As we’re stepping into Q4 this year, or maybe it’s the magic of fall, I’m finding myself with a bit of a persona/business revelation.
You see, I’m an introvert (a social introvert, but an introvert none-the-less)
I’m not shy or awkward or anti-social. Those aren’t what makes someone an introvert. I enjoy people and I’m good at socializing and performing and talking to new people. But they cost me spoons, and I recharge by being alone. To me, that’s what makes someone an introvert.
(If you’re not familiar with the spoon theory, definitely read this way-back Instagram post from my girl Megan. I totally have this post bookmarked so that when I say something like “Ugh I’m so out of spoons” and get a weird look, I can just pull this up and hand them my phone and then they get it).
So here I am, an introvert, running a personal brand-centered business (two separate ones, actually).
*face palm*
Obviously, in order to avoid burnout I need to run my business (and life) in ways that limit unnecessary spoon expenditure (because then I wouldn’t have any left for client work or *gasp* myself!)
Unfortunately, I haven’t been so great at energy management this year, hence the fall-time revelation. I’ve hit a mild case of burnout, and my goal for Q4 is to rein it in and get my energy management back on track so that I can actually enjoy my business and my personal life (instead of being exhausted all.the.time.)
I’ve got a few IRL changes planned, but I also want to acknowledge the tools that I already have in place that have made certain aspects of my business spoon-efficient and have helped me manage my energy as an introvert (at least on the business side of things).
Here are some of my mission-critical business tools for energy management as an introvert:
Acuity Scheduling
First and foremost, the most spoon-saving tool of all is my scheduler of choice Acuity.
There are soooo many features that contribute to my energy management (like, all of them?) but here are my top 5:
5. Being able to just send a link and say “Choose a time that works for you” has prevented countless back-and-forth email chains, which are not only inefficient in general but soooo energy draining.
4. The fact that it automatically adds the appointments to my iCal with the reminder alarms already set is just everything. I don’t even have to think about it.
3. It automatically sends both me and the client reminder emails the day before and 2 hours before the appointment, with links for the client to reschedule if they need to (hallelujah automation)
2. The ability to block off certain times of day or even whole days to make myself only available at certain times is everything. My mornings are sacred to me, and that’s a boundary I’m not willing to bend for anyone. Being able to block off mornings so that it doesn’t even show up as an option (combined with the whole scheduler-link-sending so that I don’t cave when they’re like “But are you suuuure you can’t meet at 8:30??”) is just magical to me.
1. It integrates with Zoom. This is literally the reason I chose Acuity over other similar softwares. When someone schedules a call with me, Acuity creates a unique Zoom appointment AND automagically includes that link in the reminder emails. LITERALLY WHY I PAY FOR THIS.
Zoom
It may seem counterintuitive for an introvert to want to video chat, but for me, videoing with people is critical.
Not only is emailing back and forth just more time consuming in general, but with video, it’s so much easier and faster to build an emotional connection with someone, because hey, I like to like my clients.
Plus, I can see their body language, they can see mine, I can screen-share if I need to, and there’s much less an opportunity for miscommunication, and therefore stress or anxiety.
I like using Zoom instead of some of the other free tools out there because it integrates with so many other tools, and looks professional to boot. Nothing feels more noob than trying to log into Skype, realizing you haven't “connected” yet, and not starting the call until 20 minutes into the scheduled time because the call keeps dropping.
Plus, it automatically records the calls, so if I can’t remember some detail of something, I can just go watch the call again.
Later
We can’t talk introvert energy management for online business owners without talking social media.
We all know it: social media isn’t an option (and besides that, it can be hellah fun).
But it’s important to me to be able to use Instagram (and use it for business) on my terms and in a way that feels healthy to me.
Enter: Later.
Instagram is my social media of choice, and Later helps me be able to post regularly, consistently, and strategically without having to be constantly dropping spoons in the app when I need to recharge or focus on something else.
I can plan out the visuals of my feed, schedule my posts to auto-publish, and even batch my hashtag research and keep it organized so that I can still be strategic with them.
And with the Plus plan, I can publish to other social platforms as well as schedule my IG Stories ahead of time too!
I could go on a whole three-day zombified recharge weekend of introversion, complete with Harry Potter marathons, popcorn, pie, and pajamas, and still be active and strategic with my Instagram content without missing a beat
(This may or may not have literally happened the last couple weeks)
Lasso
This is a newer one that I’m still getting the hang of, but I’m excited about its potential.
Lasso is a WordPress plugin that’s stellar for anyone who makes a good portion of their income from affiliate links on their blogs. It makes managing your library of affiliate links a breeze, integrates with your Amazon Associates account, and the product card embeds are much sexier than the ones Amazon provides.
Plus, with the Amazon Associates integration, it keeps your product info constantly up to date, which is an important part of the Amazon Affiliate Terms and Conditions.
And, it automatically takes care of the affiliate link disclaimers, so no need to stress about adhering to those laws either! Affiliate links aren’t a massive portion of my own business model, but I’m helping a couple of clients get set up with it who do rely on affiliate income, and I’m super excited about it.
NerdFitness Coaching
This one isn’t a business tool, but it still deserves a shoutout. I can’t really run a business if my physical and mental health aren’t taken care of too, right?
I’ve been a NerdFitness follower for ages, and joined the Coaching program earlier this year.
The app makes it soooo easy to stay on top of my food log, keep track of my fitness habits (or habits-in-progress), and stay in touch with my super amazing and supportive coach Susy, all right there in the app.
Plus, NerdFitness as a company is very mental health positive, and my coaches (I’ve had two) have both been totally open to incorporating non-fitness/nutrition things into our habit building (things like doing dishes and laundry, because hey, if I know that keeping my dishes done is difficult for me but important for my mental health, it deserves to be tracked just like any other health goal).
Self-care is health-care, and I love that my coach (and the business behind her) agree with me and support that.
(PS. I'm not an affiliate for NerdFitness, I just really love what they do)
So there you have it. Five tools I use to help run my business (and therefore my life) in a spoon-efficient way and make energy management easy (at least on this front).
I’m curious: How do you define introversion or extroversion? Which one do you consider yourself? And of course, do you have any other tools that you use in your business to manage your energy and spoons?
Let me know in the comments!