Plan like your life depends on it

There are literally hundreds of quotes about planning, and many from people far more important/famous than me.

And do you know why that is? It is a crucial part of creating anything, including digital content. I remember watching Thomas Frank’s Skillshare video, and he talked about having a professional mindset. Professionals don’t wait for inspiration to strike, but rather working to a schedule to get your work completed.

While some of us may be amateurs (for now), it doesn’t mean that we have to work as amateurs.

For the main, I use Notion to manage my ideas/drafts for my content, and find it a great tool for project management. I have a page for each type of creation, and then a database with all of the ideas that I have. I can then filter this by which stage I’m at (idea, research, drafted etc), and display them in tables, or kanban boards.

In short, Notion gives me complete control of how I manage my ideas, edit them, and then display them.

Now, I am by no means an expert in Notion, I’ve not been using it anywhere near long enough. But, it still works really well as a database for all of my thoughts. I can then add links, research and start constructing what the final edit is going to look like. It also means that when I get to writing/filming/editing, I can batch my work to manage my time efficiently.

So what should we plan?

I’ve brain dumped a load of articles that I find interesting/informative into Notion. I’ve then been through this and updated with notes as I go, including links or quotes as a topic comes up. The only thing I don’t plan in advance is what articles I will release when.

I can then publish an article when it is ready and topical rather than forcing it.

But I plan pretty much every aspect of my life. I have databases for my website, my Youtube channels, articles, home renovations, books I’m reading; the list is genuinely endless. In my experience, you can set Notion to manage as much data as you would like, so don’t set yourself too many constraints and plan whatever you feel comfortable with.

I’m however a firm believer of having too much information rather than not enough

Systems > Tools

Believe it or not, this articles isn’t directly about Notion.

It’s more aimed at the system of planning, I just happen to use Notion as a tool to support my planning. An the thing is, you can use whatever tool you want to help with you planning. Looking at YouTube, Matt D’Avela uses Apple Notes, whereas Thomas Frank is Mr Notion. Just find something that you feel comfortable using.

There are hundred of videos out there that will help you decide which tool to use.

But, you should use one (at least). Use it to gather your thoughts. Upload detail, structure your drafts and track what you’re working on. Then you can use your time efficiently and effectively to actually create the content, and hit publish when the time is right.

Some people will prefer waiting for inspiration to strike, and that’s cool if it works for them.

Personally, it’s not worth the risk in my book….