Write more, consume less?

This is a topic that I keep coming back to. I think about it a lot.

My thoughts are like this: How do we strike a balance between writing content and consuming content?

Writing

So where writing is concerned, it’s all about putting out as much content as you can. These days almost every social media or content platform is about scrolling. So if you’re not every present, you become yesterday’s news.

You need to keep putting out something so people remember and follow you. It’s all about growing an audience and the only way to do that is by being on people’s minds. In Marketing, we would call this share of mind. The more people are reminded of your existence, the more you capture their mind, or so it goes.

People fall into a habit of what’s now known as doom scrolling. We just mindlessly scroll through social media. And yes once in a while we stop if something catches our eyes. But it’s not just that. It’s also the repetition. The more people see you, the more they feel like they know you and they admire the effort being put in.

Consuming

So then comes the question of how much time should we be spending consuming content.

There are two aspects to this, in my mind.

Firstly, you still need a source of ideas. As much as we like to think that we are original with unique thoughts, most of us are not. We need to draw inspiration from somewhere. This isn’t stealing. What makes our content unique will be our spin on it or how we develop that idea to make it our own.

Secondly, it’s about reciprocating. Someone needs to read the content out there. How can you expect people to read your content if you aren’t reading theirs. Much of the time, the people who read your content will be the people who’s content you should read as well. It shouldn’t be a one way street. It should be a matter of mutual respect.

So the questions remains…

How do you strike a balance between writing and consuming?

It’s not just a matter of finding the time but also, avoiding the influence. Sometimes, if you read a person’s work too much, you start to sound like them. While that may not be a bad thing entirely, it also won’t help you find your original voice.

I don’t have a magic formula for this. I am still learning as I go.

I have never given content creation any serious thought before but, now I am. Life outside has become a rat race and I find that I want some semblance of sanity.

Content creation and writing is not easy but, I do feel good about it. I do feel like it is my pagession and I do feel like I can make a decent living out of it.

So what I’m doing is writing more these days. Trying to get my ideas flowing before I can consume too much content. It’s not that I have not been reading but, I have bought that down to a minimum.

I think it’s like a cycle. There should be times where you produce more and then there are times that you feel burned out and that’s when you should be consuming.

It’s not an easy balance to strike and I am still finding mine.

Have a lovely week ahead!