How to Stop Struggling with Content Creation

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Right before I started working on the script for this podcast, I brainstormed podcast topics for the next 15 days. Right now I’m in the middle of a 31 day podcasting challenge. This month I have to release a podcast a day. It’s super intense and it’s pushing me creatively. A couple of days ago I was scrolling through threads and noticed the following question “I’m struggling to find content to create.” As a person who very rarely has this issue, doesn’t use ChatGPT for ideation and am typically overwhelmed by all of the ideas that I seem to be coming up with I thought it might be helpful to share what I’m doing. Here’s how to stop struggling with content creation and to have an endless number of ideas to help you build your brand serve your audience.

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Show Notes

I always have a ton of content ideas to share on all of my projects. It surprised me to find out that there were so many creators who were struggling to come up with content ideas. Here’s what has been working for me and some tips may feel counterintuitive.

Technology Free Days

Tip #1

If you are chronically online it will be difficult to to notice the spoke and unspoken needs of the community that you’re building. I think we’ve become so tethered to our devices that we’ve become afraid of the silence that happens when we’re not constantly scrolling, listening or interacting with our devices. I do the following regularly:

Go hiking-Love going on an all day hike on my own or with friends. Just putting one foot in front of the other, breathing in fresh air and enjoying the view.
Schedule time off of my devices-I work really hard to break the habit of being chronically online. If I’m noticing that I’m always looking at my phone or laptop-it’s time to take a long break.
Listen to music-I wish Ipods were still a thing.
Read a book-One of my absolute all time favorite activities is to read. I could read all day every day.
Journal or write creatively-My second favorite activity is to write.
Spend time with friends and family-Post COVID I’m still not spending as much time with people as I would like and I’m working hard to remedy that.

Be Endlessly Curious

Tip #2

I’m still extremely curious and interested about the areas of focus that my brands are positioned in. I have 4 projects (because I’m insane). They are in the following spaces:

Content Creation as a business-Creators Getting Paid
Money/Personal finance-Your American Money
Colorado-Square State Colorado
Romance-I have a pen name that I’m not sharing with you LOL1

I’m still interested in talking to other people in those spaces, exploring under discussed topics in those niches and I just love those spaces. I still love exploring my state and learning the old and new stories about it. I love reading and writing romances where the female lead is always a Black woman. There’s nothing better than being in community, conversation and uplifting people similar interests. I just love these topics and creative spaces. So it’s easy for me to find content to create.

Take a Break

Tip #3

I have taken 3 one year breaks from my personal finance brand in the past 10 years. Sometimes the well runs dry. I took 5years off from working on my romance brand. I was still selling books passively, I just didn’t have the creative juices to work on romance during COVID. That break was one of the best things that I could have done. Sometimes there’s no more creative juice left to squeeze.

Take a break.

Don’t Forget Your Creative Ideas

Tip #4

I have so many freaking ideas that come up during my down time, walking around, etc. I keep track of those ideas in two ways:

Journal
Notes App

These are non-negotiable. I have a TON of ideas and I would forget them if I didn’t keep a running list.

Create Simple Creative Systems

Tip #5

I’m not getting the amount of work that I’m getting done via vibes. I have some simple systems that help keep me focused.

Flexible Editorial Calendar-Things come up so I like to pivot if there’s a more urgent topic that I would prefer to cover. I’m not even talking about an SEO specific calendar where I know I would be talking about topics related to tax season right before it happens on my personal finance site. I’m talking about content as it relates to goals and outcomes.
Batch content- Especially the stuff that’s more time intensive for you. Some people struggle with creative content others with SEO or results focused content. Whichever one it is for you, batch as much as you can so that you have room to explore

Bonus Tip

Here are some actual places, spaces to find content ideas

All of the questions you get asked by your community on a regular basis
Podcast topics other creatives have covered-You would just approach the topic from your own unique perspective and experience.
Current events-Right now I’m overwhelmed with content for my personal finance brand
Film and Streaming Projects-Those shows, stories and topics are a goldmine of creative ideas
Other people’s life experiences
Written works such as books, articles, etc. (past, current and future)
Pop culture topics-There’s a huge trial happening right now with a TON of topics that creators could cover in their content.

Be prepared, stay ready and take notes. You’ll have more than enough topics to cover in your content.

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