Creating Content – Obligation or Authentic Desire?
Those of us who are in business often hear that we should post content consistently on a daily basis. Heart-centered entrepreneurs can, at times, find this challenging. Why? I would invite you to consider,
- What is the intent behind posting?
- Where is the inspiration, or lack thereof, coming from?
- Are you posting just to post?
- Are you posting because you personally feel excited about a topic and know it may be of benefit to your market?
Intention
If you are not clear on your intention, why you want to create content, why you want to put yourself out there in the world, or what your message is, you may find yourself confused, uninspired, and dreading the thought of creating content. Likewise, there may be other underlying considerations — are you feeling afraid to create and share content? Do you feel afraid to be seen and heard? Do you fear rejection? Do you fear the fear of being authentically seen as you are? Are you willing to put yourself out there authentically?
Inspiration and “Because”
What is your message? What are you most passionate about? Do you feel inspired? If you’re not clear on your message or your passions, let’s chat. If you are clear on your message, your passion, your purpose, and aren’t feeling afraid to put yourself out there, then where does the occasional (or consistent) lack of inspiration spring from? We all have parents, yes? We have all had teachers, yes? What happens when we’re told to do something for the sake of doing it? Clean your room, wash the dishes, write this paper, read that book, walk the dog, clean the toilet…
Sure, the examples are somewhat cliche, but I have no doubts that somewhere along the line a part of you recalls being told to do something that doesn’t inspire you either because “I said so,” “this is how things are done,” or “that’s just the way it is.” When we hear that, we have a tendency to shut down. The creative artistic flow dams up and we sit there, either unable to create content, or creating content not because we really want to or feel inspired to, but because it’s something we have to do every single day in order to gain a following, reach your audience, connect to people, etc…
Finding your Flow and Following it
What happens when we take a step back, allow ourselves to breathe, and create from inspired action?
We connect.
We connect with our authentic voice, our authentic message, and authentically with our audience. If you don’t believe posting content for the sake of posting content versus moving from the heart and connecting isn’t going to eventually circle back around and come back stinking…think again. People will eventually catch on.
How do we honor our intuitive, creative flow while consistently sharing content?
In my opinion, and that’s all it is, it’s important to listen to your own creative ebbs and flows. When the inspiration is there and flowing — you know what that’s like! Having days where there are so many ideas flowing through you that you just want to write and write and write, or create videos, or projects… — ride the wave. Create that content ahead of time so you have regular, authentic, content to share.
What happens if you don’t feel inspired on a particular day, you don’t feel like you have anything to share that day, or you feel called to do something else? Maybe your focus is on creating product rather than social media content. Listen to it and allow yourself to rest. Maybe you post a quick note, meme, or video about honoring your needs and tying it in to how your clientele can benefit. Maybe you share someone else’s article that day. Or, maybe you break the norm and don’t post anything. Is it the end of the world? No. Jump back in the saddle and giddy-up when you are ready.
Creating content that comes from an authentic desire and creative flow to share vs posting for the sake of putting stuff out there is a bit like training and developing the muscle memory, strength, and coordination to do it. Consistently. Some days or weeks you may find yourself pushing hard in that content-creating gym of yours and discover that your muscles are sore, you are fatigued, and need to rest. Rest up and let your system recover. Then, dive in again. Over time, you will find the right intensity and pace to build, sustain, and support your authentic, content-creating muscles.
This post is a bit different than my usual posts and is targeted towards a different audience than many of my posts. In exploring my authentic content-creation abilities and drive, I discovered that some days the flow is there and I ride those waves until it’s time for bed or there aren’t any more waves to ride.
I also find myself creating more and more short videos that are concise and direct, which I often share on IG and FB…then, drop the ball on posting them here or on my YouTube channel. Yeah, I’m working on that.
Lately, I’ve been very focused and inspired to connect even more deeply with my clients and create some amazing products for all of you. So, is my blog-posting, content-creating muscle over stretched? Sometimes, yes. Other days, no. And, I know myself well enough that the waves will roll in and I will surf like a woman with boundless creative energy.
