Overcoming the Problem of Consistency

What's the Magic Number of Posts?

Apr 10, 2024

The key to success online is “being consistent.”

If you are a small business owner, a CEO, an entrepreneur or you just want to make some extra money with a side hustle—then you know the big problem is trying to be consistent with your posts and your online content.

And now there’s an entire cottage industry that focuses solely on helping businesses and creators make content for social media.

The problem is they don’t solve the problem of consistency.

Taking a Step Back

I decided to rename or rebrand my newsletter and podcast “Overcoming Obstacles with The School Doc” because I was running into this consistency issue myself.

So let’s unpack what consistency really means—and then how you can start to show up more for your customers, followers and audience in a more meaningful way. Because the answer is—if you can be more consistent and provide more value—you will grow and make more money.

The Consistency Hurdle

What do people want?

In order to overcome the problem of consistency—you need to answer this larger question. “What do people want?”

But I don’t want you to think about the question in the abstract—I want you to make it specific to you. “What do people want from you?”

When you can answer this more specific question—it starts to provide real answers and solutions to your consistency problem.

What do people want from The School Doc?

The answer is —they want answers.

That’s right—no one cares about me or what I know, unless it provides them answers and solutions to their problems. This has been the sole reason I have been successful in the field of education, as well as being an entrepreneur.

I have an uncanny ability to look at reality, identify the root problem and then develop real world solutions that actually work—not just pretend to work.

And this sets me apart from the crowd.

So what sets you apart from the crowd?

And if you don’t know yet—then sit and think about it.

The answer will then become part of the solution.

Overcoming the Hurdle

Social media gurus and experts will tell you that the key to consistency is posting once a week, or once a day, or post at this time, instead of that time. But the truth is that’s not what consistency means for people.

What your audience wants is consistent value.

Of course, they don’t want you to post only once a month—that’s just too long to wait for someone. But if you post once a week—that’s enough time to listen to you and then also miss you at the same time.

This is why, back in the old days, TV shows were scheduled for once a week. And if you don’t know what I’m talking about. In the dinosaur days, before Netflix and streaming services, the cable company and the TV networks controlled when you could watch the next episode of your favorite TV show.

I know?? Crazy, right?

There was no such thing as binge-watching an entire season of your favorite show in one weekend—no! you had to wait week to week to watch the next episode.

So the frequency of how much you post isn’t as big a problem as you think it is. If you only post once a week—you will be fine. So stop the negative self-talk loop inside your mind that says, “I need to post more.”

The true answer is: “NO YOU DON’T.”

What your audience wants is consistent value.

And that’s why I changed the name of my newsletter and podcast. The new name tells people the “value” of this content. If you want to know how to overcome obstacles—then you should subscribe and tune in once a week.

It’s Ok to Experiment

There is literally a guru for everything nowadays. If you want to learn how to groom your dog—there’s a guru for that. If you want to learn how to braid people’s hair—there’s a guru for that as well.

Whatever you can think of—there’s a guru for that.

But there’s no guru for helping people “figure things out.”

Have you noticed that?

There’s a leadership guru, an entrepreneur guru, and a social media guru—but there’s no guru preaching, “just try new things on your social media and see what works.” And the number one reason for that is simple.

Because everyone is afraid to fail.

And that’s the truth.

But I want you to be stronger than that. I want you to feel more empowered than that. And I want you to overcome the hurdle of consistency.

Your followers and audience want “consistent value.”

But what if you don’t know what to do?

I have published a weekly newsletter/podcast since August 2020. That means, I am fast approaching my 4-year anniversary. And I just decided to rename the entire production.

So stop worrying about having all the answers—because no one has all the answers.

Finding More Confidence

My goal with each newsletter/podcast from this point forward is to tackle one hurdle and then provide some tips and suggestions to help you overcome that hurdle.

So here are my suggestions for overcoming the problem of consistency:

Define what “value” means to you and your brand
Decide what you can commit to creating once a week
Create a schedule for yourself that plans for weekly content creation
Experiment with different formats and also different platforms
Analyze your data
Create monthly reports, so you can “see” the impact on paper

Now let’s unpack these 6 suggestions.

The first one is defining your value. When it comes to my newsletter/podcast—I needed to ask myself this very important question:

“What am I trying to do with this newsletter/podcast?”

I want you to sit yourself down and answer that question—and when you force yourself to answer that question—it leads right into the next question: ”who is this for?”

