Back when I was trying to force social media to work for me, I don’t think I ever considered what I wanted my end result to be. The ‘big picture’ goal was always to have my book published, and I viewed my social media presence as part of that–a way to try and build an audience to support this mythical publishing deal.

The problem with that though is it wasn’t near enough motivation to get me to consistently post to social media. I found it so tedious and annoying, so not getting an instant result of new followers was incredibly disheartening. I was always thinking, why am I doing all of this work if nothing comes of it?

The issue, of course, is that I was focusing on the wrong result. I didn’t actually want a big following on Instagram, I wanted a place to share my writing life. Adding a picture to that, and hashtags, and trying to game the algorithm wasn’t helping me achieve that result. This blog though? This is actually motivating–I’m talking about what I love, and in doing so, I’m constantly flexing the writing muscle in my brain, which helps me get to the ultimate goal: published book. And while it would be nice to build a bit of an audience, the act of writing the blog is its own positive result, regardless of viewership.

So, if you’re frustrated with the results you’re getting for whatever long-term project you’re working on, sit back and consider if the result you’re after actually aligns with your goals and helps you grow.

Love and gratitude, as always.

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