Watch the “How to balance your creativity and business like Beyonce” video on YouTube
Ok now anyone who has a TV, radio, cell phone or another device with internet has heard of Beyonce.
Although this podcast is NOT about Beyonce you can’t deny her work ethic.
Well here’s a shocker.
Most superstars have a determined drive. But what they produce is clearly a manifestation of all that hard work, because we can’t seem to stop ourselves from adding their cherishable to our cart and clicking “Buy”.
But guess what?
They’re not superhumans and they have the same 24 hours in a day that we do. But how do they do it?
I know we think, “they have a team” or “they have money to have people do it for them” and to a point, it’s true for them now in their careers. But they didn’t always have a team and most of them are doing a lot more themselves than what’s probably recommended.
So how do you balance your creativity and business like Beyonce or your favorite rock star?
Let’s check out some quick and effective ways to find that balance in your busy life.
Make a list – Sounds easy right? But the truth is most people don’t do it and they wonder why they’re all over the place. It can be as easy as taking one sheet of paper folded down the middle with Creative on one side and Business on the other.
The ‘business’ side are things that you need to do in order to stay afloat as a business. The ‘creative’ side sometimes has to do with your business but a lot of it could be fluff if you’re not careful. Having the 2 lists will help you to visualize what’s important and what can wait.
If you’re techier and want to use an app or online project platform, I would highly recommend using trello.com. I use it all the time and it’s free. You can create “cards” that can be each item you need to work on and add them to categories of your choosing. So when you’re done you can drag the cards to the Completed section.
Match them up – If you have a creative item that needs to be done for a business goal, then match them up and do the creative portion first so that it can help meet the business goal. Then follow through to the business portion.
If you run a creative company like I do (graphic or website design, music, app or software business), then a great example would be taking pictures or mockups of client projects and adding them to your portfolio which shows potential clients your skills.
Set aside time – Business tasks should take priority if you want to stay in business of course. For example, you don’t want to be worried about your business cards if you haven’t followed up with potential customers that left you messages 2 days ago
Or you don’t want to be focused on pretty images for your website if you haven’t started on the client project that’s due in 2 days and it normally takes a week. Just saying!
I’m aware that all work and no play is boring! So set aside time when you’re taking a break. Instead of watching Hulu or Netflix, use this time to indulge in that creative thing you’re dying to do.
Even if it’s a few minutes each time. Sometimes when you do this, you get an idea of how to incorporate it into your business or find another use for it. You never know.
Get up earlier or go to bed later – I said it earlier, everyone has the same 24 hours in a day. To get projects done, especially if you have a family, wake up early or stay up late to finish those tedious tasks.
Prioritize your day the night before and write out your 2 lists. You’ll know what should be done and how much time to spend on each item. Even if some tasks take a little longer or shorter than planned, don’t worry just get it done and reorganize your list. Remember you can always finish tomorrow what you didn’t complete today.
Do you feel like a rock star yet?
Don’t worry if you don’t. You will eventually. Once you decide which method, if not all, works best for you, you’ll start knocking down your business tasks and using the creative list appropriately to meet these goals. Whatever creative things are left that have nothing to do with your business, you can do them on your downtime.
So now it’s time to drop the mic, smash the guitar and end this podcast until next time.
Photo by Josh Sorenson from Pexels
