Baka Breakthroughs ep 4

Quote I’m living by

3rd April: Good day workwise, got a lot done, other than just 1 important task. Still happy that I was able to get more done. Recently due to slower growth on IG had me worried, and I couldn’t focus a lot on work because the constant thought in my head was: “Bro I really need to improve something asap, to get the usual numbers again!” “What if my work is not that good” “Have I lost the interest of my viewers” “Is my content getting boring?” And all sorts of questions. Self reflection and looking at the big picture made me realize that I have to be grateful for what I have, and work on my purpose. The numbers here will follow as a by product of all of it.

4th April: Good day today, the reel I posted didn’t perform well. It is what it is. Maybe I’ve hit a saturation point, I’m probably overthinking it. Other than that, did everything I needed to for my agency in terms of outreach, email campaign etc. Wrote scripts for the next 2 Youtube videos too. Even though things are not the best in terms of content, I’ll make it work, I’m 100% sure. Whether I have to stay at the same number for the entire month or the next 6 months, I won’t give up.

5th April: Work wise it was decent, average at best. Couldn’t focus a lot on prospecting so I picked up Expert secrets and spend 2.5 hours with the book. Took a lot of takeaways that gave me perspectives on my work. Some really interesting ones, at a point when I was doubting myself a lot these days on my content.

6th April: Good day, although I didn’t do as much outreach as I’d like, I got a decent amount of work done. Got my first sponsored post out today, way better response than I expected really. I’m so blessed to have you guys as people who consume my content. Gym session was great, although I was hecka tired today, still managed to record a YT video on my daily routine and structure, twice, TWICE, because the first time the video was out of focus. Gonna focus all on my business.

7th April: Good day today, got a decent chunk of work done. Although I felt really lazy, and I was taking a nap every hour or 2. Still managed to get in time for learning, researching and scripting videos, getting a couple videos filmed. Working on my email campaigns, this shit is really interesting bro, I never thought I’ll enjoy emails this much. Then went off for a light training session. Went on a walk with my flatmate, met 2 of my best friends and we talked for like 2 hours. Then went to bed late, ffs, I really have to fix my habit of going to bed late on Fridays.

8th April: Woke up at 11.30 today, got out of bed at 12.30. FFS. Anyway, finishing up the newsletter right now. Got a couple things done, YouTube video should be edited asap. Then I’ll be going to the JiuJitsu Gi session and hopefully meeting friends after training. Let’s see.

Lessons from books:

Expert Secrets: A big lesson I learnt this week, is whatever worked for you, maybe it’s your business plan, your content, anything. There’s a hidden unfair advantage. Because it’s you.

Let’s say if you follow a creator to the T, you take the exact thought process and blueprint behind their work, and replicate that for yourself, it probably won’t work for you because it’s not yours.

So when you’re providing a service, could be web design, video editing, copywriting, content creation etc, before you claim results of your work, you need to make sure that your framework works for other people too.

That’s why we take on case study, or trial period clients when freelancing. Because from day 1, we won’t be perfect. We’re gonna have to make changes, that will essentially change our process by 20-30% at least, when we try to make something work for others, based on what worked for us.

So before you finalize some service for your business or freelancing, make sure you test it out on a small batch of people, 2-5 people are enough. And then you can make solid performance claims regarding your work.

It gives you good testimonials, if you charge the initial group less or work for free for them, they can become paying clients easily, it gives you authority in the space, plus you can use the “I can take on only a couple clients right now, and I’m packed with enquiries” line to create good fomo within your prospects.

Interesting resources:

Bro this channel GRAVEMIND on YouTube got all my attention in the past month. I wanted to watch enough videos before I recommended it to you guys.

These are some of the best inspirational, informative videos, with beautiful storytelling, lessons on stoicism with visuals from Anime (You can relate more if you’ve watched them).

A lot of times when I’m blank in how I want to frame my writing, or my videos, I watch this channel to get perspectives on my wording.

My favorite video so far (out of the ones I’ve watched) is called “Unshakeable Character”. It’s a clickable link, so you can watch it from here. I have put it on the list of videos that I can revert to in times when I can’t find inspiration anywhere. Even if I don’t get anything, it definitely gives me the push to become better.

