How to prioritize and strategize your workload with Halle Heather

Hey there, how here and welcome back to another episode of the take your shot podcast. Currently we are still in what I like to call strategy season and some people call it off season. Some people call it slow season, but as business owners, I believe that if we're not working in our business, we should be working on our business.

And that is what I love about this time of year. And you know, I recently just got a message from another photographer and they were like, Hey, I'm done with my editing. And I know I've got some time before wedding season picks up. I'm trying to figure out what I should spend my time doing. I've got a list of all these things that I want to do.

Um, where should I start? And on that list was a long thing. Like, it was like, I should do a rebrand. I want to do SEO. I want to do, like, social media. And I want to do, you know, networking. I want to grow into, like, these different areas other than just, like, weddings. And, and the list was pretty long. And they were basically just asking, where should I start?

And I think it can feel so overwhelming when you finally have time to like work on these things and you're like, Oh [00:01:00] my goodness, I don't even know where to start, right? We've all been there. I've been there. And what I really want to help you guys with today is figuring out how to best prioritize your time, your energy, your resources, making sure that you're most effective in your business.

So that was what we were talking about today and I cannot wait to dive in.

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Okay, so it is strategy season and in [00:02:00] this season we are looking at, okay, how should I be spending my time? What should I be working on? And there's really no one size fits all when it comes to that answer because ultimately you are running your business in a way that's unique to you.

You have your own goals, you have your own lifestyle you're trying to achieve, you have your own clients you're trying to serve. And so really to figure out how to answer that question, the biggest thing I like to first ask is two things. First is, What are you most excited about? Like, what gives you the most energy when you think about these tasks and projects that you could be working on?

And then another question to follow that question is, what do you most dread? What are the things that fall within those projects and tasks that you're least excited about, that you kind of dread? And I think it's really important to kind of organize and weed through those different things.

Because ultimately there might be some projects that you're excited about. Like maybe you're really excited about doing a rebrand, but you hate writing copy, but that's one of the things that you need to do in order to launch a new website, or maybe you're super excited about social media. [00:03:00] But you don't have content to post and you don't really know where to start with that and you want to kind of figure that out and that's draining for you like you get very exhausted trying to plan all that out.

There's a lot of different things that that can fall under and so really write down the projects and then within each of those projects write the different tasks. And I would just do it on a simple, you know, spreadsheet or simple Google Doc and then color code it and just say like, okay, this color so green means I'm super excited about it.

Red means like man like I dread it and I don't want to really do it and then yellow would be like I feel Neutral about this like yeah, it needs to happen I don't mind doing it But like I can do it and and I think that's really important just to kind of get an idea of those things and once you've kind of listed out all of those different areas that you want to be working on, another thing I want you to rank is how much of an impact is it going to have on your business? And that really comes down to what your goals are.

So let's just say your ultimate goal you're trying to achieve is you want to book more weddings. Okay. [00:04:00] So I would go through and look at all these tasks and rank them for that specific goal of, okay, under booking more weddings, this would be a 10 out of 10 as in like This is so important and this is like going to be a 10 in terms of like how much impact it's going to have and if it's going to have very low impact on that, I would give it a one and say like, okay, this is a one.

It's not really going to be that impactful and I shouldn't necessarily prioritize that. Okay, so look at those and I want you to do that. And if you have more than one goal, so if one of them is like booking more weddings, the other one is Saving more time in my business, things like that, like rank them for those goals.

And then from there, that'll kind of help you determine. So I'd go through and look at those. And then next step, once you have it all color coded and ranked, I would then go through and then really sit down and figure out, okay, of these projects that I have and of the tasks within them, if there's anything that you have labeled red, I want you to look for how you can outsource those tasks.

Okay. You should not [00:05:00] be spending your energy on things that you dread. And yes, there are going to be times where you have to do things you don't, like, love or enjoy, but if it's to the point where you dread it, I can tell you right now, human nature, you're going to probably put it off as long as possible.

You're not going to do it until it's, like, the day before it's due. And especially when you're in a season like this, where The seasons kind of ebbs and flows, right? Like there's seasons where it's really busy and then there's seasons where it's really slow. Like, you're probably going to wait until the very last minute and you're going to do it right before it's due or right before wedding season hits and it might not even happen, to be honest.

So, I want you to look for ways that you can outsource those or get extra help. So if you can't fully outsource it, what resources can you purchase? Who can you partner with? Can you hire a coach to help you with it? Those different things. And that's going to be really impactful. And for anything that is like green, I want you to prioritize those tasks, especially the ones that you would rank as highly impactful.

For example, let's say you're super [00:06:00] excited about social media and you give that like a seven or higher in the rankings. Like I would say that's something where you're going to have energy to work on it. It's going to be really impactful. You're passionate about it. Go for it. And I would say when it comes to all these tasks, like.

It's really hard to work on like a million things at once. So obviously, schedule out your week and maybe prioritize like how you want to block out your schedule. And then you can really sit down and look at, okay, when do I want to work on all these tasks? And I love doing batch working, so I'll have a day where this is my podcasting day.

