Consistency is more than just showing up
Consistency is more than just showing up
The world has become obsessed with "consistency" but there's so much to explore behind that simple word that can lead us to some interesting places.
So you might think you’re consistent but by what definition? Who says you are? And by what measure? And what are the benefits of being consistent?
The newsletter world is littered with articles extolling the virtues of
“consistently showing up”
“writing consistently”
“consistent habits”
In the workplace we are encouraged to be consistent in our work, in our messaging and our management of people.
Consistency is good. Right?
Well, its only good if you add good before the word I guess. “Consistently good” is better than “consistent bad”. I think we can all agree on that.
But there’s a whole grey area we should explore around what IS consistency and the many different facets that can make up this most mysterious of concepts.
Is it about delivering each week on the dot?
Let’s start with the world of newsletters again to begin to dissect this one.
Substack has told us from the beginning that posting at the same time and day of week every week means our readers know when to look out for your posts. They can build a habit around making a coffee at that particular time and look forward to your post landing….on the dot each week.
Over the past year I have changed the day and time I post quite a few times. What has this done to my open rate? Nothing. It has remained relatively stable at around 35%. A weekly posting schedule feels about right but it doesn’t appear to matter too much when you post.
Having said all this, if you say you’re going to deliver at certain time then you should certainly do that.
Take Away: Doing what you say you’re going to do builds trust but that’s less about consistency and more about being dependable.
Is it about getting Better?
One of the best parables about consistency comes from the book, Art & Fear, by David Bayles and Ted Orland.
“[A] ceramics teacher announced on opening day that he was dividing the class into two groups. All those on the left side of the studio, he said, would be graded solely on the quantity of work they produced, all those on the right solely on its quality.
His procedure was simple: on the final day of class he would bring in his bathroom scales and weigh the work of the “quantity” group: fifty pound of pots rated an “A”, forty pounds a “B”, and so on. Those being graded on “quality”, however, needed to produce only one pot — albeit a perfect one — to get an “A”.
Well, came grading time and a curious fact emerged: the works of highest quality were all produced by the group being graded for quantity. It seems that while the “quantity” group was busily churning out piles of work – and learning from their mistakes — the “quality” group had sat theorizing about perfection, and in the end had little more to show for their efforts than grandiose theories and a pile of dead clay.”
So the clear lesson here is by consistently turning up and refining through repetition you will improve. So, just start.
Take Away: Put aside perfectionism and just have a go.
Is it about playing the lottery and increasing your chances?
The previous section explored the gradual improvement of skill and refining a “product”. This section considers the consumption of that product.
Every time you produce something and push it out into the big wide world you are playing a lottery. There will be times when your work will be appreciated by a few people and then fade to the background. Other times you might get a lovely wave of appreciation. But then there are those one in a blue moon events.
You go “viral”.
These viral moments can come completely out of no where. Someone picks up your article and shares it with their subscribers. This person just happens to have 100,000 followers.
You can’t plan for these moments or even aim for them. When they happen, ride the wave but don’t go chasing them.
Take Away: Consistency increases the chances of the blue moon events
Is it about building slowly?
Going viral can knock you off your stride. You can feel like you’ve made it. You can feel like every post is now going to do the same thing for you.
This is dangerous.
You may have gained 100’s or even 1,000’s of new subscribers from that viral post but it’s the weekly cadence of delivering good quality that will retain them. They may have liked your original post but it is the quality of the next post and the one after that that will keep them.
Take Away: Building loyalty takes time especially when you have a sugar rush of many new subscribers from a viral post.
Is it about learning what works?
Well yes but maybe. Let me explain.
Let’s take a recent post that did very well in terms of views and new subscribers. You noticed it was the particular subject that resonated. “Right” you say, this is it. I need to write my next 100 articles about this subject. Success will follow.
No, this is audience capture.
Audience capture is one of the biggest traps with any social media site but also with newsletters and writing in general. The worst part is that you’ll even hate yourself for selling your soul at the altar of writing what you think people want rather than what you want to write.
You will quickly run out of steam and burn out.
Take Away: Long term success will come from the passion that comes from writing about something you love.
What’s your experience with consistency? Something to aim for? Or is a something that traps us and holds us back from true creativity?
Feel free to drop a comment below - I promise to reply to all comments.
Two Recommendations - what to consume this week
1. How to Be Effortlessly Disciplined: 5 Mindset Shifts
5 actions you can take today to shift your perspective. Ali Abdaal always delivers.
2. Soft Discipline: How to Live a Consistently Successful Life, Elizabeth Filips
Elizabeth always has an interesting angle on a topic. I this video she explores some of the different sides to discipline and building a successful life.
Top 3 articles of the week
Finding great articles on Substack can be difficult. Fear not, I have been digging deep into the discovery areas of the platform so you don’t have to.
Here are my top three posts to read this week:
14 Life Lessons in 14 Years by
Planning is overrated, doing is underrated by
How To Find Testimonials You Didn’t Know You Had by
What to read next
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I think I learned a lot about myself. I thought the pottery story was going to end up with the one perfect pottery taking out the prize, because the quality one was just concerned about pumping it out that they didn't take care with the quality at all. Interestingly, they improved through doing.
As a recovering perfectionist, it wasn't until I embraced the "experimenting" that I really started showing up on Substack. I had a basic plan, but that soon went out the window, as I gave myself freedom to adjust as I learned.
Thank you, great read!
There’s so much to love here Martin! Put aside perfection and just have a go - I think lots of people on here preach this but, in the wider world, I don’t think that’s the most common way to take action but I’m trying to do more this way and I’m definitely seeing the benefits.