The secret to social media. It’s literally the number one thing my quiet, sensitive clients and members of my League of Extraordinary Introverts group say that they struggle with when it comes to building their online business.

I  get it. We didn’t start a business to become social media experts, did we?

Nope. Me either.

But, as social media has become – now more than ever – such a significant element in our communication and connection with each other, it makes sense that it probably needs to be a part of our business plan.

Right?

I mean, when you think about 10-20 years ago, even starting a business would have been out of reach for many of us. The Internet and social media have made business and information more affordable and accessible than ever before.

We can forget that we’re actually really lucky. And we can take social for granted sometimes. Can you imagine how much it would cost to start your own business if you had to pay for TV, print, or radio ads?

Just the creative alone would be ridiculous, not to mention the reach (or lack thereof) and the cost to get that limited reach.

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So Why Do Introverts Dislike Social?

In all the interactions, conversations, and observations I’ve made – and please feel free to correct me if you have different thoughts on this – more introverted and highly sensitive people can find the noise, pace, and information overload of social media…

A lot.

It can feel overwhelming, there are a lot of people vying for attention in ways that don’t appeal to us and… Let’s face it, we generally prefer a deep and meaningful 1:1 connection over the 1:many platforms that social media just happen to be.

It’s an extroverted world and – guess what – many extroverts love social media because they get to express themselves in a way that feels natural and energising for them.

Us more introverted types? Maybe not so much.

As a result, I see lots of quiet, sensitive souls just avoiding social media altogether because it all feels a bit too much.

The Secret To Social Media

Just like anything, the energy and intention we bring to social media can impact how we feel about it.

If we’re going along in business saying how much we hate social media, it’s likely going to mean that every time we feel like we have to post on Instagram or FB, we bring that energy with us and it seeps into the words and the energy we share.

The minute I shifted my mindset to how I look at all the platforms as simply a tool to connect with people, it changed how I felt about it.

We can’t control what others do or say online. We can’t control which content will go viral, or whether people even care about what we post.

But we can be intentional with our energy and WHY we are showing up on each platform.

Why are you here? 

And what energy are you bringing to this space?

For example:

• I communicate with most of my loved ones via social media DMs so that’s one reason I might be on Facebook or Instagram, specifically.
• Sometimes I like to go into various groups I’m part of on Facebook and see if there are any ways I can bring value to others – because I genuinely LOVE doing that.
• I’m in groups and follow people who I love to learn from and get their perspective on different things, so sometimes I’m doing a bit of this as well.
• And other times I’m online for my weekly live in the League of Extraordinary Introverts group, scheduling posts, or connecting with my community or new people.

I know when I’m not in my expansive, soul CEO energy when I’m just mindlessly scrolling without intention, picking up my phone to avoid the 10 things I want to get done today.

Intentionally using social media really helps to keep our boundaries and our energy connected to our bigger mission and vision (and drowns out the noise).

 

What Do You Actually Post?

Well, this is really up to you. But I know it trips so many li’l overthinkers up so it’s important to address this because it’s obviously a HUGE reason why so many of us shy away from the socials.

Here are my best tips for working out what you actually want to talk about in the first place:

• What are questions or topics that people ALWAYS ask you about (either online or in your day-to-day life)? This is an excellent starting place if you’re not sure.
• What do you LOVE talking about and never get tired of learning, talking, or sharing about?
• If it’s lots of different things, is there a common thread or are there maybe 3 categories that most of these fall into?
• Is there something in your industry that seems to be the ‘popular’ opinion or trending perspective that you feel differently about? If you feel that way, the chances that your people do too is HUGE and it will make you stand out more to them than if you just go with the popular opinion.
• Do you have stories or dots that you can connect from your personal journey that link directly to the work you do or what brought you to where you are today?

This is just a starting point for creating UNLIMITED ideas for what to post. In my experience (as someone who has ‘Ideation’ as their number one strength on the Strengths Finder test), more ideas come when you open up to the possibility of infinite ideas being available to you.

But if you are still struggling, come sit by me, and I guarantee we will get you to a point where you realise you have more to say than you think you do!

How To Make Content Creation Easy

The next thing I know that can cause overwhelm when thinking about social media is trying to decide – out of so many platforms – what, where, and how to share.

I know that the default for many of us can be to just feel fed up by the whole thing and end up posting just once every few months on social and, to be honest, what’s even the point?!

So how do we make it easy?

CREATE ONCE.

THEN SHARE 1 PIECE OF CONTENT 20 DIFFERENT WAYS.

It’s so much easier (and way less energy) than trying to think of 20 different pieces of content even just for one platform!

This has been a game-changer for me, someone who actually loves creating content and does so pretty easily, but what it’s mostly led to is a huge amount of content that not very many people have seen.

Imagine if once a week (or month, if you have less time to commit to your business), you created one piece of content and then had a plan to quickly and easily distribute that content across a bunch of platforms.

The joy of repurposing your content is that your message becomes clear, consistent, and potent – because you’re saying the same thing but in a different context for the platform.

It’s also great for your energy because you actually don’t have to keep thinking of ideas, you just take one idea, plug it into your workflow and schedule it in across your platforms meaning you start showing up all over the place instead of relying on one platform that could go down or lose it’s organic reach overnight.

Makes sense, right?

The second I had this realisation, it changed everything I do in my business – from how I create and think about content, to what I outsource, and how I can be more consistent online without actually doing that much extra work.

It started with Pinterest and finding ways to simplify making the most of that platform and slowly branching into how to distribute one piece of content across more platforms.

Having A Plan Makes All The Difference

I didn’t always love social media. I still have days when I need to turn off all my apps and take a break – just like with anything. But these small mindset and strategy shifts have genuinely helped me to stay consistent instead of needing huge amounts of time away from being online.

I’ve taken it up a notch over the past couple of months, creating some simple and straightforward strategies for repurposing my content and having an actual PLAN because I know most of the overwhelm comes from just feeling around in the dark hoping to find the inspiration to post or work out what to do next.

Introducing The Content Ecosystem

Because of this, I’ve created The Content Ecosystem

Not only to support quiet, sensitive souls to start feeling more comfortable being seen and heard, but also to make it SO easy to create and share content in a way that is energising and sustainable.

This has been a game-changer for me and how I approach my business and I know it’s going to help you too.

If this feels like something that you have to get, I’ve made it soooo affordable! It’s just AU$37 and it’s going to take all the overwhelm out of social for you. Head over here to get more info, see what you get, and grab instant access to The Content Ecosystem and a heap of bonuses to help you get seen online.

At the end of the day, there is no secret to social media. But having a plan really helps.

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