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Posts Tagged ‘Possibilities’
Pressure… by Casey Serin on Flickr Most of us could use less stress. With the kind of ridiculous connectivity that we have and the expectation to be constantly “plugged in”, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. And we aren’t only worrying about things that we have to do, but things that we feel like we should do, or could do. I’m studying abroad in Spain right now. While I don’t have as many have to dos as I do at home, the list of should dos is almost endless (talk with friends, see a bull-fight, make Spanish friends, eat paella, etc). I am normally good at handling a long to do list, but this shift from have to do to should do has been hard to adjust to, because instead of managing my time, I just get overwhelmed with all the possibilities and usually end up wasting my entire day eating lunch (it’s actually not that hard to do that here). This change has forced me to think of how I normally manage being overwhelmed, and to adjust that strategy to this new lifestyle of fewer responsibilities and greater possibilities. So, here’s what we are going to do. Make a list. Making lists is how I solve problems. It clears my mind and is a great distraction when I’m bored in class or at work. This list will have three columns: This list can often become overwhelming by itself. For you overachiever’s, you may be so overcommitted that this is the only list you even have time to look at. We’ll talk about how to fix that later. This list is often not fun to look at and the easiest to ignore. This list contains the activities that you reward yourself with. So you have your lists. Ideally you’d work from top to bottom until everything was done, but we all know that it doesn’t work like that. We procrastinate, we put things off, we don’t feel like doing things we should do, so we do things we could do instead. Let’s look at 4 of the most common problems people have when they are overwhelmed, and try to come up with some solutions for them. You might have some suggestions for these problems, or strategies that work well for you. Share them with me! 205 by Fuschia Foot on Flickr Prioritize! Organize your least by most important to least important and work your way down the list. If you have to, plan out your schedule for the next week, hour by hour. I find that I can deal with stress when I have a solid plan for my work and I only get overwhelmed when I am constantly thinking “Oh god, how am I going to do this.” If you are finding yourself with consistently too many “have to dos”, then maybe you should think about cutting back on something. You’ll do better at the things you really enjoy if you give yourself enough free time to avoid consistently over-stressing. Based on your number of responsibilities, set a daily goal of the number of “should dos” you would like to complete every day. Start with one a day. And then do them! If you miss a day, don’t stress, just get back on track tomorrow. We can all talk ourselves into thinking that we should do things that really aren’t super helpful. Really ask yourself what you are getting out of completing a specific task. While that Grey’s Anatomy episode might teach you how to cauterize an artery, is that really helpful?
kid to do list by Carissa GoodnCrazy on Flickr Break down big tasks into little ones. This is a pretty basic trick against fighting procrastination. Something daunting like “Look for Internship” becomes many manageable tasks like “Finalize Resume”, “Draft Cover Letter”, “Contact Career Center”, “Research Possibilities Online”, etc. October 15, 2009 | Filed Under Post, Uncategorized | 1 Comment Social media has opened up a whole new world of possibilities for independent artists looking to promote their events and performances. An individual artist can significantly increase their audience turnout without using any money by reaching out to the over 250 million active users on Facebook. These tips will help you start thinking creatively about using Facebook as all the possibilities are still being discovered.
Your fan page is like your base of operations. This is your home on facebook where fans can learn more about you and your upcoming events. With Facebook fan pages, you are able to “Target Your Update” to a specific area when sending messages. For example, say you are going on a 5 city tour in New England. You could send one message to all the states in New England, a different message to each city you are visiting with more specific information, and a general wall post with comprehensive details for your fans to see. Make sure to follow the 5 Rules for Artists Using Social Media. Tip: To increase your # of fans, try having a sign-in/sign-up sheet at each of your events so that you can email attendees thanking them for coming and inviting them to become your fan on Facebook.
Facebook allows you to organize your friends into different categories, giving each of them various “tags” that help you more effectively communicate with the people that matter the most. These are great for maximizing the support of your personal connections. Organize your friends into different tiers so that you can send them more direct messages. Facebook makes it insanely easy to quickly invite your 500 friends to an event. So easy that we are constantly spammed with invites to events we don’t really care about (sorry, I’m just not that interested in your “Meatloaf and Jenga Party”). Mass inviting guests can be dangerous because your connections that don’t really care will likely ignore you, and your friends that would gladly support you could be insulted that you sent them the “mass invite” instead of something more personal. To avoid this, create different categories for your friends (ex. frequent supporters, occasional supporters, professional colleagues, etc.) so that your invites and updates can be marketed directly to them. Umphrey’s Mcgees Lights (TomK. on Flickr) You want to harness the power of your fans to promote your event. Word of mouth is viral and will help increase your exposure. Try offering a weekly prize claimable at your event for fans that do a status update or tweet about your event. Now your fans become your promotional partners, increasing the likelihood that they will attend and giving you viral publicity for very little cost. Example: The Umphrey’s McGee held a scavenger hunt at the Rothbury Festival in early July via Twitter, where successful treasure hunters were rewarded with DVDs, keychains, and a hand written note from the band. Collaborating is a great way not only to meet other artists that share your interests, but also to reach an entirely new audience that might not have known about you. Try hosting a joint event that both artists promote. Guest post on each other’s blogs leading up to the event, cross-link to each other’s facebook pages and websites, and feature the other person’s art on your page. The week before your event, you want to kick promotion into high gear. This is the time that people are finalizing their plans and you want to be on their calendars. Create buzz by having a daily raffle for free tickets (or if it is an unticketed event, give away some other prizes). This isn’t necessarily to get those ticket winners to come, as discounted tickets decrease attendance, but rather to give a daily reminder about your event and to create an incentive for your fans to tell their friends. Or try this: Michelle Mangione will be raffling away a free guitar signed by Grace Slick. To be entered you must sell 10 copies of her recently released CD. Brilliant. July 29, 2009 | Filed Under Post, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment 
Your Have To Dos:
These are your responsibilities. Any deadlines, homework, necessary errands (lack of toilet paper is a “have to”, college students.) or promises/responsibilities you have.
Your Should Dos:
These are the numerous things you feel obligated to be doing, but generally aren’t. Going to the gym, doing something cultural, keeping in touch with friends, etc.
Your Could Dos:
Here are the fun ones! Things you do to unwind or entertain yourself: watching TV, going out, dancing, napping, eating.
Problem #1: You have too many “Have to dos”
Problem #2: You are overwhelmed by the number of “should dos” (my problem currently)
Problem #3: You keep convincing yourself that you “really should do” the things on your “could do” list.
Problem #4: The tasks on your “should do” list are daunting, so you procrastinate instead of getting them started.
The best part of making lists is crossing stuff off. But to cross stuff off, you have to actually do it. So go get started!
1. Use your fan page
2. Create friends lists
3. Hold contests before the event
4. Collaborate with other artists
5. Do a daily raffle for free tickets