How creators can prevent burnout

Hey passionate creator,

As the year nears its conclusion, I have to say, I’m quite relieved. I've been struggling with a lack of ideas and inspiration, so a break feels necessary. But as things start to wind down, I realise what I initially mistook for a creative block was, in fact, burnout.

Creative burnout isn’t just when your creative tap runs dry. It’s a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion. I know it can feel like a buzzword that's always thrown around, but 61% of creators are facing burnout according to ConvertKit's 2022 State of the Creator Economy report.

I’ve always associated being a creator with flexibility, freedom, and following my passion. It seems strange then that so many of us burn out but it comes down to a few reasons:

🧡 Maybe having a passion is part of the problem. It's easier to switch off from your job after 5pm if you don't enjoy it.

🚨 The very nature of being a creator involves deadlines you have to chase constantly in order to follow your publishing schedule.

✅ There’s always more we could be doing. Even if you’re on top of your content, there's courses, coaching, affiliate marketing, community building, and unticked to-dos, like revamping your website, to think about.

🎩 Creating involves so many different roles - from ideation to publishing, we have to wear so many hats and changing them is draining.

I'm sure a lot of you have plans to take some time off during the holiday season. That’s usually how I deal with burnout. I had two mini trips earlier this year and sure, they helped, but only in the short-term. I quickly fell back into the routines predisposing me to creative burnout. Cures are good, but prevention is better. So use the holidays as a chance to rest and light up your creative spark again, but go into 2023 with a clear strategy to sustain that spark:

• Streamline your workflow. Think about all of your processes and tasks, and consider how you can automate them or make them easier. For example, you can use Passionfroot to reduce the hassle and number of tools needed to manage sponsorships.

• Something I've adopted from the product team at Passionfroot is to use sprints. I do 2 weeks of creative sprints, followed by a week of rest, review and reflection. It breaks things up so I don't feel like I'm on a constant hamster wheel.

• Get into a flow. Deep work for less time is more productive and healthier than non-stop unfocused work.

• Do self-care, not as another tick box item, but in whatever way you need. This doesn't mean bubble baths and skincare routines (unless that's what you need), it could just be lying in for another 30 minutes when you haven't slept so well.

• If you’re following accounts that drain you or induce anxiety, click unfollow. Remove any pressures and focus on your own path.

• One of the biggest mistake I've made this year, is that I'd try to finish my to-do list everyday. I'd sometimes stay up until 11pm because I felt guilty that I hadn't done everything. But we don’t have to punish ourselves for a lack of productivity or “earn” our free time. Let tasks spill over into the next day. Even if you don’t finish your to-dos, end your working day when you say you will.

Comparison is the thief of joy and burnout is the grief of it. You can follow your passion and ignite your creative energy. Just don’t exhaust yourself in the flames.

Aprilynne launched a YouTube guide and shares her approach, what worked well, and what she would do differently.

If you want to up your editing game, this video challenge is a fun way to learn new editing tips and common mistakes to avoid.

You want to free up your time and you know you should add delegation into the equation. But the problem is you don’t know where to start or what to delegate. That’s where the $1000 rule comes in.

Setting boundaries can help with work-life balance and protect you from burnout. If you struggle with this, use these prompts to help you to say no in any situation.

If I still haven’t convinced you that rest shouldn't be a reward then maybe you need to consider rest as one of your moving streams.

How to write YouTube titles to get more views with Jake Thomas

Jake Thomas is a self-proclaimed YouTube title nerd. I spoke to Jake about title trends, common mistakes YouTubers make, and which emotions to leverage to get more clicks.

I was super excited to see Arvid Kahl share his Passionfroot page last week. I love how he calls it "professionalizing" his approach to sponsorships. In what other ways can creators make their business seem more professional? I'd love to know your thoughts!

Stay passionate,

Akta