You’re Stuck on What to Create Next – And That’s Okay

This social media, let’s-all-create-content world that we’re living in can certainly be a good thing AND a bad thing.  Just one example of the latter is that there could be a tendency to create content just for the sake of creating content.  That could result in some really dull content.

Michael Jackson used the expression, “Let it marinade.”  He wanted the musicians behind him to give the song room to breathe.  Never mind if that sounds confusing to you (although if you just can’t get past it, look it up, as seen in the “This Is It” film about what would’ve been his last tour).  The point is, that as much as I’m an advocate for keeping busy and getting more offerings out there for your current and hopefully future followers, you do have to sometimes take a step back and see if you’re forcing it.

If your name is going to be on it, don’t you want quality over quantity?

I recently saw Dallas Remington, the guest from back on Episode 393 of my weekly “Now Hear This Entertainment” podcast, post on Instagram that she was cutting her 18th single in 13 months, but, “next year we’re gonna scale it back a little as far as how many songs we release (so we can sleep a little more than we did this year).”  Good for her for realizing that getting new music out there is important but it doesn’t have to be to the extent that she’d been cranking out the songs.

In fact, I have had to cut myself a break as it relates to trying to create more video content.  The key word there is ‘trying.’  Meaning, I know that so, so many people these days will tell you that ‘video is where it’s at.’  They’ll trot out statistics about how much creators are emphasizing video posts and the followers are responding to it.  You’ll hear about YouTube, of course, but there will also be a point made about how significant TikTok certainly has become.



That being said, I don’t consider myself a YouTuber.  When I fret about not creating enough content for the Now Hear This official YouTube channel, I allow for some grace.  Recognizing that I do post seven days a week on the Instagram account for the podcast and that I’ve successfully put out a new episode of “Now Hear This Entertainment” on-time, every week for more than eight-and-a-half years, I cut myself some slack and put things in perspective when it comes to conjuring up an idea for YouTube.

In fact, an argument can be made that just coming to that realization (“I need to try to come up with more content for YouTube”) is, in itself, a bit of a moral victory.

There’s also something to be said for the fact that sometimes you’re just too close to something and you need to walk away from it to kind of hit the reset button.  To make a Web browser analogy, it’s as though you’re clearing your mental cache so as to come at it with a fresh and open (non-cluttered, non-distracted) mind another time.  And by the way, that other time might just be the next day, but it also might be a week later or a month later.  Heck, on Episode 449 of NHTE, guest Kelly Sherrod talked about a song that had been started five years ago that she was just coming back around to.  In fact, she even described a punk rock song that, by the time it got recorded, ended up being more of a ballad.  That was the fruit that time away and a collaboration with someone else would end up bearing.


Still not convinced that your career won’t end if you don’t create something new every single day?  Four days ago, I saw a post on Instagram by an artist who hadn’t posted since January 30th – yet what they were putting up last week was about playing a gig that night.  I guess the work will still be there for you when you are ready to immerse yourself again, a day later, a week later, or in that case, more than eight months later.  (And just to prove that wasn’t one isolated case, only three-ish months ago did I finally see posts again from someone who otherwise had only put up three posts since last November.  And now they are very much playing live somewhat regularly again.)

Don’t worry, I’m not getting soft.  I will still work like there’s no tomorrow.  But I’ll also take a longer look at not doing something just because it seems like I should because everyone else is.  In fact, as the above demonstrates, everyone else just might not be!

Are you too close to it all?  For more than 18 years I’ve been helping indie music artists from around the country (as well as authors, entrepreneurs, podcasters, and small business owners).  Book an online video consultation with me so you can take a step back and get a different perspective from someone who has seen the challenges that creators like you face regularly.  Our call is completely confidential and is a great way to reenergize your efforts and not have to feel alone in the daily grind.