Have you ever wanted to share your gifts with the world through content creation but struggled with inconsistency and exhaustion?
This is my journey. The challenges I faced and the new approach I’m implementing.
The Burden of Heavy Content Creation
Creating “heavy content” means striving for your type of perfection. For me that would include wise perfected perspectives, stunning visuals, SEO optimization, and every best practice (you know of) applied. It’s the masterpiece mentality: ensuring everything is polished, timeless, and worthy of an A+.
While this approach can bring incredible results, it also comes with a major downside: burnout. The deeper you go, the more tweaks you make, and the harder it becomes to finish. You find yourself trapped in an endless cycle of refinement, chasing an elusive ideal.
The Trauma of Masking: The Need for Things to Be Hard
If this resonates with you, you might share a similar experience to mine. This belief that hard work equals worthiness. Somewhere along the way, we learned that only struggle and effort lead to value and acceptance. (Thanks school, for rewarding me for working hard on things I absolutely hated.)
So we wear this work ethic like a mask, hoping for rewards, only to feel drained and unable to freely express ourselves.
But what if content creation didn’t have to be hard? What if creativity could flow more naturally, without the weight of perfection?
The Healing Power of Light Work
If you have a passion for creating content, ask yourself: does it have to be difficult? Does it have to be highly polished and from start to finish be valuable? What if simply sharing your ideas in a balanced, authentic way was enough?
And ironically, masterpieces often emerge when we stop trying to focus on creating them. When we release the expectation of perfection, we create more freely, and better work often follows.
The MVP Approach to Content Creation
From my old startup days, I learned something valuable and that is that in business, it’s common to test a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) before investing heavily. It’s a great way not to get lost into perfection before knowing if people actually want to buy your product. The same principle applies to content creation. Why pour endless effort into something untested?
I realized I was investing too much energy into perfecting content too soon, it will lead to exhaustion and content never published. Content creation should fit into our available time and energy, not consume me entirely.
Inspired by George Kao, I work on a simple MVP strategy: Write a weekly blog post in two hours.
This comes very near to the idea of the Pareto Principle. This principle says that about 80% of the results come from just 20% of the efforts. So by giving 20% you get the highest leverage, however everything after so the 80% rest has to be “hard work” that you have to put in to be able to get 100% of the results.
And if perfectionism still calls to you, don’t forget that there’s always space to refine and elevate your work over time. But finishing and sharing should come first.
Prioritizing Sharing Over Perfection
Here’s the deal:
- Think in experiments and Minimum Viable Products (MVPs). Start small, test ideas, and iterate.
- Content creation is an exploration. First, it’s about your personal connection with your ideas. Second, it’s about sharing and engaging with an audience. It’s a journey, not a one-time performance.
- Labels and perfectionism kill creativity. Instead of obsessing over crafting a flawless piece, focus on sharing what naturally excites you.
We often hold ourselves back, thinking our work isn’t good enough unless it’s exceptional. But the truth is, even great work doesn’t always get the recognition we hope for. Spending excessive time on perfection doesn’t guarantee success. The key is to create, share, and refine over time.
Conclusion: Just Because You Can, Doesn’t Mean You Should
Content creation is a tool for sharing your ideas, not a test of worthiness. Prioritizing perfect, time-consuming content at the expense of consistency limits your ability to help and connect with others.
So, start lightly. Share often. Let go of the need to create masterpieces, and they just might emerge on their own.
