being shared. The website is a bustling content hub even if I’m not always the one providing the words. The amount of short-form content we’re pumping out and the resulting numbers are nuts - and I’m not involved in that at all.
This, of course, adds another layer of stress and worry. A team means there are people to pay, debtors to chase even more vigorously, and responsibilities to monitor. The good news, once again, is that the collective team effort is having a telling impact on revenue, efficiency, and, most importantly, the quality of the stuff we’re putting out there.
I’ve said this a few times in this newsletter - if you’re following my journey with the desire to one day be a full-time content creator, you need to be ready for what’s to come. It is the best, most fulfilling, and most exciting job I’ve ever had, and I wouldn’t swap it for the world, but it is also the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. Be careful what you wish for - none of the content creators you watch and admire skip out of bed in the morning or relish every hour of their working day. We’re not doing it for the clicks, attention, and moolah (well, we are - but you get my point). However, we all share one trait, which is that we deeply love our businesses. If you have that in you, and you know that taking a holiday will be something you have to work hard at (ironically), you’re in for one hell of a ride.
Right - onto the next task!