Here’s a BTS into how I organize my newsletters in Notion

As you can see it’s organized by Year → Month → Newsletter Issue. Every newsletter is titled with it’s published date and subject line.

I keep the current month on top of those dates so it’s easier for me to view. You can see March on the top of that image.

Nice and organized.

But wait…

Here’s a screenshot of what exists above the current month of March…

A completely unorganized list of ideas.

You can even see some ideas have dates associated with them (As I mentioned, I give every idea a title and the date of when I’m going to publish it so I can easily find it). Obviously, some of these are almost a year old and have not been published.

These aren’t just ideas either. If you click into these pages, I have written over 1,000 words for some of them.

Not being able to move on from an idea used to be a source of so much pain and blockage for me.

I would get a beautiful download from a breathwork session and then journal on that idea and think, “THIS NEEDS TO BE CONTENT!!!” So I’d open a Notion page and begin writing. However, sometimes after that initial ping, the idea doesn’t fully form. I’d get stuck, but I wouldn’t give up.

For example, the second to last idea in the photo above is, “Masc vs Fem Energy Content Creation.”

Not only did I add this to my newsletter ideas, but I also added it to my list of content ideas (a separate space in Notion). In that page you can even see I referenced one of my journal entries where began to break down the idea for this future post and newsletter.

I would LOVE to share with you how I utilize both masculine and feminine energy to create my most aligned content. Not only creating from a masculine and feminine place, but also the type of content where one is more masculine and feminine (structured post vs an emotional story)

I really love the concept but for whatever reason, new ideas energized me more and so I wrote about those.

Old me would not have done that.

Old me would have forced this idea to completion.

I can feel the frustration I used to allow to boil up in me as I try to wrap up the idea that I had in my head into a cohesive structure that you, my reader, would find value in, but just not being able to figure out how to make it land.

I’d go for a walk and ruminate on it, but the walk wouldn’t help. I’d only get more frustrated.

I would even forget about it and return to it the next morning. Yet still, the idea would be sticky.

I would hang onto this frustration and allow it to trickle into the rest of the day and even week.

I’d start getting anxious about getting my newsletter out this week. Because it was taking so long to write I’d fall behind on all my other work.

I would sit at a coffee shop frantically trying to get this idea completed so I could go home and be present with Natalie. I can feel my face getting flush just thinking about it.

Even if I did get it complete, it would feel rushed. I would know it’s not as good as it could be and I’m not providing the type of value I could for my audience.

Ugh, I hated feeling this way.

Then I’d close up work for the day and try to be present with Natalie.

She’d notice my contracted energy and she’d ask me how I am.

I would tell her how frustrated I am with my newsletter (for the 10th time) and then feel the shame as she asks me why I do this to myself.

Then, I’d just stop telling her about it because I’d feel more shame about how ridiculous it is that I keep self imposing this thing in my life that was supposed to be fun. I was supposed to love writing. WTF happened? WTF am I even doing?

…yeesh…

Here’s how I’ve solved this problem.

Let it go

Not every idea is meant to be shared at all or maybe… just not right now.

The thousands of words I have written inside those unpublished ideas are not a waste of time.

Getting those ideas out of my head and onto paper allowed me to move through them.

Honestly, maybe the idea that I thought was genius wasn’t all that good. Or maybe I just haven’t found all the pieces yet.

Sometimes a semi boring idea actually becomes one of my best pieces of work because I uncover connections as I write.

And sometimes I don’t love the piece, but I ship it anyway and for some reason that is the newsletter that gets the most replies. Who’d have thought!

I never really know what an idea is when it only exists in my head.

By getting it out of my head, I can see what the idea really is.

Maybe it’s nothing.

Maybe it’s incomplete.

Maybe it’s good enough, just send it.

Maybe it turns into work I’m most proud of.

And maybe it’s simply not for now and I can let go of the idea knowing it got me to my next best one.

The important part is, the more attuned I get, the more I can feel when I am trying to force something. Any work that I force is never my best work.

When I feel myself forcing work, I move on from it.

Even if I write 2,000 words on it. If it’s feeling so sticky, I’ll just allow myself to move on.

