Reclaiming Space
I’ve been evaluating space lately.
Not like outer space, but the space I take up — in my home, in my life, in your inbox, in the world… That kind of space.
Throughout the pandemic, my partner and I accumulated quite a bit of stuff. And last fall, we had a big yard sale to get rid of a lot of it. Then we donated whatever didn’t sell.
For the last several months, I’ve been periodically working on cleaning and organizing our basement.
In the last couple of weeks, I’ve swapped the furniture in my office and meditation room to create a space that’s more conducive to some new offers I’ve got coming out in the fall.
So the physical space of my lived environment has been gradually shifting…basically since I got back from France (and recovered from covid) last year.
I’ve used the platform of a podcast for a few years to offer stories, lessons, tools, and interviews every Wednesday, then sent the podcast notes/script out via email and posted it to social media in a variety of ways.
For the last several months, I’ve sent out the Fuck Shit Up Fridays email newsletter twice a month in conjunction with the new and full moons.
And this year, I started sending out series emails on Mondays.
Throughout 2023, I went hard on TikTok and gained a few thousand followers, shared a lot of the videos on IG and FB, and put my podcast on YouTube.
As I’m looking around at the digital space I’m taking up, it’s starting to feel a bit like my home did before the yard sale. Cluttered. Stifling. Meaningless.
So I’m re-evaluating.
In my home, I found that there was so much stuff that there wasn’t space for me. And that’s what I’m feeling with the digital world, as well.
Step 1: This week is episode 196 of my podcast. And it’ll end at 200. Which means my Wednesday emails will also end. And my Thursday social posts will dramatically change. This doesn’t mean I’ll never pick up the platform of podcasting again, but the current iteration of it? We’re done in 4 episodes.
Step 2: After sending out a survey to my email list about the type of content they prefer to receive and evaluating those responses, I’m going to pause the Monday email series, as well. Not because people don’t like those Monday emails. That was tied with Wednesday's email/podcast as the second most popular. But by an overwhelming majority, Fuck Shit Up Fridays won out. And I want to focus on one email thing for a little while. Which also doesn’t mean I’ll never show up in your email inbox again on a non-Friday. It just means that, for now, Fridays are my focus.
Step 3: Unclear. I want to enjoy social media again. At times, I do! And I’m sure clarity will come quickly now that I’m actually giving it some attention. But for a little while, it’s felt pretty cumbersome. Which is the opposite of what I want for my business. I’ve put TikTok down for the last couple of months and haven’t really done much with IG or FB. I’m considering Pinterest, which I LOVE but haven’t used for this business at all. I may end up back over on YouTube, where I used to have a worldwide following. We’ll see. I’m still feeling that out.
So I’m clearing out the clutter and reclaiming space to allow for more creativity and connection. Because that’s ultimately what I’m here for.
I guess I’m sharing this with you (not only to announce the end of my podcast and changes to what my email list receives) but also to invite you to consider:
Where is the clutter in your life?
And how can you reclaim space for more of what you want to create instead?