It’s no promo, but genuine appreciation for people who create videos with a purpose, and focus on quality instead of just feeding what the platform or the masses prefer.

New thoughts and approach to my work:

The last week has been the slowest in terms of growth on IG. It’s about 70-80% less than usual. That really got into my head over the weekend. I made the self doubt video only because of this. Even though I was creating good videos, getting a good response there, still the growth didn’t happen. And I actually got worried, but nevertheless, talking to a couple friends about it helped me get back to normal.

I have visions with my brand, and visions where this acts as leverage. And if I put all my focus on just creating content, I won’t be practicing what I preach. My main work is sales, building my agency, and creating my online business. My brand is a big part of it, but the other parts are just as important.

I’ll be focusing mainly on my agency over the next couple months, although the content output will be the same, I think making good progress there will help me come up with better ideas, thoughts, learnings and experiences with which I’ll be able to produce higher level content for you all.

Food for thought: Creator economy

These are hard times for a lot of creators, specially on IG. A lot of creators I know of including me, are facing stagnancy in our growth. These times get really draining on our minds. Other than our work outside of Instagram, the videos we put out are a big representation of us. And other than taking criticism, constructive feedback & seeking improvement on our content, when it doesn’t perform the way we imagine it to be, it gets into our heads to some degree.

Being completely detached from the outcome of our content is not possible, I thought it could be the case before I started posting in December, but no. This is our work, and when it doesn’t get to enough people, or not enough people engage with it, it’s disheartening.

For the last 7-8 days, even though I’ve posted consistently, the reach has decreased out of nowhere, I am seeing less people come in. Maybe I have to change up something, or it’s a matter of being consistent and constantly improving and eventually it’ll return to normal.

In either case, something has to be done, I can’t let it pass like this, I will make sure I get back on track. It’s all my responsibility. I just have to show up as a better human, a better leader, a better creator.

On the flip side, I didn’t consume a lot of content this week. I spent a lot of time just reflecting and thinking, instead of mindless consumption. I’m happy that I reduced it a lot. I still have to reduce my phone scrolling time, it’s still too much and I get lost in the dank memes quite frequently.

Habit Changes:

Earlier I used to have my schedule planned in 3 parts (Which you guys will see in this weeks YT Video), I’ve made another change.

I’m going intentional with the execution part of my day, instead of just taking care of each task randomly, based on my mood. I separated it into 2 parts: Direct money making activities, and activities that put me in a position to make money (In the YT Video too)

It has definitely helped me be more intentional, and although at the end of the day I felt that I didn’t work enough, when I looked at the to-do list, the things were done. So this is an indication of efficiency.

So dedicate your deep work sessions to just 1-2 intentions and make sure only those 1-2 tasks get done in the time period. It’s surprisingly effective.

Actionable items for you:

Reward yourself and buy something good. If you’re done good work this week, make sure you validate it. These days people vilify buying stuff for themselves. This can be a good push you need to take that next step.

I personally will be getting a PS5 after a couple months as a reward of my hard work. Last year I constantly rewarded myself with either sneakers, watches or setup upgrades.

I’m telling you, once you set targets and buy something for yourself, it’s a different feeling of achievement. And to some extent it can be addicting too, but if that’s what you need to take the next step, this might give you the push. And also keep you accountable on your actions.

If you life giving gifts, that can be a goal too. I spend too much some times when I’m giving away gifts to my family members, so there are things that I will be getting for them soon.

So decide on that 1 thing you’d like to get for yourself, or you would buy someone as a gift when you achieve a milestone, put up a story and tag me. Put it out there so you’re accountable for your actions.

Latest YouTube video:

This week I talked about my daily routine and how I structure my day, (Flexed a bit at the end too haha), but I believe it’ll help you guys understand my routine more at a deeper level.

I’m a beginner too, and figuring things out, so if there’s any scope for improvement, do let me know. Whether it’s my YouTube videos or IG reels. (Click on the photo to go to the video)

I probably won’t know you personally, but if what I produce on any platform, makes your life better in any way……… my purpose is fulfilled.

Do send me feedback either on Substack or via email reply, or send me a DM on IG saying “I’m here because of the newsletter”. I’ll read every single one and become better in the next one.

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