50: Your Simplest Way Is Your Strongest Way: Content Strategy for Solopreneurs

Feeling like you need a ring light, perfect angle, and cinematic editing skills just to post a reel? Let's be real—you don't. In this episode of The Creative Bodega, I'm breaking down why your simplest way is actually your strongest way when it comes to showing up online. I'm sharing the exact framework I use to create consistent content without the overwhelm, plus the boundaries that protect my sanity (and my time). If you're tired of feeling behind because you can't keep up with the polished creators in your feed, this episode is your permission slip to own your way—and make it work.

*Check out the full show notes for this episode HERE

Things I cover inside this episode:

• Why over-complication is killing your consistency—and how to simplify your content creation process without sacrificing quality
• The exact framework I use to define my "strongest way" (hint: it's the method you'll actually do on your most average Tuesday)
• How to choose one boundary that protects simplicity—from time caps to template banks
• Why owning your simple approach isn't a consolation prize, it's literally a strategy that's sustainable, scalable, and bankable
• How to market your simplicity as your edge (because your audience actually wants clarity and predictability, not perfection)

Resources & Links mentioned in the episode:

• The Visual Edit VIP waitlist - My live program for service-based businesses who want their visuals to finally match their message without becoming full-time content creators (opens late January)!

Connect with me:
🫶🏼 Follow me on Instagram for daily insights
🫶🏼 Join my 321 Create Newsletter for weekly content tips
🫶🏼 Check out The Content Coven Membership

Be sure to hit "Subscribe" or "Follow" so you never miss an episode!

