As I am progressing with my new business model and writing more, and getting more involved in social media, Pinterest, personal marketing, etc. I start to lose sight of my original goal of focusing on what I am learning in Essentialism.  Where are my focus efforts the most important? 

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Insert wake up call to the amount of time spent researching and implementing every possible thing that comes up (in my defense, it is really all SO fascinating to me).

I have been taking and using all of my own original photography in every post, designing dozens of my own personal pins, and I even went so far as to create matching board covers for all of my Photography Boards on Pinterest so they would look more branded and cohesive.  Does this scream Essentialism or Insanity to you?

Here is where I am accountable to my readers in simplifying things a bit.  I get so excited about everything I read and learn and can't always help myself. Truly.  It is a problem.

I am going to make the following changes to help keep me on track and prevent me from derailing into burnout and missing out on time spent on my home and with my family (notice you aren't seeing any images of my piles of unfolded laundry in this post).  

Here goes:

Blog: I am still committed to posting regularly, but maybe not SEVEN days a week.  This is so like me to take everything to the extreme.  If I can get 3-5 posts in a week, I think I can call it good.  Right?  I do love writing, so maybe some weeks there will be more and some weeks there will be less.  But, I am taking the pressure off by not committing to so much.

Pinterest: This is the biggest of all of my rabbit hole time wasters. I LOVE Pinterest (follow me for ideas on Photography, DIY, Home Decor, Hair and Beauty, etc.) and take note of all those matching Photography Boards!!! #worthit

But, just like if you Give a Mouse a Cookie...one excuse to look on Pinterest and I emerge an hour later with nothing to show for it. 

I am setting a timer and having a designated time(s) of day that I can get on there.  NO more wasting hours accomplishing nothing on Pinterest--though I do love her so.

Instagram: Instagram is hands down my favorite social media platform.  I love getting to know people through Stories and seeing glimpses into their day through images (I am a photographer after all, love me some pictures!).  But again, I start out with good intentions of brief perusing, only to find myself still in my workout clothes at noon and way behind on my scheduled to-do list for the day.  I have turned off all notifications on my phone and I am muting sounds so I don't mindlessly get sucked back in.

Facebook: Meh, this is less of a rabbit hole for me, but still worth mentioning b/c every little sidetracked moment adds up.  I am in several FB groups and they post ALL the time.  It is awesome, but again, those notifications are distracting and can prevent me from getting the Essential, Important things done during the day.

Classes: Instead of fitting this in whenever I can and beating myself up b/c I didn't have enough time (hem hem dang you Pinterest and Instagram!), I am going to set aside a scheduled time two days each week dedicated to educating myself, whether that is via classes, photography books, etc.

Time Saving Shortcuts: I have recently discovered the bloggers dream team in Stock Photography.  As a photographer, I am somewhat morally opposed to paying for someone else's photos.  And in the case of portraits, I will stick to my guns on that boycott.  However, the white backgrounds and flat lays that I LOVE to create, take SO much time and require JUST the right lighting, equipment set up, etc. and can be time consuming (as well as providing good excuses for procrastinating...). 

I found the BEST ever stock photography website with thousands of images for female entrepreneurs at extremely affordable prices.  I honestly couldn't stop looking through all of the options for backgrounds and flat lay images that are ALL seriously 1000% my style (down the rabbit hole I go again, dangit!). 

Worth every penny of membership and will save me multiple hours each week in setting up my images for posts.  The image quote in this post, I made using one of the stock images from Styled Stock Society.  I honestly cannot recommend this designer enough and her prices (especially via membership since membership allows you an unlimited download of images, but you can also order images a la carte at competitive per image rates) can't be beat.

Here's to not losing my head in my over eager enthusiasm to do it all.

Until next time, my friends!