For every new creator, overwhelm is behind the corner.

There are so many things to do. But you don’t know what the priority is. So you do a bit of everything.

This is the best way to halt your progress, get discouraged, and quit.

I’ve been a creator for 13+ years. I talked with dozens of creators. I also coached and consulted with them.

I’ve seen the ways they waste their efforts and let their dreams drift away. Here’s a list of things you can safely avoid to focus on what matters.

Web presence

You don’t need to:

• Design a logo
• Set up a website
• Customize the design of your web presence.

You need content to get eyeballs. You need a landing page to get email subscribers. But you can use a template for it.

As long as your content is easily consumable, you are good to go.

People won’t choose you for your logo. And how can a fancy website help when you have no traffic?

Business planning

No need to:

• Define an exact niche
• Imagine a high-ticket offer
• Establish a monetization strategy

We plan because we hope to control the future. But this is silly in general. And in particular in our fast-changing times.

Especially as a beginner, you don’t know enough about yourself and your audience to predict what will work and what won’t. Only experience (aka publishing and collecting feedback) will tell you.

So, reflect on what you want to do. But act ASAP and plan just for the near future (3 months at most).

Analytics addiction

No need to:

• Check the performance of new posts every hour
• Check analytics trends daily
• Fret over every email unsubscription.

Data about our content is a treasure. It shows us where to invest our efforts.

But it’s useful only when you can see patterns and make comparisons. You need a large sample: multiple posts, over multiple days.

So, check your stats briefly every day only to exclude something is broken. Analyze them not more than once per week to gain information.

Anxious content creation

No need to:

• Endlessly review every piece of content until it’s “just right”
• Plan a content calendar months in advance
• Focus on creating definitive guides
• Obsess over the search for a unique voice and style
• Try a new content creation and planning tool every week.

We need to be zen creators. We pour ourselves into every piece of content, publish by the deadline, forget about the piece and dive into the next one.

Useless consumption

No need to:

• Study unrelatable case studies
• Join multiple communities
• Hoard courses and guides.

Use just-in-time learning. Study what you need right now, then create.

Limit the amount of time you spend every day reading for inspiration or networking with other writers. Make sure you spend far more time creating.

Fear of judgement

No need to:

• Worry about others’ opinions
• Wonder how to respond to trolls and spammers
• Make a fool of yourself to please your audience.

This is true in our lives in general. And, by the way, audiences love authenticity.

Failed strategizing

No need to:

• Post on too many platforms
• Try to imitate the moves of top creators
• Imitate creators who talk about different topics
• Post without directing to a mailing list
• Use outdated methods for the platform
• Chase virality
• Seek success on platforms that don’t work anymore
• Believe in overnight growth hacks.

There’s a torrent of advice on the web. Some of it works. But often it’s too superficial, misguided, unrelatable, incomplete.

Focus on helping your audience and feeling good doing it. Take inspiration from many sources, like tasting every dish at a buffet. Don’t marry schools of thought. Publish a lot and gather data.

Crystal-balling

No need to:

• Get scared by platform speculations
• Constantly switch platforms to catch the next best thing
• Try to replace yourself with AI

Live in the now.

Thinking about the future is useful if it’s done with hope and a growth mindset. Not if it generates fear and anxiety.

I hope this list will help you find focus and limit uncertainty.

What time wasters have you eliminated?