Despite the “do this, do that” that exists in the business world, I find it’s of primary importance to first listen to myself, my needs, and move from an authentic space. Honestly, if I wasn’t doing that, I wouldn’t be practicing what I offer to teach, and well…that would smell. Unpleasantly.
The exciting news — in addition to some awesome products that I am launching soon, I am bringing this blog and my YouTube channel up to date with all of the juicy content that I have been sharing over social media. If you want to receive regular updates, or be the first to see the new content that is posted, follow me on FB or IG and subscribe to my newsletter.
More Exciting News – Online Course Launch!
I don’t know about you, but I am jumping for joy. I have been preparing over the past several months to put together online material that is relevant, accessible, high quality, and affordable. It is with great pleasure and excitement that I share with you the launch of my online courses!
The material I’ll be sharing with you over the next several weeks and months will cover a range of topics — everything from getting your first full push-up and pull-up to holistic lifestyle courses and a special online course for women which will be released late 2016/early 2017.
In addition to sharing this online school and course launch with all of you, I’m also going to share with you the official launch of…
…rather than create a downloadable pdf of the blog I shared with you all a while back, I decided to take the material and create a FREE course for you that you can access at any time. If you are looking to develop your upper body pushing strength, want to feel the connection between your core and your arms, or want to begin the process of developing shapely shoulders and triceps, then this is a good place to start.
More exciting news in the days and weeks to come! If you’d like to keep abreast of all that is coming down the pike, be sure to follow me on any of the social media accounts in the sidebar; or subscribe to my newsletter (I’m only going to be emailing once per week unless I have something to share that cannot wait) and receive your FREE copy of “9 Secrets to Living a Vibrant Life.”
How to Disarm a Ticking Time Bomb
How do you disarm a ticking time bomb? What is a ticking time bomb?
Have you noticed that when you ask someone how they feel that they tend to respond with “I am happy,” “I am sad,” “I am angry!”? When we use the phrase “I am,” we tend to take on the energetic qualities of that emotion, thus becoming sadness, anger, or fear for example. When we take on the energetics of an emotion, we can become a ticking time bomb. A ticking time bomb tends to be a challenging person to be around, unless you enjoy working with explosives.
What can we do to diffuse a ticking time bomb? Well, first off, we can give that person space to feel whatever they are feeling and express the emotion in whatever way needs expressing (barring harm to self or others). It’s not our “job” to change anyone. We can, however learn how to accept them as they are. That being said, you can work on disarming your own ticking time bomb within yourself by changing your language.
What might that look like? Next time you feel angry, sad, frustrated, fear, etc. rather than say “I am angry…,” see if you can give yourself permission to flip the coin and say “I feel angry.” Notice how that instantly changes the quality of anger within your body. Instead of becoming anger, you are now a witness to your anger – someone who can experience the feeling of the emotion of anger as it flows through you.
Give it a try and let me know how you feel.
Comment below and share with anyone you think may benefit from this simple, yet profound practice.
Where do I start?
Where do we start when we don’t know where to start? Oftentimes, we know where we want to be, know what we’d like to do, where we want to go, but lack the clarity to know where and how to start. In this video, I share some tips to help you take that first step on your journey.
How to Feel Connected when you Feel Disconnected
Why have we become so disconnected when we’re seemingly more connected than ever? I share my perspective here as well as 4 tips to help you reconnect.
It’s *that* Time of Year Again…
You know what I mean, single folks, divorcees, widowers, in-a-non-relationship-relationship women…
Valentine’s Day.
The primary day where our existence and our rating on the love meter is determined by some external influence. The day when if we’re not in a loving, giving, accepting, compassionate, understanding, yada yada yada relationship, we tend to stick our heads in the ground, bury our face in the blankets, put on a sappy chick flick and cry our eyes out over the box of chocolates we bought for ourselves – the one day out of the year when we tend to feel the most lonely, worthless, and unlovable.
It’s time for that to change.
Your rating on the love meter has nothing to do with some external influence. It is not defined by how many roses you get, how many boxes of chocolates you receive, or whether or not you’re taken out to some fancy restaurant where you wine and dine on champagne and duck.
