Ep 62. Document, Don’t Create: A low lift way for introverts to find content ideas

You’ve probably heard the phrase “document, don’t create” floating around before. To be honest, I say it a lot to my clients as well, and every single time I say it, I always get some version of, “Yeah, but Anita, my life isn’t that interesting.”

And I get it. I used to think the same too. If you’ve been doing your job day in, day out for years, of course it’s going to feel boring to you. You’re not going to find your day-to-day stuff fascinating, but I promise you there’s going to be a whole load of people on the internet who will, and that’s what I want to talk about today.

If you’re new here, hello, and a very warm welcome to Quiet Confidence with myself, Anita Popat. This is a podcast for introverts who want to get clients from content without becoming someone that you’re not.

[00:00:41] What “document, don’t create” actually means

So when I talk about documenting, it doesn’t mean literally narrating your day. Like, it’s not, “I woke up, I made a coffee, I opened my laptop.” I’m not asking you to vlog your day. I mean, you can if you want to, but I’m all about low-lift content over here.

What I actually mean is something different, and once that clicks, I promise you, your content is going to feel so easy.

Documenting in my world means capturing what’s already happening rather than creating something new from scratch. It’s more about noticing what’s already there and then writing it down or saying it out loud before it disappears from your head.

Because I really don’t believe that you’re short of ideas. What I think is happening is that you’re sitting there waiting for a big, brand new, like never-been-said-before thing to arrive. And when it doesn’t, you assume that you’ve got nothing to say. But I bet you’ve got at least seven perfectly good pieces of content that have happened in your week already. You just didn’t catch them because you weren’t looking in the right place.

[00:01:31] Where to look for your content ideas

So let me tell you where those right places actually are. Before I do any type of content creation, I’ll normally look at my calendar from the previous week, and I’ll literally brain dump into each of these headings.

And when you do this, it’s going to mean two things. One, you’re going to have a running list of content ideas, but more importantly, the content is going to be authentic to you because it’s something that you’ve experienced in your working day.

These are the three things I want you to notice.

[00:01:54] 1. What you think

The first one is what you think. So this is your opinions, your reactions, the things going on in your head about your industry or your work.

That could be an opinion that you used to hold that you don’t hold anymore. That shift in your thinking is a post. It could also be your reaction to something that you’re seeing right now. For example, I’m seeing a lot of people talking about going viral on my feed, and I could talk about why that would be my worst nightmare, because it is.

Maybe I will do a post on that. And that’s not really a lesson, but it’s me honestly reacting to something that’s happening in real time. By me talking about it, it should attract people who also aren’t interested in going viral, but want to create an audience of people who are likely to buy from them, which is who I want to work with.

[00:02:34] 2. What you do

And the second area is what you do. This is about the why behind the decisions you’re making in your business, and that could include your mistakes too. This kind of content builds trust and just proves that you walk the talk.

So if you teach energy management, like I do, for example, showing the actual behind the scenes of how I protect my time is going to be more powerful than just saying that I believe in it.

Which is why I’ve created a workshop on creating low-lift content so it doesn’t take over your life, because that’s generally what I believe in. You can sign up for that in the show notes if you’re interested.

[00:03:02] 3. What you notice and what you’re asked

The third area is what you notice and what you’re asked. So we’re looking for patterns here. It could be topics or themes that keep coming up in conversations. I do this all the time. If I’m ever having a conversation with you or listening to anyone talking about content creation or marketing, you can guarantee my brain is scanning for some golden nuggets for content ideas.

I genuinely can’t help it, because the best kind of copywriting is basically mirroring the words that people are saying about the thing that you’re selling. And also, if one person is feeling that way, others like them are probably going to be feeling the same too, so that’s always going to make good content.

And it’s not just about what you notice, it’s also what you’re directly asked. So every DM, every comment, every question a client asks you on a call, they’re all content ideas that people are basically giving you.

And obviously the more conversations you have, the more patterns you’ll see and the more questions you’ll collect. And they might feel obvious to you because you see them all the time, but to your audience, they’re going to be a light bulb moment, so keep talking about them.

Repetition is also key. We literally want to say the same thing, like, loads of different ways.

[00:04:01] The real shift: noticing, not creating

So they’re the three things to document when you’re looking through your calendar. And when you create content around all of them, you’re naturally going to create content that moves a follower closer to working with you.

I think the real shift here isn’t about having a content strategy, because you’re already doing the thinking, noticing and being asked things every week while you’re running your business.

So the work here isn’t really coming up with more, it’s just getting better at noticing and catching what you’re already doing, and turning that into content. Not only is that going to save you a load of headspace, but it’s going to keep you consistent, and hopefully stop you feeling like, “Ugh, can’t be bothered to create content again,” because you’re just documenting what you’re doing rather than having to force yourself to think about content ideas all the time.

So this week, every time something comes up, just jot it down, and I promise you, by the end of the week, you’re not going to have a shortage of ideas. You’re going to have more than you know what to do with. And that will prove that you’re never short on content, you just weren’t looking in the right place.

[00:04:49] Turning your ideas into content (free workshop)

Finding the ideas is one thing, but I know the next question is usually, “Okay, but how do I turn this into content without it taking over my life?”

And that’s exactly what I’m covering in a free workshop that’s happening next week if you’re listening live. It’s for introverts who want to create content that gets them clients without having to post constantly, perform for the algorithm, or turn every idea into a full-on production.

You can sign up from the show notes. It’s not going to be an “I’m going to be talking at you and you listen” kind of thing. We’re actually going to be doing some work to create your low-lift content rhythm, so I’d love to see you there.

As always, thank you so much for listening. I hope it shifted something for you today. If it did, I would love it if you would follow, rate, or share with another introvert who might think they’ve got nothing interesting to say, because we both know that they do.