And that's the day that I'm recording episodes, and then I have a section of the day where I'm editing episodes. And then I kind of preload the social media and all of those things. I also love having editing days and I love making editing days more exciting by doing it with friends. So I'll literally meet up with people at a local coffee shop and we'll just edit together.

It's so great. Um, and I have those days set aside as well. And then I also have days where I'm [00:07:00] working on my website or I have emails that I'm working on. Um, somewhere I'm like, okay, I'm going in depth with these emails. And some where it's like, I'm just doing quick responses, like obviously any urgent emails that I'm getting in my inbox, I'm going to respond to those like that day.

But if I have emails where it's like, Oh, this is going to take designated focus time. I kind of have my email projects on a specific day where I'm like working on those at those times. Um, because otherwise it's just going to take away my mental energy. So that's how I like to do it. And I think when you like set up your week and you're just really intentional about like what you need to prioritize, what you want to get done, when you're going to do it.

That's really good. And also just like focusing on when you have the most energy. So let's say you have a day where it's like, Oh, this was supposed to be my email day, but I'm really inspired to work on this project for me. Like maybe it's a, Oh, I have this idea for a podcast and I'm super excited for that.

Honestly, maybe this is like the ADHD and a lot of us, but part of me is like, if I'm just excited to work on that right now, I'm just going to do it. [00:08:00] And I think that can be really helpful at times to like break that structure that we have for ourselves and really just follow where our creative energy is, because I think structure can be really helpful, but for some of us, it can just be really limiting in terms of like, man, I have this time to do emails, but I'm actually feeling creatively inspired to do something else.

Like creative energy is something worth following. Like. Follow your creative intuition, do intuitive working, like, literally focus on that because you cannot easily recreate that. It's really something to be cherished. And so, I think so often we're like, man, I'm this creative business owner, and I have to be this, and I have to be structured like that, and I have to do everything this way.

And I talk about it all the time, but it's like, You don't have to look like anyone else in terms of how you run your business. You do not have to have everything structured exactly the way that the people next door do. In fact, I encourage you to not do it that way. Look for ways to be different. Look for ways to just like, really serve you as your business.

Because at the end of the [00:09:00] day, you work for yourself. And I want you to be the best boss that you possibly can be for your business. Right? Even if you are the only employee, you want to make it fun and enjoyable. And like, Really, really set yourself up for success to show up to work and enjoy being there.

And, um, I think this looks like scheduling time off. This looks like having, you know, a plan in place. This looks like really having It's set up for like, what does it look like to show up to work today? And how am I going to make a difference in my business? And yeah, so there's so many ways that you can do all these things.

I think, you know, outsourcing, prioritizing tasks, really sitting down and mapping that out is so important, but also don't get lost in the, Oh, this is what Hallie told me to do, so I need to do it this way and really lose sight of like, what's going to actually work for you. I'm just sharing this because.

I find it helpful and I know other people might as well, but if you don't find it helpful, take whatever you can from this episode and like put it into its own little package for yourself and be like, okay, I really like this, but I don't function like that. [00:10:00] And, and do that for yourself. I think that's really, really important to do.

And continuing to look for ways to make it easier for yourself, especially with like outsourcing. If you find that editing is like taking way too much of your time to the point where it's. It's draining you and you're unable to even think about anything on your business. Look for ways and tools to make that easier.

So whether that's using some different AI tools like Imagine AI or Aftershoot or having someone like call your weddings for you and having that outsourced so that then when you're sitting down editing the photos, it's already been gone through and all you have to focus on is the ones that are in front of you.

Or you can even take it a step further and just like, Hey, you know what? I've been doing this for a really long time. I have a very specific style that I know I can teach someone how to edit for me. And bring on an editor. Whether you hire them yourselves or you outsource to a company that does it.

There's so many people out there who offer this. That can be one way to just free a lot of your mental energy. And if you're not someone who has this in the budget to do every single wedding this [00:11:00] year, try just a couple. Spending your creative energy, editing the weddings that you're really excited about, and then maybe you have some weddings where it's falling within a really busy month, and you can't necessarily have the energy to do all of them.

Like, outsource the ones that you're maybe least excited about, or the ones that you feel like you're going to take up more of your creative energy that you're not really excited about. Um, this isn't to say like, oh my gosh, I'm not excited about weddings. Obviously, we love what we do, and it's really hard to let go of that creative control.

However, it's really important to. Keep and maintain that creative energy and not get bogged down. So I think working on editing first and foremost for a lot of us, especially photographers and videographers, that's going to be where you're going to free up probably the most energy in your business. And it doesn't necessarily even take you away from being able to produce a really good product.

So I know some people are like, well, I can't hire an editor because They're not going to be able to do it to the ability that I have. And I understand where you're coming from. I feel that. But let me challenge you and take it a step [00:12:00] further and say this. So let's say you hire an editor and you still find like, Oh man, I still have to make a couple tweaks here and there.

Okay, but you are now spending your time with editing, making tweaks versus starting from start to finish and getting to that point where, okay, I just need to be done. And instead, you now get to use your creative energy to, I get to make this perfect. I get to make this as best as it can be because I'm using all of my energy to do that.

