In today’s world of entrepreneurship, your not just a photographer, coach or wedding planner anymore. Now, you’re also are content creators. Our ability to create a thriving business with a rolodex of leads is often dependent on our ability to not only create engaging content but to create consistent and reliable content.
We’re often taught about content creation from one point of view. “Just do it.” You need to create content for your business on a regular basis. Period. Now go do.
What’s tricky about this is that we are all different. We have a plethora of hang-ups, quirks and self-defeating behavior patterns that make content creation a little more tricky than just doing it.
I grew tired of watching incredible people limited by the one size fits all approach to marketing advice and that’s why I brought the enneagram into my coaching practice. The enneagram is an incredible personality typing tool that shows us not only our typical behavior patterns but also why they exist in the first place.
Continue reading to find out what your natural gifting may be, what to keep in mind and habits you can bring in to support yourself based on your enneagram type!
Type One: The Perfectionist
Type Ones are incredible at the refining process. Once a piece is complete they’re able to read through it and find the elements that need adjusting in order to make it that much better. You are natural born editors and can easily take a piece of content from good to great. You are also diligent and consistent. You show up every day and do the work.
Where content creation can get tricky for a Type One is actually hitting ‘publish.’ For many, the refining process is never-ending. There is always more to improve and always more to be done.
For Type One, I recommend creating internal deadlines for your process and sticking to them. There is no perfect piece of content. You will always be able to find something that could be better. But when the deadline comes, say to yourself, “done is better than perfect,” then hit publish and move on!
Type Two: The Helper
Type Twos are a force of love. They are warm and open and easy to appreciate. They can identify the needs of others and meet those needs intuitively. When it comes to content creation Type Two are masters at helping the people in their lives to get their work out into the world.
Where content creation gets tricky for a Type Two is in doing things for themselves. They thrive on collaboration and would rather drop their ice cream cone on the sidewalk than let someone else down. Yet a Type Two struggles to prioritize time for the projects they want to work on. In fact, many find it challenging to be behind a computer at all because it lacks human connection.
For Type Twos I recommend allocating one day a week to content creation where you cannot be reached. Turn your phone off, your wifi off (I know!) and you just sit down and write. The world will be fine if you are unplugged for a few hours each week. The Earth will keep spinning, your friends and family can get in touch with you in just a few hours and everything will be fine! I would also suggest having a friend or employee holding you accountable. That way you have someone else that is expecting things of you, someone you would never think of disappointing.
Type Three: The Achiever
Type Threes know what’s trending and can creating content that is not only relevant but also inspiring. They are hard workers who dedicate themselves to constantly growing and improving. They pay attention and learn from those that have come before them. They are not afraid to make mistakes and do better next time. Threes are naturally built to be productive and efficient.
Where content creation gets tricky for a Type Three is in their expectations for themselves. They tend to push themselves to the point of exhaustion and run the risk of crashing. Threes tend to ride the wave of inspiration creating a ton of content and posting it all at once and then go radio silent for weeks at a time. This is can be hard for a Three because the need to recover feels like failure to them. Like they’ve lost their mojo and aren’t sure if they’ll ever recover.
I suggest Type Threes batch create their content. When the inspiration is there, create, create, create and schedule it out as far in advance as you’re able to. Use your content across multiple platforms as well. A blog post can be a podcast can be an Instagram Live can be an Instagram caption. Then do that for the next 4-6 weeks. That way you can rest easy during your downtime knowing that your audience is taken care of and you are too!
Type Four: The Individualist
Type fours are original and creative. They aren’t afraid to share authentically and have a true gift for self-reflection that can bleed into the ability for others to reflect honestly on their lives as well. Beyond that, Type Fours have a gift for beauty. They value things that are aesthetically pleasing and are able to see the ways in which you can make what is considered average, extraordinary.
But everyday tasks that can be tricky for a Type Four. Fours have a lot of self-defeating thought patterns that tell them they are destined for greatness but also destined for failure. This can lead them to an incredible world of success that lives only in their minds.
Type Fours should create structure in their day. Select a time of day that is for content creation. Then show up at the same time every day and do the work. Some days will be magic and others will be staring at a blank piece of paper. That’s fine. The important thing is that you show up. Release the idea that having a bad creation day means that you are a bad creator. It’s normal to have off days. Don’t stop trying because of it. Keep showing up day after day after day.
Type Five: The Investigator
Type Fives are observant, aware and well-researched. It’s not uncommon for a Type Five to become the go-to expert in their field. They tend to look at things from every angle. Researching the ins and outs, the origins and the varied belief systems around a given topic. Beyond this, they pay attention to the world around them.
Where content creation can be tricky for a type five is kind of two-fold. First, there’s the belief that there is always more to learn. Type Fives can feel like they don’t have quite enough information to be qualified to speak on a topic. The second part is that Type Fives can be very private people who don’t want to share themselves with the world. Therefore they will want to keep a lot to themselves and have a hard time determining what is good to share and what they may want to hold onto.
