This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
[Music]
Let's look at a common crossroads in the world of content creation. And what is that crossroads? It's where consistency meets creativity. What am I talking about? I'm talking about should you have a fixed publishing schedule?
If you're writing a blog, if you're publishing videos, picking a podcast, or just posting on social media, whatever it is, should you in fact have a publishing schedule or should you just post whenever you want? Maybe there's some happy medium. Well, let's look at it in the case study of a caller, Jamal, a freelance writer and blogger from London. He's wondering how do I find the right rhythm in posting? How do I keep the creativity up and so on?
I definitely have an opinion about this. I'm gonna make my opinion. I'm gonna give you my opinion 'cause I always wanna give it to you straight, but I'll also try to make it as relevant as possible and as flexible and adaptable as possible so that it is helpful for you, something you can take away today. Should I have a consistent posting schedule, learn how regular posting tailored to your lifestyle and type of content can improve engagement and growth? It'll be good for your readers or followers and good for you as well.
Let's talk about it, detailed question coming up right after this quick message from our sponsor. [Music]
Hi there, I'm Jamal, a freelance writer and blogger from London. I write about travel and culture, but I've been inconsistent with my posting schedule. Some people have suggested I should have a fixed publishing schedule. How important is it to have a set schedule for publishing content?
Will it significantly impact my audience engagement and growth? [Music]
Hey Jamal, thanks for listening in London. So as I said, I'll give it to you straight. I am a big fan of a consistent schedule. I think it helps for lots of reasons, but key point, it can be whatever schedule you like, okay?
It doesn't have to be a daily schedule. We talked about daily projects recently, I think a couple of weeks ago. The same kind of principle holds whether it is weekly or something else. I just think it's really helpful for both you and your audience. So if we start with your audience first, it's like, it's nice for the audience to know, oh, I'm gonna join Jamal's YouTube channel or I'm gonna follow him on a social platform or join his newsletter list.
And every Tuesday at 10 a.m., there's something that's coming for me. And over time, people do pay attention. It's really interesting. It may not make a difference at first, but over time, people start expecting it. And I also think it's helpful for you, as I said, just in my own life, having publishing schedules, I tend to do so much better than if it's like, okay, I'll post whenever I want or whenever I feel like it.
Some people are good at that and they do still post consistently without having a particular schedule. But I think those people are the minority. I think most of us do better with the deadlines. You also get some SEO benefits with updated content, just having stuff going out on a regular basis. It conveys professionalism.
It conveys that you are committed to this project, which just helps you and your readers or followers all around. Also built some anticipation. So as you can see, the benefits go on and on, but I also don't want to stress you out or anybody else. Like, when you're learning to do things, it's also okay to do it differently. And maybe you have like a trial project that leads into your more professional project.
So don't stress yourself out, but if you're looking for my opinion, I do think it's really helpful to have a consistent schedule and do whatever you can to create habits that support that schedule. Like make it work for you so that you're not working for the schedule. The schedule is there to serve you. My two cents. Listeners, if you have an opinion, that's great.
That's different than mine. I totally respect that. I'm posting every day on social media, having conversations and questions with people on my newsletter, EuropeMentalHealth.substack.com, also on various social channels. So I always love hearing what you're up to. Let me know.
New episode coming out every day, of course. You can always subscribe or follow. Wherever you get your podcasts, it's always completely free. My name is Chris Guillebeau. This is "Side Hustle School." [Music]
From the "Onward Project."