It’s not a waste of time because that writing gets me to my next (potentially) great piece. But if I don’t write on it I find it impossible to move on and if I can’t move on I can never get to the next great piece.

Death gripping onto an idea and shaming myself about it never works.

The Experience is the Story

This week inside the Growth Community (now open for enrollment), one member said she had been working on uncovering a creation process that felt aligned with her by implementing structure (masculine) while also creating from a heart centered and inspired place (feminine).

“Oh my god!” I thought. “That’s the idea that I’ve wanted to talk about but haven’t completed yet!”

Our conversation in the group gave me the final missing piece I was needing in order to complete that idea. How beautiful is that!

If I forced it back in November and wrote it anyway—when I knew it wasn’t complete—I would be sitting on the call this Thursday thinking, “ah dammit I need to rewrite that post now. I knew it was incomplete. lol. grrrrrrr!”

Now you may be asking yourself, why isn’t that topic this weeks newsletter?

Well, this just happened on Thursday, I’m writing this on Saturday (my newsletter goes out on Sunday). I usually have my newsletters done by Friday, but with travel and whatnot, I’m behind.

I came to this coffee shop today to write with no idea what I wanted to write about.

I knew I had all this ideas listed here, so I read through them and saw, “Masc vs Fem Energy Content Creation” and was like, ‘Oh yesss of course!!! We just talked about that in the group and my idea feels so complete now. I could write about that!!’

Then I immediately felt overwhelmed because I’m behind on my newsletter and I know that the Masc. v Fem idea will be a longer newsletter and I don’t want to have to rush it since I want to get this newsletter out tomorrow and I have tennis in 2 hours.

A year ago, I would have chosen this idea anyway and rushed it and forced my way through it.

I have learned that if I tried to force the idea that was already feeling overwhelming that I would get into the cycle that I just explained above. Frustration. Shame. Probably play shitty tennis. And so on…

So I caught myself because I knew, my current experience is the story!

I’ll just write about the exact thing I’m going through RIGHT NOW!

I’ll write about the overwhelm I’m feeling and trying to force ideas and how that NEVER works. I’ll write about how I’ve escaped that shame cycle with my content creation. I know and trust that if I’ve experienced it, then I know others have too.

And here we are, with this weeks newsletter.

Empowerment

The story you can share is the one you’re going through now. However always be sure it is a story that is rooted in empowerment.

You are a leader for your tribe and you want to position yourself that way. That doesn’t mean you don’t share hard and difficult times, it just means you have a path to resolve the struggles or fears.

I wouldn’t just write on this topic and say, “I have writers block and my newsletter is so frustrating gahhhh!!” and end it there. What good does that do you? That would only be a self serving cry for help and you are not my business coach or therapist.

Here’s my favorite part about the concept of being willing to share what you’re currently going through. If you’re not in an empowered place, get to one!

Not for your audience, for yourself.

Content is always an vehicle to become the highest version of yourself for yourself.

If you weren’t feeling empowered about your situation but I told you you HAD TO share it, wouldn’t you be more proactive in resolving that issue. Rather than hiding it over a blanket of shame for a few more months?

So, what are you going through that doesn’t feel empowering?

If I told you you HAD TO share the story, what would be an ending you’d be excited to share?

If this resonates with you, hit reply and let me know what landed the most.

Also, I hope this strategy is helpful for you:

1. Write out your idea.
2. If it’s feeling stuck release it without shame (never delete it becuase you may want to come back to it one day)
3. This will free up space for the next best idea
4. The next best idea is usually the experience you’re having right now

Bam, there it is. I wrote this in like 90 minutes.

If you want to learn how to take your life experiences and turn them into effective content that positions you as the authority in your field, you’ll love joining the community.​

Best part is, I’ve included my 6-week signature course, “StoryGrowth Framework” inside the membership. What was once a $997 program is now included in your membership.

I will be running the framework live every quarter. This next one begins on March 18th.

Join now and you can get a head start on creating aligned content TODAY by clicking here.​

I hope to see you inside!

With love,

Matt