The habit I recommend for Type Fives is to do a content creation challenge where you hit publish every day for a quarter. Whether that’s a daily blog post, a daily Instagram story, etc. just pick something that pushes you a bit out of your comfort zone. This will help you to overcome the consistent desire to research more and more as well as help you to quickly determine what is share-worthy and what is not.
Type Six: The Loyalist
Type Sixes are diligent and dedicated. They show up each day and do the work that needs to be done. They aren’t afraid of hard work and are equipped to handle anything that may come their way. Sixes also do an amazing job of serving their clients and their audience. They are dedicated and loyal to the work that they are doing. Most don’t take the commitments that they make lightly. So you know they’ll follow through.
Where content creation gets tricky for a Type Six is that they can often over-think the process. This can lead to self-doubt. Type Sixes are also easily fearful of what it can mean to allow success and notoriety into their life and that can keep them from going as big as they’re capable of doing.
It’s not misguided to ask for feedback, but I’d recommend that Type Sixes limit that number to 1-2 people. People who are decisive and committed to helping you succeed and that you respect. Create your content calendar a month in advance and have ONE conversation with that team member about what you’re thinking as far as upcoming content. Once you’ve agreed on what is coming up, do what you do best and get the work done! Don’t second guess yourself. It can be very helpful for a Type Six to practice their being decision in small decisions so they are prepared to make big ones when the time comes.
Type Seven: The Enthusiast
Type Sevens are great with ideas. They are an ever-flowing stream of new ideas and concepts and big plans. Sevens are also relatable, exciting, engaging and not afraid of being busy. Sevens aren’t afraid to put themselves out there, take risks and create something that’s never been done before.
Where content creation gets tricky for a Type Seven is in the follow through. They can be quick to make big promises and forget that they ever even made a commitment. They can also struggle to prioritize their energy so they end up overcommitted and under-producing. This can cut into their ability to be creative and to follow through with the promises that they make to themselves and others. Type Sevens also don’t like to do mundane tasks. So, they will really have to love doing what they’re doing to show up and commit to it day after day after day.
Type Sevens should get in the habit of creating an outline before writing. If a Type Seven sits down to a blank screen without a topic in mind, it could lead to an entire day being wasted on distractions. Instead, I suggest a process that looks more like this: keep a note in your phone where you write down all of your great ideas. Then, when it’s time to create, hide your phone, turn off your wifi and outline your topic. This will help you to get the basic structure out so that you can expand on the points you want to make. It will help you to get started and prevent you from wasting time with distractions. After you’ve outlined either step away and come back to expand at a separate session or keep going if the energy is there. Bonus tip: have someone proofread your work before publishing. Type Sevens are notorious for typos.
Type Eight: The Challenger
Type Eights are incredible leaders, decisive problem-solvers and radical action takers. They aren’t afraid of hard work and persuasive because they come to the table with a natural air of authority.
Where content creation gets tricky for a Type Eight is in taking the time to see the importance of it. Many Type Eights need to be convinced that content creation is worth their time. They don’t mind doing the work and aren’t afraid of the hustle. However, they want to be as efficient as possible and that can lead to ideas being discarded because the idea wasn’t convincing enough to warrant the Type Eight’s time.
A quarterly content audit and emphasis on education is a good habit to start for a Type Eight. By stepping back you can see the biggest picture and make sure you’re taking the right steps to get there. Slow down and be open to advice. Maybe you’ll incorporate that feedback or maybe not, either way, considering all options can help you make the best decision. The reason this is important with content creation is that there may be tools, platforms and best practices that you may have overlooked because you haven’t sought out feedback. With this, you are likely leaving good clients on the table and missing out on opportunities that could be right for your business in the long run.
Type Nine: The Peacemaker
Type Nines are great at seeing the world through the eyes of other people. They are mediators, counselors and often very cherished friends. They aren’t easily frazzled and have the ability to truly roll with the punches. Type Nines make amazing counselors, teachers, and coaches because they’re truly able to put themselves in the shoes of other people and not lose connection to their individual experience.
Type Nines can struggle with two things when it comes to content creation. First, they have a tendency to avoid discomfort. This means they will likely try to talk themselves out of doing things that could be difficult or where they’ll have to learn a new skill. Secondly, they tend to agree with those around them. This means when surrounded by more assertive types they can be pushed into doing things that they aren’t personally passionate about.
Two solutions for these two issues. One, they can break up large tasks into smaller chunks. Every project should be at least 6 steps if not more. That way no individual step is too overwhelming. Two, they can spend time alone. This alone time helps a Type Nine figure out what they really want and get used to the feeling of freedom that can exist with no one else’s opinions are at play. In this same way, don’t set your intention for content before you’ve created it. Don’t bring in others doubts, fears, worries or stories until you’ve already posted what you want to post.
If you’re interested in figuring out your enneagram type and learning how it can impact your business, check out my Enneagram Community. HoneyBook members get 50% off their first month! Use code HONEYBOOK at checkout!