Transcript

Emily Connors: 0:00

owning your way is not a consolation prize. It's literally. A strategy and when you build a business on what you can repeat on your most average Tuesday school pickup, kids' soccer practice, client issues, that's a power and that's sustainable and that's scalable, and that's bankable. Hello friends. Welcome back to the Creative Bodega podcast. I just got back from my kiddos school, their art teacher send out an email a few weeks ago saying, we're gonna have guest artists come in and, you know, do you wanna do it? And I could not write back fast enough that yes, in fact, I did want to come in as a guest artist and, uh. Uh, twofold. One, I love seeing my kids in the school setting. It just does my heart. Good. And, two. They don't like their art teacher, like they say, she's actually one of the meanest teachers, which like, I don't understand. I'm like, that doesn't make sense. If you're an artist and a creative, like you can't be mean. That just doesn't feel right. And I've always loved my art teachers, so I. I kind of wanted to do a little reconnaissance and meet her and kind of be like, okay, I'm their mom. don't mess with my kids, kind of thing. Anyways, it went so well. It just, ugh, does my heart so good? My kids don't know I'm coming in. So it was a surprise. And like my daughter comes around the corner and Reese, your mom is here and she just. So proud. She's so proud that I'm her mom and like sticks by me and you know, I did a cute craft and everybody needed my help and she's, oh, my mom can do it. She's really good. Good at that. And uh, anyways. It was amazing. And now I'm home for literally 40 minutes and then I have to go back to do my son's class. So I looked at my dog and I said, do you wanna go to work? So he knows if I say, do you wanna go to work? It's, we're going upstairs to my office, close the door, and I'm gonna try and make this a little bit of a shorter episode. I always say that. I always say that, and then it goes on for. Gosh darn ever. But I wanna talk about something that's been, simmering in the back of my mind for a while. And honestly it kind of boiled over yesterday when I was on Instagram, of course, consuming content and it's this pressure to show up. So polished, like the creators that we see in our feeds, when what actually works for our lives and businesses is way simpler. So the message is really simple. It's that your simplest way is your strongest way. Your simplest way is going to be the way that you can stay consistent. Finding your simplest way is the way that you're gonna keep your nervous. System calm when creating content for your business or showing up right over complication. I see it all the, all the time Over. Complication is a killer. It's a consistency killer, honestly. So yesterday I hopped in my stories like I like to do. When something comes to my mind, and I highly recommend you do this. When it comes to stories, it's like I'm consuming content. I have a thought. Huh. I think my audience would appreciate this. I'm hopping in my stories and I'm gonna talk about it and see, you know, gauge the temperature of the room kind of thing. So I did a story about reels and how they completely overwhelm me, honestly, not the idea of reels. The reels themselves are fine. It's everything like around them. The editing, the perfect, you know, angle, the sunlit corner, the the gorgeous lighting that I see people have, you know, graphics flying in at the exact right time. Captions that bounce and highlight and dance. And, and I'll be honest, when those pop up on my grid, I watch them. Because they're really well done and I'm impressed and I'm like, huh? Like I'm a designer and I really appreciate the work that I think went into creating this reel. But when I imagine myself making those kinds of reels. My entire nervous system goes, yeah, that's a no, just, that's just a no. But I'm telling you, I'm a mom of two elementary age school kiddos and. There is, I mean, how do I say this nicely? I mean, there's, there's just stuff everywhere in our house. Like I don't live in a showroom. I, I don't have a designated little cute corner where I can set up my, you know, camera. Uh, I don't have a camera. I have my phone. I don't have fancy lighting. I don't have any like box lights or I don't even have a ring light. And I really don't have the interest in high level video editing. I'm not gonna lie. So. As I do with most things in my business, I keep it as simple as possible. But here's where it gets interesting. so. When I became, a Canva verified expert, one of only 43 in the world, I looked around and I thought, wow. look at what these other CVEs are doing, like AI stuff and code based stuff, and like next level content creation. It was so cool. I thought they were so incredible, and this little voice in my head said. You are not meant to be here. You are behind. You need to level up. You can't do what they're doing. Why are you here? Right? And maybe you've heard that voice in your own lane or your in your own work. you know, someone else's fancy things or knowledge that they have that you don't, makes you feel, like small, to be honest. But then it crossed my mind, what if I just own the type of creator that I am? You know what I mean? Like. what if I just use Canva in this streamlined, simple, fast way? Maybe that is the advantage. Maybe that is what I am able to do that other people can't. What if the way I make reels, you know, just talking to the camera as if they're stories and adding captions, and that's it. And that is the point. What if my audience actually wants that simple content or likes that? Simple content? What if your audience wants exactly how you do things? Not the pretty up version, not the borrowed version, just your version. So I made a decision and you're welcome to borrow it. I'm not doing multi-angle camera reels. I'm sorry. I don't have the time to set up my tripod and get B roll and then me talking to the camera and then, uh, me talking from a different angle and I. Uh, even if I had the time, I'm really not interested in doing it. Okay. So it's one phone, one take, one message, okay? And I'll edit it and, and edits, and that's, that just is what it is. And maybe a weekly, good enough post is a non-negotiable. So I don't have to have the best thing ever made. I just have to provide some value and it, I just have to hit publish. Right. So that choice really shifted everything for me. It dropped the, the temperature on my perfectionism, if you will, and it gave me back time, which time is my biggest asset. And it made me more consistent and it reminded me who I serve, right? I serve overwhelmed, service-based female solopreneurs who don't want content creation to be their entire lives. Right? And if you're listening and nodding, here's the heart of today's episode, like owning your way is not a consolation prize. It's literally. A strategy and when you build a business on what you can repeat on your most average Tuesday school pickup, you know, kids' soccer practice, client issues, you know, website problems, you know, why is the dog eating stuff it shouldn't, like that's a power and that's sustainable and that's scalable, and that's bankable. Okay. So I wanna turn this into something that you can use right now, and I'm gonna give you a simple framework and some boundaries that you can steal. maybe some pitfalls that I think you should try to avoid in an action plan for the next four weeks. You can literally keep this in your notes app. Okay? So you ready for this? Number one part. One, define your strongest way. Your strongest way is the method that you'll actually do consistently. Without hating your life details. Not the most photogenic way, not the trendiest way, the most repeatable way. So you could pick one of these, right? Talk to the camera for 60 to 90 seconds. Add a caption in the edits app. Call it a day. Take out silence, right? That's it. Talk to camera. Provide some value. Or maybe it's a weekly carousel. Built from, you know, just screenshots or, or client testimonials or something like that, that you just take screenshots and you create a carousel really quickly off of screenshots. that's as simple as it gets. Or maybe it is like a, a you in the car talking on a, as a voice memo and you turn that into Putting that audio over top of really simple B roll. And the B roll is one angle of you doing the same thing the whole time, right? Like nothing crazy. And I want you to just ask yourself these two questions. Can I do this on an average day in under 30 minutes? That's very important. And would this actually move my business forward? And if it's a yes to both, then that's your strongest way, okay? Part two is choose one boundary that protects simplicity. I'm not doing multi-camera angle reels. One angle done weekly. Good enough posts. It ships. Even if I feel meh about it, I'm putting it out there. Or you could try something like a time cap, right? 