​I've been listening to a podcast about the value of getting help when you’re feeling overworked, overwhelmed, or stuck.

The show, hosted by Orna Ross and Sacha Black of The Alliance of Independent Authors, focuses on author-publishers, but their advice applies to everyone running a business.

Orna said something that really resonated with me, something that I don't think enough people realise:

​Are you taking part in National Novel Writing Month?
 
I LOVE this month!
 
I always make time to write during #NaNoWriMo, and this year is no exception.
 
I'm working on a fiction project in my free time, but #NaNoWriMo is the perfect opportunity to work on any type of writing.
 
Falling behind on your blog or email content? Set aside some time this month to focus on building a backlog of posts or ideas that you can whip up and share with your audience.
 
How about that book for your business you've always wanted to write? Use #NaNoWriMo as the perfect excuse to get started.
 
Maybe you want to try your hand at fiction or poetry? There’s never been a better time to start than right now.
 
But, if you’ve never written anything before, or you’re feeling out of practice, the dread of getting started can start to feel a lot like writer’s block. 
 
If you want to #write this month, but you're not sure where to start, here are a few tips to get you going:

​Are you feeling overwhelmed and uncertain as we enter Lockdown 2.0 in the UK?

It's a little hard to figure out if you should keep calm and carry on or join the crowds and start buying ALL the pasta. AGAIN!

Let’s not even mention the banana bread fiasco!

I don’t have all the answers, I’m not sure anyone does, and it’s easy to feel like you’re going this alone.  

But I want you to know I’m here and I’m weathering this storm with you.

And let’s face it, we’ve done this once this year already, we CAN get through it again.
​
I’ve been chatting to small business owners and authors, and here are the top takeaways I hope will help you navigate lockdown the second time around:

Okay, okay, hear me out.

I know this one is going to raise some eyebrows and possibly spark a bit of anger (hey, don’t shoot the messenger!)

If you’ve worked with me before, you’ll know I’m a huge advocate for organic marketing.

But I haven’t ever really explained why.
​
So, here goes. 

Read time: 5 minutes

If you follow @Adm1nAngelsUK on Twitter, you might have noticed that I was busy helping out with #SelfPubCon last weekend.

The Self-Publishing Advice Conference is a twice-annual event run by the fantastic Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi). It’s a 24-hour conference for indie authors and writers, packed full of advice, support, workshops and talks from 24 top industry speakers.

Sadly, the free SelfPubCon period has now ended, but you can get yourself a pass by visiting the website, which also gives you access to all previous conferences.
​
This time around, the conference was all about the Top 100 Tools for Indie Authors, and I was asked to provide three of my favourite tools. 

​It is a truth universally acknowledged that everyone hates micromanaging!

If someone was micromanaging you, you might feel like they're looking over your shoulder, like they don't trust you to do your job. 

And let's face it, the hourly check-in emails and daily progress calls only serve to eat into your productivity. 

If you're the one micromanaging, you'll likely be frustrated that you're wasting time chasing someone else when you'd rather be doing something more productive. 

In this way, micromanaging is un-helpful, un-productive and stifles creativity and morale. 
​
So, what can you do instead?

When the Coronavirus became a Pandemic and the UK went into lockdown, I stopped marketing my services, as did a lot of people. 

While I was conscious about still needing to earn money, I didn't want to come across as heartless, unfeeling, money-grabbing or desperate.

So, I hung back for a little while, unsure of how to move forward. 

But the truth is that, pandemic or not, we all need money to survive.
​
Want to know a secret?

​Are you finding it difficult to 'stand out' now that everyone seems to be online?

All of a sudden, our virtual world seems more crowded than ever before as, thanks to the current pandemic, more and more people are noticing the value and importance of online marketing. 

Shops that used to operate physically are now launching eCommerce stores, authors who used only consignment printing are now turning to print-on-demand services and eBooks, and Zoom has become the fastest growing video meeting provider. 

So, how do you stay seen amidst all of this noise?

Are you new to working from home?

Finding it difficult to ‘switch off’ as you used to when you left the office?

I’ve been working from home for 7 years and, believe me, there are still times when I find myself working well into the night.

It can be hard to step away when you’re itching to get things finished and checked off your to-do list.
​
But then what? 

​Are you still marketing?

No?

Well, you should be.

Yes, everything's a bit up in the air at the moment as the current pandemic forces us all to change the way that we live, work and communicate.

Many of us are facing a loss of income, new challenges, such as suddenly working alongside our children, and an uncertain future.

But that doesn't mean we should stop all our efforts.
​
Let’s face it, we haven’t worked this hard to stop now, and if we still want to have a business when the lockdown is over, we need to keep working at it.