14 Comments

I love this so much!! As I've been thinking on how I can design my work and creative life better. Thanks for sharing. You might like this book: https://www.feelgoodproductivity.com/

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Haha we’re on the same wavelength, I’m reading it as we speak!

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This reminds me of what some of my coder friends do: if they have to do something more than once, they figure out how to automate it.

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Takes a bit of upfront work but the payoff is huge!

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From one systemized thinker to another, this was an awesome essay. Impressive, insightful systems Anna.

"As author Ryan Holiday describes, 'a system is a way to do more by doing less'. By using templates, workflows, processes and rules, it enables better results with less time and effort."

Thanks for this stellar piece.

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Thanks Anthony! How do you use systems for your writing and/or life? I’m always so curious to learn about how others operate.

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There can be an entirely separate deep dive on this. I enjoy this question.

I use systems for things that are repeatable - as you mentioned in your piece.

For example, every Sunday is a day to prep for the week ahead (even to the point of preparing each of my outfits for each day of the week).

When it comes to writing, systems are the guardrails to allow creativity and freedom to bounce within that.... i.e. guardrails of having a structured process to (1) ideate (2) research in the beginning of the week (3) brain dump (4) submit draft of the essay (5) get multiple rounds of feedback (6) iterate (7) publish the new essay by a set deadline.

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So many great tips here! I love your notion template. I also love how you shared how to manage finances as an entrepreneur. I want to save this so I can refer back to it again!

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Managing cash flow being self employed can be really hard, at least in the beginning. The trick is to build up a personal emergency fund that you can use to fund your regular payroll (and then replenish), so that you can still support yourself even when you’ve had a slow month. Check out the podcast She’s On The Money if you’re interested in diving deeper, highly recommend!

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She's on the Money is addictive listening!

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It’s a great podcast, isn’t it!

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Great tip! I’m all new to this, so that’s a really useful process. Thanks! Also thanks for the podcast recommendation!

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I'm always happy to help out and share more info if you want :)

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Thank you! That’s so generous. ✨🙏

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