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See more articles, posts, and discussions about business, project management, Generative AI and Creative Writing on Medium here<\/a>. If you have not already, subscribe to Medium<\/a>. Or follow me here<\/a> on Substack.<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n This past week, I\u2019ve been busy trying to be realistic with my planning, but I quickly found at least one over-optimistic decision, which has already been revised. This got me thinking about planning as a subject; a quick search returned dozens of one-liner quotes. This is my personal favourite for the context of this week\u2019s newsletter.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Dwight D. Eisenhower<\/strong>: “Plans are nothing; planning is everything.”<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The quotes were from various sources, including statesmen, philosophers, musicians, and authors, highlighting the universal understanding that while planning is crucial, the ability to adapt to change is equally important.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n It is this willingness to adapt that is critical to successful planning.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n My overarching goals for the year ahead perhaps require some clarification. While they may sound simple when written down in a short list, implementing them all effectively may prove more challenging to predict.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Here is my first attempt at a week of planning:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The red time blocks are for contracted work, the yellow for creativity, and the blue for my business. All other times can also be considered one large time block; this is my personal and family time.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n I\u2019m writing this on a Friday morning but not as this planning suggests, starting at 6 AM. The mental energy expended for the four days of contract work meant, quite simply, that I needed a good rest and a reset before I would be ready to dive into either the creative or the business streams.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n External dependencies will always impact any planning; we must be willing to adapt the planning to reflect new or unanticipated situations immediately. This is the revised plan:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n As you can see, I\u2019ve already adapted the planning to reflect real life and practicalities. I could have forced myself to get up at 5 AM and push through the creative time block. But it would have been a masochistic waste of time.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n I\u2019ll illustrate how these goals intertwine personal aspirations with business growth. It all starts with a plan and self-discipline. And adaptability.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n No extra planning is needed for the contractual work scheduled every Monday to Thursday. Of course, within this work, detailed planning is required and executed with the help of ionBiz<\/a>, Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Teams.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n For my business ambitions, marketing is the biggest problem. I\u2019ve no experience at all with marketing; I\u2019ve always been in a fixed-contract salaried position until very recently.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The Everyday Solopreneur: Navigating the Marketing Maze <\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n I use Notion for all business-related activities, including creating and managing marketing strategies once I figure out which strategies I need. For the finances, I have a sub-license for Exact<\/a>, which is all I need.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n No doubt, as the business expands, I\u2019ll have to reconsider whether the tools and apps I currently use are sufficient or need to be replaced or upgraded.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The creative time blocks total just six hours a week, not so much, but it\u2019s a start. The intention is for these six hours to be devoted to long-form writing projects.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n I\u2019ve just realised I\u2019ve forgotten to plan the time required for the newsletter. I have gotten faster with producing it, but it still takes three to four hours weekly. The problem, if you can call it that, is that I never plan exactly what the newsletter will be about. I prefer to wing it and see what pops into my mind at the time.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Half the time is spent researching or thinking things through; the actual writing would probably take only an hour and a half.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n So now I have a problem, which I think I may have solved today with the help of Ikea. I bought a simple laptop stand that I can use in the evenings, so I don\u2019t have to disappear into the home office and can spend time with the family instead.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n We\u2019ll see how this goes in the coming week. I\u2019ll start scribbling the newsletter each evening. If I\u2019m too tired, I won\u2019t do anything, but if I have the energy and motivation, I should be able to get quite far before Friday swings around again.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Fortunately, inspiration is no longer an issue; I always find something to write about. It just means that the subject matter for the newsletters tends to wander around slightly or slightly a lot.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Such is life.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n I mentioned briefly the tools and apps that help me streamline these life streams in last week\u2019s newsletter. This week, we\u2019ll detail these and others not mentioned so far.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Website: https:\/\/flexibits.com\/fantastical<\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The only downside of this app is that it\u2019s only available for Apple devices. The screenshots of my weekly plans were taken from Fantastical. An excellent review on Medium by Simon Theakston is worth a read.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n How I use Fantastical on a daily basis across Mac, iPhone and iPad <\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Website: https:\/\/www.notion.so\/ <\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Notion is my ERP app of choice. I\u2019ve sub-dashboards for Creativity and Business\/Marketing from my main dashboard. These contain two related databases, one for managing Projects and the second for Task details linked to the projects. I\u2019ve also set up separate databases for other Projects and Tasks unrelated to the sub-dashboards.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The learning curve can be steep; for a great resource to start quickly with Notion, visit the YouTube channel for Thomas Franks Explains<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Website: https:\/\/ulysses.app\/<\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Another app that\u2019s only available on Apple devices. I use it for anything and every short-form writing task you can think of, including:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n If it\u2019s short-form, Ulysses is the place to be.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Website: https:\/\/www.literatureandlatte.com\/scrivener\/overview<\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Available for most platforms: both Apple Devices and Windows, although I prefer to work exclusively using my Mac. The slight differences in keyboard shortcuts, for example, irritate me.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n All long-form writing happens in Scrivener, that is, over two or three thousand words.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n I mostly use ChatGPT 4<\/a> for everything associated with all four life streams. At the time of writing, it\u2019s the only tool that I use regularly. Occasionally, I\u2019ll use Midjourney<\/a>, but not as often as I used to since DALL-E 3 was bundled with my ChatGPT subscription.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Share personal tips on how to make the most of these tools.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n This morning\u2019s experience with the impractical creativity time block is just the first of many changes that\u2019ll be made. I\u2019ve just realised that I\u2019ve configured these time blocks to repeat every week until June 30; this would be too optimistic if I weren\u2019t prepared to change and update as needed.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Fantastical, my calendar app of choice makes it easy to change only the current or future time blocks in a single edit. So, I\u2019ll keep them repeating until the end of June, for now.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Say the situation with the contract work changes or an additional short-term contract requires the commitment of every Friday for a month or two, for example. I have to be brutally honest with myself and decide where to make the cuts for the contract duration.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Only the creative or business time block will be revised in this scenario. Personal time should be left unaffected as much as possible. Very occasionally, there may be some impact here, but reducing this to an absolute minimum is important.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Another critical point is to make changes immediately; don\u2019t delay. Make a note or set a reminder. However you do it, keep your planning flexible and always up to date.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n I\u2019ll not bore you with an update every week, but I will report back in a month or two. I\u2019m curious how this year is going to pan out. I\u2019m more curious about the coming few months.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Now, I have to get on with it and either make the planning work or adapt it into one that does. No excuses; when you plan something, you must follow through. If that means getting up at 5 AM, go to bed early.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Peter F. Drucker<\/strong>: “Unless commitment is made, there are only promises and hopes, but no plans.<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n George Bernard Shaw<\/strong>: “Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.”<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n If you want to have even a chance of succeeding, always be prepared to adapt and refine your strategies continuously.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n I\u2019m interested in hearing from you, the reader. Add a comment and share your own experiences and plans. Please let us know if you have tips or tricks that help.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n We want to encourage community support and the exchange of ideas. Without this, we are nothing.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\nThe Journey So Far<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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Aligning Dreams with Reality<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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Business Management<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
The Creative Engine<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
The Toolkit<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Fantastical<\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Notion<\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Ulysses<\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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Scrivener<\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Generative AI<\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Preparing for the Unexpected<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
A Living Plan, Not a Static Blueprint<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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Final Thoughts<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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