I Quit All My PR Teams

I thought that might get your attention.

And I know what you will be thinking, why Sam? Well to be perfectly honest I had started to feel very overwhelmed with everything and something had to give. Planning had started to feel like a chore rather than a tool, for me anyway.

Now, I do need to say that this is not me shitting on PR teams. You know that I have loved every team that I have been on. However, I have lost my joy in it. This is me shitting on myself for not realising sooner what was happening.

This is in no way because of the teams that I was on, this was me and my mental state.

And I know that you just did an eye roll because we have all heard “it’s not you, it’s me” malarky. But it truly was me. I was spreading my self so thin and creatively draining myself without even thinking about it.

I had so many commitments and it was getting to the point where I was ready to plan out my week. And I would draw a blank on what I wanted to share that week. I had gotten to the point where it was feeling more like busywork then it should.

So, how did it happen?

Well, I just can’t say no to people in the Planner Community, if someone wants help I will help them to a fault and this was costing me. I was putting everything into the teams and I wasn’t saving anything for my own fun projects.

Being on 2/3 teams and then running this blog and helping with The Creative Planner and my day job and looking after the house and then all the travel that we were doing… Urgh! It was a lot! I had the realisation that it was costing me.

I was finding it harder and harder to take photos for my social media. Especially at the level that I come to expect of myself. You know what I am like when it comes to product photography. As well as writing one blog post a week and working on Days Of The Year something had to give.

Along with the new ASA rules on influencers and marking things with AD/Gifted/Sponsered correctly and then me stressing out that others weren’t marking theirs correctly, and still don’t (that’s a whole other rant). I was putting more undue stress on myself.

So, I gave myself a month! If at the end of that month I still wanted to quit my teams then I would speak to the shop owners. So I kept up as best as I could trying to put the fun back in. But, as the month, went by and it got no easier.

At the end of that month, I started to reach out to my teams and telling them that I would be stepping down. And do you know what they are awesome! They understood and could see that it was for the best.

Did it help?

So, what has happened since I quit? It’s been 4 months since I quit my teams and well, I am putting less pressure on myself to make my planner “pretty”. Have you seen my Bullet Journal this past few months? Back to basics and scribbles everywhere!

I stopped making sure that I had multiple social media posts are going out every day on any of my channels. Now, I only post once a day if that. I have had a few times where I haven’t posted for over a week!

Being able to focus more on my blog and spend the time doing in-depth reviews and longer-form blog post has been great. There is a whole list of ideas around the Bullet Journal that I want to share with you as well. Because you know how I feel about that. #FunctionoverFancy! As always if there is anything that you would like me to cover then do let me know.

I have so much more travel for the rest of the year. Which no longer has the stress of “Did I scheduled that image?”. Not only that, but I have also applied the tips that I set out in my Tidying up your Facebook post. And my feed is filled with posts I want to see! Yes, there are still a few PR girls who are posting images and not marking them correctly but I am no longer giving a shit. (That’s a whole other rant)

I have un-followed a bunch of groups and left some that I don’t want to be a part of anymore. What I have noticed is that though I haven’t fully come away from social. I am just doing it on my own terms now.

So, what’s next?

Generally, I am putting less pressure on myself and feeling more in control of things in my life. I really had not realised the strain I was putting on my self and now I post on social for the blog and when I want. Rather than setting myself strict rules.

I have also gotten to the point where I don’t care what my bujo looks like, it has scribbles and random pens in it. Drawings, lists, collections, journaling (which I have missed) and a whole host of other things. It’s as messy as I want it and if I want to share it then I do but I don’t have to if I don’t want to.

Since doing this I have noticed that I have felt less stressed and more focused on other things in my life and I have actually started to work on some house projects and get out in the garden a lot more.

I am focusing on doing another declutter of the house. I had a couple of holidays were I just chilled out and stayed off social media and just journaled in my notebook.

What I have noticed is that since I quit my teams and started to focus more on me and what I want out of life and this online community. I have also noticed that other’s have had the realisation as well.

I am doing this for me and if people like then great if not then great. I am doing it for me rather than the gram. What I do hope is that others get to the point were they stop “doing it for the ‘gram” or to be Insta-famous. Do it for you and that will attract your tribe rather than trying to force yourself into a tribe.