Last weekend, my daughter and I visited my parents in Ormond Beach. We headed down to the shore, determined to build the ultimate sandcastle. The tide was rolling in fast, so we worked quickly. As we shaped our castle, one bucket of sand at a time, I realized something:

This sand castle started with one bucket of sand, which became two, then a corner wall, then another, and eventually, we had a fortress complete with a mote and everything.

The same could be said about my experience learning web development, starting my web dev agency, or even writing this newsletter.

One line of code— one word at a time.

With that in mind, here are 5 things I’ve learned that helped me embrace the journey, and truly enjoy creating: One Block at a Time.

Small Victories

Someone once told me to appreciate the journey more than the destination — and they were right. The journey becomes so much richer when you reflect on how far you’ve come and the growth it took to get here. Don’t just focus on the end goal; celebrate those small wins along the way. Take a moment, breathe, and give yourself that pat on the back. You’ve earned it!

Document Your Travels

Want to amplify the impact of your journey? Document it. That’s why I started this newsletter — not just to share my thoughts on tech, music, and life (by the way, subscribe if you haven’t!), but to put my story out there. My hope is that it resonates with someone, or at least gives them a laugh along the way.

Even if you’re just documenting for yourself, it’s a powerful way to reflect on your progress and growth. So, I highly encourage you to write, vlog, or even take photos of your journey. It’s a treasure trove of insights and inspiration waiting to be unlocked.

Consistency is Key

Consistency is where I’m focusing my energy right now as a creator. I choose to share my story and with that I have a responsibility to my audience. My audience deserves to know when the next piece of my story is coming.

So I guess this would be a good time to share my diabolical master plan: Newsletter on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. Social media posts on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

Bonus Tip: Take the Mr. Beast approach. No matter how small, Improve one thing everyday. You’d be surprised what happens.

Batch Your Creating | Stick to Your Wheelhouse

Content is extremely important to entrepreneurs. But how the heck can I find time to write or make a video or take some pictures, when I’m busy trying to complete client work, network, be a dad, and explore personal passions such as playing guitar in my band?

My friend Austin (Collect & Contrast on YouTube) taught me to build a backlog of content, so I can focus on what’s important while still keeping the “content machine” running. Take a day and spend 30 minutes crafting social posts, a couple of hours writing newsletters. Before you know it, you’ll have an archive ready to go.

Also, stick to platforms that work for you — for me, that’s Instagram and LinkedIn. I’m no social media pro, but I’m experimenting with these platforms because they’ve given me the best engagement and I understand them the most.

btw. — I help entrepreneurs & creatives deliver their content and drive engagement through the power of custom websites, applications, and integrations. Reply ‘Sandcastle’ to this email to learn more.

Compile and Compound

Bringing this all together, every step in your creative journey is a bucket of sand in your sandcastle. Every day, every week, these tools will allow your buckets of sand to compound and build you a mighty fortress.

One block at a time, you’ll create something bigger than you ever imagined.

Let’s build something incredible, one step at a time. 👊

Cheers,

Paps