It’s time to toss that perception right in the ol’ recycling bin.
Your rating on the love meter has to do with how you love yourself. It’s time to drop the bullshit stories you keep telling yourself as to why you’re not lovable, why you’re not good enough, why you’re not pretty, desirable, etc., etc., and act like you are! Why? Because you are lovable. You are good enough. You are beautiful. You are desirable. You are worthy.
True love begins and ends with you, not someone else.
Wild-hearted one, I invite you to dust off your clothes, dry your eyes, lift your chin and go spoil yourself. Show yourself how much you love YOU this Valentine’s Day. Treat yourself to a massage. Buy yourself that heavenly box of artisan dark chocolates and enjoy them, under candlelight, with an amazing glass of organic red wine (or Guinness if you prefer beer). Get dressed up, and take yourself out on a date to the restaurant of your dreams. Order that champagne and duck and treat yourself like the goddess that you are.
Why? I believe in you. I believe you are worth it and I believe you are worth learning how to love every inch and aspect of your wonderful self.
“Dear Human: You’ve got it all wrong. You didn’t come here to master unconditional love. That is where you came from and where you’ll return. You came here to learn personal love. Universal love. Messy love. Sweaty love. Crazy love. Broken love. Whole love. Infused with divinity. Lived through the grace of stumbling. Demonstrated through the beauty of… messing up. Often. You didn’t come here to be perfect. You already are. You came here to be gorgeously human. Flawed and fabulous. And then to rise again into remembering. But unconditional love? Stop telling that story. Love, in truth, doesn’t need ANY other adjectives. It doesn’t require modifiers. It doesn’t require the condition of perfection. It only asks that you show up. And do your best. That you stay present and feel fully. That you shine and fly and laugh and cry and hurt and heal and fall and get back up and play and work and live and die as YOU. It’s enough. It’s Plenty.” ~Courtney A. Walsh
How are you treating yourself this Valentine’s Day? I’d love to hear in your comments below, how you are embracing #fiercelove2016 for yourself this year.
xx, Amanda
I have a bit of a secret…
Why do we do anything that we do? Why do we move our bodies? Why take care of our health? Why work? Why experience financial abundance? Why enter relationships?
Oftentimes, it boils down to a few things — we want to feel connected, we want to know that we matter, we want to experience freedom, support, and love in all that we do.
“We think sometimes that poverty is only being naked, hungry and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved, uncared for is the greatest poverty. We must start in our own homes to remedy this kind of poverty.” ~Mother Teresa
I understand what it feels like…
…to have nothing. To choose to leave a relationship with no sense of security. To wonder where the next meal is going to come from.
…to feel so overwhelmed with emotional pain that you contemplate hurting yourself. Or, beg for physical pain so you can be distracted from feeling what is inside you.
…to numb yourself from feeling anything. To choose to bury the pain you are feeling so that you can go about your day and do what you must in order to survive.
…to put yourself last. To give until there is nothing left to give. To feel so exhausted and drained and broken that you cry because you no longer have the strength or the energy to open that jar of pickles.
…to experience physical pain. To not be able to roll over. To not be able to do what you love. To be told time and time again that this is something you are going to have to live with.
…to feel incredibly alone. Worthless. Undesirable. Not good enough.
I understand how it feels because I’ve been there.
That woman who left a marriage with two young boys and no means of support, was me. That woman who wondered where the next meal was going to come from, was me.
The woman who contemplated physical harm was me. And, I was the same woman who buried her emotions, who sustained two devastating injuries, and who stands here before you now having made the conscious decision to change —
To live a life of freedom, of infinite support, of love.
A life by design, created and fueled by my passions.
How?
It’s a bit of a secret, and I am going to share it with you.
Fierce love.
Learning to love yourself as much as you want to be loved by others.
Stay tuned for the launch of the #fiercelove2016 campaign. I’m so excited to share this with you, and look forward to a select number of people joining me, as I walk beside you on your personal journey towards fierce love.
On A Limb Movement & Wellness 