I’m awful at business growth, meaning- I don’t post when algorithms say I should. I don’t “buy” likes or followers or traffic to my site. I post all things related to burnout prevention on Fridays which used to be one of the worst days to do so. 

Why?

I quickly stepped out of recovery and focused on prevention. The term recovery brought folks to me who were either in the middle of depression without professional support (and were quickly referred to folks with training in that arena and/or collaborated with them on actions recommended by their therapists). Or, folks who were in addiction recovery. I value the work that is done in that field and did not want to overstep or confuse folks with what I could offer to them. 

Fundamentally, at my core, I believe people need to know that they matter. The opposite message is what I believed of myself as a young child and adolescent. I overworked myself and sought perfectionism and people pleasing as my external badge that I did matter.

Until I didn’t any longer. Until I realized I was expendable and forgettable. Until the person who I was trying to ultimately prove myself to was gone. Until I recognized that the only person who could make me understand that I mattered was me.

So, I did the work. I’m not going to tell you what work I did because everyone’s story is different, it isn’t one size fits all, and I think it is dangerous and irresponsible to say, “I did this. You can do it, too! Just…”

But, I would advocate for you to to talk to someone about what YOUR block or lock on your heart, mind, or soul is and what the key might be to unlocking it. Start with a medical professional or online resource to point you in any direction that gets you started.

And so, I visualized the person who gets through their work week. It’s Friday. They are exhausted. Maybe feeling demoralized. Maybe they want to talk to someone about it, but they know the other person won’t understand or it will rile them up more. They open their phone. They go on the BookFace to see what folks are up to. They go on the Gram to see filtered pictures of joy. Or they hit up TweeterVille to see what is trending. Maybe it’s LinkedIn searching for a new job. 

Or maybe they recognize the purple and green heart emojis that make some roll their eyes. And maybe just maybe…they take a breath. They see a quote that makes them think. Or a picture that makes them pause. Or follow a link to a post, podcast episode , or video that helps them reframe a thought or gives them permission to take an act of self care that is not selfish but precious.

Algorithms and experts may say that’s not good for business. But…I think it’s good for humanity. My goal with my Friday posts isn’t to reach as many folks as possible. It isn’t to get a new client or another podcast guest. It’s to reach that one person. Whoever they may be. And if that one person has a shift in how they see themselves or how they approach the rest of their day or weekend, then that ripples out to those they connect with. 

That has been my why.

And, I’m still posting on Fridays. See you then.

Be well. Be safe. Be kind.

~Suzie