Today I want to give you a behind the scenes view into a conversation in one of my small group social media masterminds. The masterminds are for people who are just learning how to connect with people for their business, and since it’s a small group of 7 people, we get to have real talk.

I’m wondering if any of this relates to you- this is the actual thread.

Client 1: Hi Tasha + co.

I am getting hung up on value posts.

I know that they are suggested to be via video for us. And the quick “recipe” is something like 3 tips to help ___ your ___.

The third tip should be your product / service and the easiest solution to the problem.

Yup, got it.

BUT can we also just SHOW people things? Like a demo of how to create an ________? Make the ________ into an all purpose cleaner [or yoga mat spray]? What my morning practice looks like and how to create their own?

OKAY so I have been listening. I know that you said “little to no” DIY for our pages b/c they are for people that ALREADY HAVE the products to inspire them.

I am having a hard time creating a value for [product].

Am I over thinking. Yes. Probably. Always. Let’s be real. 

Does anyone have any value post examples they would be willing to share for inspiration?

NOTE: I haven’t watched the rest of the recording from last week after my internet kicked me off and went out for the rest of the call.

Me: Ok so let’s think of some other ideas that would add value- sharing something helpful to your target market from another page, “A little known use for ______ Is _________.” or “A little known way to _____ is ______.” (heard that somewhere and people love to say that they knew already) demos for anything your target market will love is great- how to do this particular yoga pose- just think like the helpful honda dealer.

Another challenge might be that you need a fresh list of problems for your target market. That’s when I get stuck with value posts. Or I’m not reading.

Client 1: Tasha you are so right about this. I think that I am just blocking myself [surprise] thinking that my everyday [biz] life is something that is separate from the content that I am creating. But is actually one in the same.

Me: I spend most of my time in a tantrum that I don’t know what my target market wants. You aren’t alone. Also there is a way out if you don’t beat yourself up over resistance

Client 1: Tasha f$%^. take my money. That meant so much to hear. THANK YOU.

Me: K and I had a long mind f conversation about live coaching calls and we literally couldn’t answer the question, “what is the purpose of the calls.” It’s ok, we will figure it out. Yesterday I had a client time block how long she thought it would take to write the next phase of her content. Then I made her double it to account for resistance. <3 Try that.

Client 1: Tasha So very helpful.

So at this point, it’s taking me a week to throw a tantrum and about 60 minutes to write all the content / 30 mins to prep recording anything.

Upon reflection, I can see what I am spending most of my time on. 😏

Nice to hear that I am not alone in all of this. And it’s time to “manage my time” a little differently and have the tantrum during other work hours instead of the content creation hours.

Client 2: oh so its ok to have a tantrum when you trying to figure out what to freaking post! This week drove me crazy because I decided to post on my personal page, my customer group and my biz page. Trying to come up with 3 different things suitable for the target market made me want to pull my hair out. However I do have to say I have had the most engagement in all 3 areas EVVEERRRRR!

Me: Congrats on the highest engagement Client 2!!!! Also ok (in addition to pulling your hair out) is hiding under the blanket, staring at the wall, scribbling circles on a notepad, eating chocolate chips, pouring a glass of wine (use Truly’s or lime-a-ritas before 1pm, white wine from 1-5, red wine from 5 on for maximum productivity and minimal napping during the work day)

It takes me 3 hours to do a podcast. A little less than 2 hours of whining, tantrum, indecision. 30 minutes to write, 15 minutes to record, 20-30 to do all the tech. I mean seriously when I figured this out, it changed the game. The meltdown is optional, sometimes.

Client 2: Tasha Saran Smith I hate the process but I am loving the results so far… hopefully it will be less painful as time goes on?

Me: Well, I think it’s sort of how you learn how to not touch a bruise. The bruise doesn’t stop being painful, but you learn it’s counterproductive to poke it. Yes, you get faster with experience, less emotional about it all and start to view everything as an experiment and a game which frees you from the emotional nature of content creation. But for sure the only way out is through. And accepting that resistance is part of the process instead of a reason to quit is really, really helpful to keep you from spiraling. In fact, I’m responding to you instead of recording right now! #darnyouresistance

Client 3: This is so good to hear. I thought I was the only one having tantrums about the content creation. I definitely need to double the “planning” phase. Sometimes more just because I can’t decide on a direction and stay with it. I have gone as far as to plan everything out and then changed completely as I put it in the computer. Nothin like doin it twice!

___

So, what is resistance? According to Merriam-Webster, it’s “an act or instance of opposition.” But what does this mean in business?

A few years ago, my coach recommended I read “The War of Art” by Steven Pressfield and here are some of my biggest takeaways.

  1. Business is art- we are in a constant state of creating
  2. The amateur creates when he/she feels like it. The professional creates every day, no matter what he/she is feeling.
  3. Mental and emotional resistance to the creation process is normal for the professional. In fact, I consider it a right of passage.

What does this mean? Here is the scenario: you sit down to create social media content, make phone calls, plan your week, whatever. You have scheduled 30 minutes to complete this “creation task.” Then you are stuck. Writer’s block, procrastination, etc. If you are anything like me, you start to get panicked. BRAIN! WORK! WE DON’T HAVE TIME FOR THIS! For me, it’s only a few seconds before shame starts to set in. “Tasha, get your crap together, why can’t you ever just do your work without throwing a tantrum.” Now all the time has passed. I haven’t done the thing, I feel shame over it, and my self-esteem starts to erode. Any work I did wasn’t my best work because I wasn’t actually drawing from my higher level thinking, I was in a panic.

Can you relate?

If you can, I have a couple of really simple, practical solutions that will help. 

First, understand the “planning fallacy.” Planning fallacy was first coined in 1977 by psychologists Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky. We have a tendency to severely underestimate the amount of time a task will take because we don’t consider how long it has taken us before, or we assume we won’t run into any complications that will cause delays.

Here is a good example. I always tell my mom I will get to her house in 10 minutes. It takes me 12 minutes every time. But I still keep thinking it only takes 10 minutes. I’d like to think I’m a pretty smart person, but not when it comes to this!

Second, acknowledge that resistance is real, and it is a prerequisite to success, not evidence that you won’t be successful. Every business person encounters resistance. The more reward that is on the other side, the harder the resistance. Resistance is one of the complications that will lengthen the time it will take.

Third, and this is the tactic I want you to start implementing. Double the time you are allowing yourself to do something. Recently, I was coaching a client who was writing a course and was encountering massive resistance. Procrastination set in and she thought, “I can knock this out in a few hours.” Well, then resistance hit. 

Matthew Kelly is quoted as saying, “Most people overestimate what they can do in a day, and underestimate what they can do in a month. We overestimate what we can do in a year, and underestimate what we can accomplish in a decade.”

And my client was running into this as well. I encouraged her to double the time she gave herself for the task. I asked her how long she thought her next module would take. I think it was 4 hours. I recommended she take 8 hours. It was her only task for the weekend. I encouraged her to sit in the resistance, don’t switch tasks to be “more productive.” Just wrestle with it. 

If you wrestle with resistance, you will win eventually. Your will is stronger. But you need to remember that you are the champion, so just stare it down. Take a deep breath. Welcome the fight and put your opponent away. 

In the next 2 weeks, this client got MORE done in less time than when she was trying to cram more stuff in less time. Isn’t that crazy? 

Let’s look at a few reasons you will INCREASE your productivity by doubling your estimate on how much time you will allow yourself.

  1. You will be more relaxed entering the task.
  2. When you hit resistance (which you will), you won’t be in such a rush. So instead of multi-tasking to feel productive, you will just keep brainstorming, or use your mind to imagine positive outcomes until you believe it. Every time you switch tasks, your mind takes 2-30 minutes to get back in a groove. If you switch tasks, and come back, your 20 minute resistance timer starts again. Doubling the time will decrease the temptation to multitask.
  3. You will likely complete your task a little early. For me, this stops the shame spiral. It’s really sad that often I complete a piece of content and then feel bad about it because it “took me longer than it should have.” SHOULD. That’s a shame word. When I double the time allowed, I almost always complete it early. This leaves me with a double accomplishment- I finished AND I did it early. This creates a boost in self-esteem. I am now proud of myself. And isn’t that what we are hoping to get from our business anyway? Maybe that’s too deep of a thought…

Friends, as I wrap up here, I just want to give you some encouragement. If it takes you longer to do things than you think, you are normal and actually you are awesome. Just give yourself more time, resistance doesn’t stand a chance against you. 

I want to end with a motivational quote… “If cauliflower can somehow become pizza… then you, my friend, can accomplish anything.”

Doing the hard work is easier when you have people to celebrate with, and a community that holds you accountable. If you aren’t yet a member, check out the Emerge Surge. Inside the Surge you will be able to get live coaching to get unstuck, online training to build your duplicatable systems, and an awesome community of doers to inspire you to your next goal. We all need a little encouragement right now and we promise to give that to you. Learn more at emergesalestraining.com/emergesurge