20 minute timer from idea to draft. Put the 20 minutes on your phone and when the timer ends, what you got is what you post. Okay? no chasing trends. Like it. You can only use a trend if it perfectly fits with your message and feels really easy to do. So any trending audios or reels that I do fit into this category, I see it and I'm like, oh my God, I could totally do that. That makes so much sense for me and my audience and all that. I'm doing it, I'm busting it out in 20 minutes or less. Okay. maybe you have a hook bank. Okay. And you keep a list of like 10 hooks that you can reuse and like that. Just again, keeping it really, really simple. Or for me, it's templates, reusable templates for carousels, for reels, covers. So I use like one template. Every week, I rotate through them week after week. And I'm not redesigning new things every week. I keep it so simple. I mean, if you follow me, you know, like a lot of my designs are reused. So choose a boundary, put it in writing, tell a friend, tell the coven if you're in the coven, put a sticky note on your laptop. And this clarity really can create some simplicity, magic. part number three is market the simplicity. this might be the most overlooked part. own your simplicity. If simple's your edge, like name it, call it out. Don't hide it. It's something I've wanted to do. I'm like, you know what? no, I can't do this fancy stuff that I'm seeing other creators doing, but. I know how to keep it simple and doable, and that makes it easy for me to do consistently. And that's what my people want. That's what my busy ass solopreneurs want. So clients, your audience, they love clarity, they buy predictability. And when you say, I, you know, deliver fast, clear, no frills solutions, you can really help build trust for that person who's looking for that type of thing. So simple isn't like a less than marketing situation, it's it's. It's a positioning situation and your messaging around it can really make or break it. part four, measure what matters, right? If you measure views only, you're always gonna feel behind you guys.'cause someone's always gonna have better views than you. If you measure the results, it'll help you feel really grounded. So I want you to track replies, uh, bookings, direct messages, comments. Saves, things like that. The time that you saved after adopting your simple boundaries or consistency streaks, right? How many weeks in a row were you able to do something because you simplified it. I look at everything I do and I ask. Is there anything I can take out, any step I can remove from this? And a lot of times people assume that I do things in a really complicated way, when in fact I do not at all. I keep things so crazy simple. and then the last part is part five, and I'm gonna tie this into my, messaging edit program. It's the magnet tie in, right? So if you're new here, magnet is my way of organizing strategic content. It's how it applies to owning your strongest way. So M was for message clarity. One promise per post. Like in 60 seconds. I'm gonna show you how to turn a client question into a reel, right? Not five promises. One promise A is for attract through specificity. So say who it's for and who it's not for. This is for service-based providers who want speed over spectacles. Okay, G. Goal aligned content. Every post should serve a current offer or nurture a decision, and if it doesn't, it's a hobby. Post you guys, it should be on your personal page, not your business page. N is nailing the offer language, so saying. Practice saying your offer in one breath make sure it sounds right. So I was helping somebody name a freebie inside the coven and I was like, I want you to say it. I want you to pretend you're recording a story and say it. Does it come out easily? Does it feel good? Right? E engagement energy. Talk like you're voice, memoing your best friend. Be be normal, okay? And then tease, test and tweak. So change one variable per week. Change the hook, change the caption length change where you put the call to action. That's where you're actually gonna learn and see kind of what happens. some pitfalls to avoid. Three quick ones. Okay? So borrowed expectations. Please don't compare your Tuesday to somebody else's. Studio team or team of 10, right? different resources, completely different goals. do that a lot. I look at people like Jenna Kutcher or Amy Porterfield. I'm like, oh my God, they have so many employees, right? And I'm like by myself with a va, and a podcast editor. So. two, hiding and learning. If you've been researching transitions or trying to nail a, a trending real situation for two weeks, you guys, you're not researching. You're just procrastinating. So just post whatever you got or let it go if it's not for you. Too complicated. And then confusing. Polish with professionalism. You can be wildly professional without. Cinematic efforts, right? So when I finally stopped trying to be the highly produced creator in my head and set my boundaries and expectations for myself, realistically, two things happened right away. First. I started posting more. Okay. It's amazing what happens when you remove that friction alone. And second, the dms shifted. Right? People started saying, thank you for making this feel doable. Right? I, I really like how simple your content is. I can breathe when I watch your stuff, right? And that told me everything The right people want the thing I'm actually great at. And that's just making it really simple to show up and sell. Right. So before we close, I just wanna say this out loud in case you need permission today. You don't need a prettier corner or a brighter light or a fancier reels edit situation to be taken seriously. You just need a message. You need some boundaries, and you need a rhythm that you feel you can really keep. That's how grown sustainable businesses are built. They're not built on perfect posts, but on reliable ones. So if you want some hands-on support to make it even easier, I want you to get on the visual edits. VIP wait list. Okay. This is my live program that I run in late January. Uh, it opens soon and it's for service-based businesses who want their visuals to finally match their message without becoming content creators. Right? So inside I will help you stop winging it. And start designing posts with intention. I'm gonna help you build a visual branding system that you can use every single day that is so simple. I'm gonna help you get consistent with your visuals and figure out a faster workflow and create professional looking content in so much less time. And we're gonna like just ditch the can Canva chaos and move into clarity with. You're posting schedule and I'm gonna have you walk away with a complete visual identity that you are so freaking proud of. and it's just gonna make it so much easier to show up everywhere you hang out. Ugh. I love this program so much. So this used to be called the Insta Canva Collective. I renamed it the visual edit. And again, the link is in the show notes for the VIP wait list. I would love for you to join. Okay, thanks for hanging out with me. I've gotta go back to the school but if this hits home, hey, maybe you share the episode, maybe you leave me a five star review. I don't know, something like that. Inside your podcast listening, app of choice. But I'm so glad you're here. Please tag me if you try a simple post and think of me and remember it. Your simplest way is for sure your strongest way. I will see you next week.