What's up?
The Content Creation Consistency Formula
While showering this week, I reflected on why some solopreneurs are more consistent than others in creating and publishing content online.
Instinctively, it made sense to me that systems and automation would play an important role.
Then, I started brainstorming other potential contributing factors.
In the end, I came up with this formula:
The question is: What do those letters stand for?
P represents our proficiency at producing content. It starts very low and then gradually increases until creating content becomes almost effortless. The higher the proficiency, the better the consistency.
S are the systems we have put in place, in the form of SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) and reusable templates. Those are invaluable at helping us follow a repeatable process, which in turn greatly increases our consistency.
A stands for automation, meaning drastically reducing the need for manual operations. This is achieved by leveraging keyboard shortcuts and tools like the Shortcuts app, Zapier or Make. Using tools with built-in integrations helps too, like in my case, using Savvycal for booking guest interviews because it integrates natively with Squadcast, and thus creates the recording studio link on-the-fly.
F1 is the amount of fun we have producing content. The more fun we have, the easier it is to stick with it, despite any lack of traction, especially at the beginning. This also depends on how much involvement we have. In the case of the Macpreneur podcast, I'm still doing everything myself. There are parts that I thoroughly enjoy, such as pre-interviews and recording episodes, and others that I would be happy to delegate someday, like editing and publishing.
Finally, F2 is the frequency with which we publish content. The lower the frequency, the easier it is to be consistent, which is the reason why it's better to start with monthly or weekly intervals.
Using the full names, here's what the formula looks like now:
I'm curious, what do you think about this way of looking at the consistency of creating content?
Which parts of this formula do you feel you are the strongest in? The weakest?
Elgato Key Light Mini
Last weekend, the controller for my Nanoleaf Shapes—the only way I have to achieve decent lighting when recording the podcast—suddenly broke down.
After unsuccessfully trying a few troubleshooting steps and searching online for help, I realized it was a known defect.
So much so that Nanoleaf has a free replacement program, which I quickly took advantage of.
The problem is that the communicated processing time was between 5 and 10 days, and I had no idea how long the shipment would take.
As a result, I decided to purchase an alternative solution that would be affordable and could be delivered within a few days.
After doing a bit of research, I landed on the Elgato Key Light Mini.
The reasons I chose it are the following:
- I can control both the light temperature and intensity
- It seamlessly integrates with my Elgato Stream Deck XL
- It's possible to bypass the built-in battery, increasing its lifespan
- It's portable and thus could be used when travelling or on holidays
It took me a while to find the right position, and in the end, I managed to clamp it into an iPhone holder behind my iMac, facing towards the ceiling.
Despite being quite small, I’m pleasantly surprised by its ability to illuminate the half of my office that matters.
On top of being able to control it with my Stream Deck, there is a neat menu bar utility providing quick access to the current temperature and intensity.
Best of all, there’s an iPhone and Android app called Elgato Control Center that allows you to turn the Key Light Mini on and off and control it from anywhere in the house.
Are you able to achieve decent lighting in your office, regardless of the time of day?
What hardware are you using to achieve that?
Mac App Pick
If, like me, you’re working from home and attending many remote meetings, chances are that in between meetings, you work as much as possible.
As a consequence, you might realize you need to go to the bathroom and end up joining meetings a minute or two late.
There's an app to prevent that and it's called "In your Face".
This app will literally fill your Mac screen with a reminder about any upcoming online meeting, giving you the ability to join it or snooze the reminder for a set amount of time.
This app is available on the Mac App Store (monthly & yearly subscription) and from the developer's website (One-time purchase)
It is also part of Setapp.
In case you don't know, Setapp offers a collection of 240+ trustworthy paid apps under one subscription.
It takes away the pain of looking up, comparing, buying, and managing separate apps.
If you're tired of that too, then you ought to give Setapp a try.
They offer 3 plans, each allowing you to install applications on a different number of devices:
- 1 Mac for $9.99/month
- 1 Mac and 4 iOS devices for $12.99/month
- 4 Macs and 4 iOS devices for $14.99/month
I've chosen the latter to be able to install apps on my iMac, Macbook Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max and iPad Air 4.
Normally, you can try Setapp only for 7 days, but I made a deal with them so that you can test it free for a full 30 days, using my affiliate link.
After clicking on this button:
- you'll access a page where the 'macpreneur' promo code will be pre-populated
- you'll just need to click on the 'Continue' button
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you'll have three signup options:
- your Apple ID or
- your Google account or
- your name, email address and the password of your choice
After that, simply download the Setapp app on your Mac and start exploring the various apps available in its catalog, including In Your Face of course 🙂
Macpreneur episodes
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Episode 124
In this episode, you'll learn how accomplished technologist Brian Childress uses his MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and iPhone 13 to effectively run his business from anywhere in the world.
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Episode 125
In this episode, you'll learn about the journey of Vincent Gressieker, an experienced business advisor from Germany, who transitioned from PC to Mac for his consulting business.
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