And that's what outsourcing can do for you. We did the same thing with outsourcing our wedding website. We outsourced the brand design and The whole, like, whole website to someone, because I knew that, yes, I can do a website myself, and yes, I can write copy myself, and I can do all these things.

And there were plenty of things that I wrote myself. Like, I wrote all the copy, I had them take a look at it, and maybe make some tweaks, or, you know, fix some mistakes and stuff. But, ultimately, I had someone else take an outside look at my business. And I loved what the end result was because it was this co create thing where I had a very specific vision.

I had [00:13:00] very specific elements that I wanted on there. And it was very fun to see someone and collaborate with someone who also had those gifts and talents that I know would have taken me way too long to do. And they were able to take it and use their creative energy and their gifts and talents. And we got to just collaborate on this.

And so there was a lot of back and forth. There were plenty of things in the process that I looked at and I was like, ooh, no, that is not Resonating with me and that's okay but when you communicate and learn how to work with people and really just set the tone for like what your vision is and Let people in to help you you're gonna see results and I couldn't be happier with like how things ended up and I know I wouldn't have been able to do that had it not been for outsourcing.

And, and same with wedding films. I think so often people are like, well I was there and I really want to tell the story and that's really important to me that that doesn't get lost. And I'll say this, like there are so many amazing video editors out there who can take your vision and bring it to life.

, Luke and I have outsourced videos to people for years. , [00:14:00] and it, it's, what's nice is like Luke gets to sit at kind of the director's seat. Like he's the one who has this vision of This is the story we're trying to tell. This is the songs we want to use. Like he'll spend sometimes like over a month just writing up exactly this vision for a wedding film, because it's something you want to sit in.

It's something you want to chew on. It's something that you really want to figure out like, okay, what are those most impactful moments? But then when it comes to actually like. Doing the culling, and choosing the clips, and actually like putting together everything, that takes so much time. You have to dig through so much footage, go through so much, and, and, and to have someone who can like take the direction and run with it, saves so much time.

And then we get back that result from the editor, and just like you would with photos, we get to sit with there, and then we get to focus on not making it good enough, but making it perfect. And typically, what we get back from an editor, it might be good enough, right? And if you're at that point, like that's fine.

But if you have that mentality, like me, if you're a one on the enneagram, you're really critical, you have [00:15:00] like this perfectionist mindset, I'm like, okay, I need this to be as perfect as possible. That's where I love having someone to do the exhausting work for me and make it easier. So that's really good.

And I think that's really helpful And so those are things you can be doing right now to kind of think ahead on how can you make your life easier in the wedding season? I think that's really important to do. So if these are the tasks that you feel like just take so much time, don't continue to do them and look for ways to outsource and like, maybe make it a priority this spring, like as you start taking on weddings, like I'm going to start exploring.

And I'm going to find someone to give it a try with. And, and don't be discouraged if you get back your results from the first one. And you're like, man, this is discouraging. This is not what I want because I'm going to say it. If you want to do outsourcing, it's going to take time. It's going to take time to find the right people.

It's going to take time to, even if you have the right people, but it's not quite there yet. You just have to invest that into the people that are working with you. And that's really important. So yes, outsourcing is great. And then additionally, I'd say. If you're looking at [00:16:00] like the back end of your business, so you're trying to figure out the marketing side of things and that's really hard for you to do during the wedding season.

, look at these impacts, look at the things that you're like scoring on your list. But if marketing is on there, I would say now's a great time to sit with that. And like really dive in. So whether you purchase courses or hire a coach or join a group coaching program, there's so many different ways that you can learn how to market your business.

, and if you're someone who like, if you look at the way I market my business and you're like, man, that resonates with me and I'd love to learn more. I do offer one on one coaching and I've been thinking about and potentially putting together like a group coaching program. So if some people are like, Oh man, I'd love to do this in a group with people.

, let me know if you're interested in that. , I'd maybe be putting something together in the near future for it, but really I just want to focus on continuing to help people and their businesses. And that's why I host this podcast. That's why I bring on experts as guests to really show their expertise.

And so like scroll through, scroll through past episodes. There's been, you know, almost two years of podcast [00:17:00] episodes on this platform. And you can look at and see. Guaranteed, like if you want to learn about something in your business, we've probably covered it. And if we haven't yet, let me know. And I'd be happy to find a guest or speak on it myself and just like help you guys get the resources you need to grow and scale your business because we're in the strategy season.

It's my favorite time of year. And I want to set you up for success, not only for this year, but also the years to come. Because, again, running a business, it's a marathon, not a sprint. Your time is your most valuable resource.

And so, the things that you can do right now to plant seeds in your business and set a foundation for what you're going to be building in the years to come, that's success. So, so valuable and so I love that I get to be a part of this with you. And if you've loved this episode, please feel free to share it on your Instagram.

, tag, take your shot, like send it to a friend. I'd love to continue to help as many people as I can in running a business. And if you wanna send me a message on Instagram, at take your shot collective. I'm in there almost every day, [00:18:00] so we can definitely connect there.

But anyway, thank you so much for listening to this episode of the take your shot podcast, and we'll see you next week.