There is nothing wrong with creating content for yourself. But if you want your online content to grow an audience or make you more money—then you need to care about who your audience is.

Otherwise—why would they care about you?

And this is the hidden secret to online success. When you sit and think about the “value” you bring to your audience—then your content shows you care about them and what they think about the most.

What are you trying to do?
And who is this for?

When you answer those 2 questions—the path you need to follow will become more clear.

So what’s next?

Once you know what your audience cares about—now you can decide what type of content you want to create. And don’t take this decision lightly.

Almost 4 years ago, I decided to produce a weekly video podcast. And that was because I saw Joe Rogan do it—and I know that I could be just as good as Joe Rogan.

But what I didn’t consider is the fact Joe Rogan pays his producer an annual salary. I didn’t consider that Joe Rogan does nothing else with his time. The Joe Rogan podcast is the only thing he does with his “work time.”

I don’t have a producer. And I have other things I need to do with my “work time.” So making the decision to produce a weekly video podcast—in hindsight was probably a huge mistake on my part.

So when people tell you—not to experiment or you need to have all the answers. Those people are lying to you. No one has all the answers and some of the decisions you make today—will turn out to be mistakes.

I made a mistake—but it’s ok.

The worst thing you can do is “not do anything.” If you own a small business or you want to make money—the worst thing you can do to yourself is “do nothing.”

Thus, if you listen to any advice I give you—it’s this:

DO SOMETHING

I have no idea what I’m going to do now with my catalogue of podcasts called “Tuesdays with Schwartz.” But it’s not a bad problem to have. I have 145 episodes of that video podcast. Yes, I produced 145 video podcasts. That might not compare to Joe Rogan’s 4000 episodes, but then again—do you have 145 video episodes of anything in your catalogue?

What you create should be personal to you. For me—I like to write. Therefore, I want to switch from making video podcasts—to writing a newsletter once a week and including an audio podcast on topics I think are really important.

This excites me—this makes me proud.

And you need to be proud of what you create online—so decide what format works the best for you and lean into it completely.

Once you make that big decision, now comes the hard part.

Yes, you need to schedule time to create your content.

And that’s easier said than done.

As you know, there are only 24 hours in a day, which means you have to squeeze in creating content into your already busy schedule. Which actually means— you need to replace something you currently do with content creation.

So what will you eliminate from your schedule?

Don’t try and be a hero and just “add on” content creation. It’s not going to work—and all you’re going to do is burn yourself out. And who does that help in the end? Not only do you hurt yourself, but now you can’t bring consistent value to your audience.

Don’t be short-sighted and foolish.

For me, I like to write. I know that I can write a newsletter on a consistent basis. And I also know that I will be proud of my work. You need to do the same thing. Pick a format that you like the most. If you like making TikTok videos the most—then choose TikTok videos.

If you like doing an audio podcast the most—then do an audio podcast.

Pick something you like and that you can stick with for years—not months. That’s the hidden secret to success online. You need to be around 3-4 years from now, not 6-months from now.

I started my podcast in August 2020—we are now in April 2024 and I’m still around. And not only that, but I’m more committed to being around for the next 4 years, which is why I changed the name of the newsletter.

Your audience wants to know you won’t abandon them in the near future. That way they are willing to take a chance on you. I hope that makes sense.

In the beginning, you will have this need to over-analyze everything you do. You will look at your weekly data and metrics and try and draw conclusions. But listen to what I’m about to say to you.

Because here’s the truth.

If you have less than 1,000 views—none of your data is going to tell you what you need it to tell you. The problem is the data sample is too small. That’s why you need to be your own judge, in the beginning.

When you look at your posts, what do you think?

Do you think your posts have value? Do you think your posts talk about what your future audience cares about? If you get a few hundred views on your posts—that’s a good thing and should tell you—you are on the right track.

But don’t let your analysis go deeper than that.

Just keep posting and show consistent value.

Once you go over 1,000 views—then you can start to analyze your data at a deeper level to see what people liked the most, what they responded to and what new direction you should follow.

But what if not enough people are seeing your posts and engaging with you?

Well, that’s an obstacle for another newsletter.

Until then…I hope you enjoyed the Brand New “Overcoming Obstacles with The School Doc.” I will be publishing once a week—so please be on the lookout for new emails to your inbox.

If you have an obstacle that you want me to tackle in a future newsletter—just post it here in the comments: