“Create the perfect morning routine!” 

“3 Hacks to 10x your productivity!” 

“How to force yourself into an unnatural routine to conform to society’s productivity expectations and burn yourself out!”

Okay, maybe not that last one. But it seems like that’s what most “productivity hacks” actually do—force you to create some unattainable goal that doesn’t consider who you are and how you work best. 

There’s an idea that gets thrown around a lot— “You have the same 24 hours in a day that Beyonce does.” 

Well, sure, technically. But do you have millions of dollars? A personal trainer? A maid, a nanny, an assistant? Queen Bey is fabulous, but she’s also got a lot of help getting the little things, like grocery shopping and laundry, done. 

What if you decided you don’t need to 10x your productivity?

(seriously, why are we always 10x-ing things? can’t we just 1x and see how it goes?)

Productivity Culture 

So much of our perceived self-worth is tied up in our work output and overall productivity. 

Thanks, capitalism!

We’re constantly bombarded with messages like: 

• We can have it all.
• We should be able to handle it all—and more.
• If we can’t handle it all we’re failing as employees, business owners, partners, parents, or general human beings.

And we’re done with it! Whether it’s The Great Resignation, quiet quitting, or the rise of the anti-work movement. We. Are. Tired.

But quitting the crushing standards of productivity culture is easier said than done. There are a lot of factors that make it impossible for some people to cut back on work and still make enough to meet their needs. We definitely acknowledge that. 

We’re specifically talking to you—an entrepreneur who can’t help but do everything yourself or a small business owner that can’t quit working evenings and weekends—and telling you it’s okay to give up someone else’s idea of what productivity means and embrace your own version.

Know Your Limits and Lower Your Expectations

Some people are hummingbirds with unlimited energy, able to get a crazy amount of things accomplished in a day. Some of us are tortoises, slow to start and steadily working through our tasks. 

How much can you realistically do in a day? We all have different amounts of bandwidth and mental energy to devote to work. Constantly over-scheduling and over-promising (even to yourself) makes you feel like a failure every time you don’t reach those impossible goals, and leads directly to burning out.

Set yourself up for success by limiting the number of tasks you set yourself in a day. Make it an easily achievable goal. If you have time left over you can complete another task or just take a break!

Let Things Go

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, instead of trying to increase your productivity, can you decrease your responsibilities? 

Finding things you can let go of or ask for help with can dial down the pressure to get it all done. Prioritize what’s really important. What absolutely has to get done? And let some of the not-so-important stuff fall away. Then you can structure your day around what actually works for you.

If you’re having trouble prioritizing, check out the Eisenhower Matrix.

Find Your Best Hours

When do you have the most energy? What helps get your brain going? When do you get your best work done? Figure out what works best for you and, as much as possible, plan your days around that information.

Not everyone is a morning person who thrives on routine. If you are, great! If your brain doesn’t really get going until 10 am, don’t start on any really important tasks until then. Maybe you can’t concentrate after 3 pm. Fine, save all of your small-stakes tasks for the afternoon. 

If you have the flexibility to set your own schedule, there’s no reason to be chained to a 9-5 mentality. 

Keep It Going

Unlearning all of the harmful ideas around productivity doesn’t happen overnight. We still struggle! Case in point: recently, one of our team members was debating taking her laptop on vacation, to PARIS. 

We threatened to change all the passwords so she couldn’t work. 

Time is a non-renewable resource, and we try our best to protect ours. We think you should, too.

You can follow us on Instagram @upsweptcreative for all of our thoughts about navigating business ethically, sustainably, and professionally. 

Still, with this July being the 32nd anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act, now is a good time to think about website accessibility, too. Some accessibility issues can get pretty technical, but there are some simpler ways to improve website accessibility that will help other folks in your audience, too.

Headings can improve your website accessibility.

Using headings throughout your website is just good practice, especially if you have a longer piece of content. Larger and more visually interesting headings help break up content visually for everyone, whether they have a disability or not. 

If you’re using a website builder, making the text “look nice” isn’t enough for website accessibility. If you see text options in your builder such as Heading 1, Heading 2, etc., you want to use them! Those Heading options correspond to their own special tags in the website code, so assistive technologies can recognize them as headings, making it much easier for folks to move through your website.

An added bonus of using headings properly: they can also help your search engine rankings! Using key search terms in heading tags is great for SEO.

Use descriptive link text.

“Click here” is a frequently used phrase for links on websites, and I’m here to tell you: that is precisely what NOT to do for website accessibility. 

People who rely on screen readers to navigate your website won’t know what the purpose of the link is or where it will take them, if you just use “click here” for your link text.

Instead, be descriptive with the link text you choose. For example, you can let folks know that they’re about to learn more about web design services. For buttons, you can keep it shorter but still give a clue about what will happen when they click, like saying Book a Consultation on a button that leads to your bookings calendar.

Check your color contrast.

Colors aren’t just for making your website look engaging and pretty–they also help your audience easily distinguish different pieces of content! However, when folks in your audience have color blindness, or even just have trouble reading dark text on a darker background, you can lose their attention pretty quickly.

This is why it’s important to choose colors carefully. If you’re working with a good web designer, then they’re hopefully checking for color contrast already! If you aren’t, there are some tools that can help, such as this color contrast checker, or even a Chrome add-on that lets you see like someone who’s color blind.

Use Alt tags on your images.

Something we’ve definitely noticed in web design trends is a reliance on photos and graphics. And hey, I get it. They’re eye-catching and inviting when done right! 

Unfortunately, screen readers can’t interpret photos and graphics used on your website. (sad trombone) That’s where Alt Text comes in! In short, alt-text describes the photo that a screen reader sees when it’s on your website. That way, folks with vision impairments can at least understand what’s in the image, even if they can’t see it.

And, just as with headings, using Alt tags on your images can also boost your SEO, so it’s definitely worth doing. Just look for an area in your website builder (such as WordPress) for a place to type in the short description of your photo.

This post isn’t an exhaustive list of ways to improve website accessibility, but I hope I’ve given you a few ways to help make sure your website is inviting in all of the people who are looking for you. To learn more about website accessibility, take a peek at ADA Site Compliance’s 20 Ways To Improve Web Accessibility. If you’re looking for help from a website pro, give us a shout.

Anyone reading this right now probably has a lot to do and very little time to just sit and relax. But for the sake of your brain and body, it’s important to take a break every once in a while. Sitting down to read a good book is one of the best ways to unwind. And come on—reading more is always a worthy resolution. 

I’ve recently read three books that have inspired me to be less obsessed with dedicating every moment to productivity. And ironically? It seems like that may end up helping me be more effective in my work performance.

But you don’t have to take my word for it.

How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy

By Jenny Odell

This book isn’t about throwing your phone in the river, nor is it full of of guilt-trippy demands that you take an impossibly long digital detox. (What kind of money-bags can take that kind of time off??) Nor does it lecture on how looking at social media keeps you from getting enough work done. Artist, speaker, and cultural critic Jenny Odell is often invited to speak with tech company employees, so she approaches the subject with a true understanding of the role of technology in our lives, both good and bad. With a little bit of naturalism and an artist’s eye, Odell’s book encourages us to reacquaint ourselves with nature and the physical world that surrounds us.

Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle

By Emily Nagoski, PhD, and Amelia Nagoski, DMA

Burnout follows on the heels of Dr. Emily Nagoski’s New York Times bestseller Come As You Are, which introduced the idea of “the stress cycle.” In Burnout, Nagoski and her sister Amelia expand on what the stress cycle actually is—the instigating stressor, our reaction to it, and how we ultimately deal with  the feelings that come with it. Today’s stressors don’t have clear beginnings and endings. They’re not lions and tigers that we can have the satisfaction of escaping. Instead, they provoke our stress responses, and then we basically just simmer in a very uncomfortable cortisol stew-pot.

This might not be news to you, but it turns out that if we don’t deal with our stress it rips us up inside. No really—it leads to major health problems like obesity, clinical depression, and even heart attacks and strokes. Fortunately, the Nagoski sisters have some helpful recommendations about how to process the inevitable pressures that come from living in the modern world. (P.S. This one is especially helpful in addressing the unique stressors that women deal with.)

Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams

By Matthew Walker

This is definitely the geekiest selection on the list, but it really drives home why it’s so important that we get our nightly shut eye. Hustle culture has made sleeplessness a badge of honor, but sleep researcher Matthew Walker has a simple, yet intense message to share: The shorter your sleep, the shorter your life.

Spoiler alert! We don’t know the exact reason that sleep is necessary for human beings to live. We do, however, have tons of evidence of how important it is. Walker’s book goes into what “circadian rhythms” actually are, how substances like caffeine and alcohol work on the parts of the brain that affect sleep, and the importance of the REM (which is, honestly, super weird). Admittedly, this book can be scary if you’re not getting your nightly 8 hours. But! When you see all the wonderful things a good night’s sleep can do for your health, it’s pretty inspiring, too.

I know what you’re probably thinking: when in the heckin heck am I supposed to read?? 

Ok, no judgment here, because I’m still working on this myself. First, I’d gently ask you to locate the screen time tracker on your phone and take an honest look at how much time you spend on social media. If you can’t find it, try making a tally of every time you swipe or click over to Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. What you find may surprise you.

Picking up our phones repeatedly is a very difficult habit to break. So instead of beating yourself up about it, why not just make the most of it and get a reading app? Besides the obvious Kindle app, there’s Google Play, Apple Books, an ebook and audiobook subscription service called Scribd, and Overdrive—a way to save money and read ebooks that you check out of your local library.

You deserve to give yourself a little more restoration and relaxation in the coming year. If this blog isn’t enough to convince you to allow yourself that time and space, I’m willing to bet the books will be.

But what about our digital space?

If you spend much of your workday on your computer, as I do, it may need the same attention to clarity as your physical space. Keeping things simple, uncluttered, and easy to access can help you stay focused and lessen the stress of your work day.

Patience Makes Perfect

Before we get into our virtual spring cleaning, make sure to give yourself enough time and space for the process. You likely didn’t accumulate all your digital “clutter” in one day. Be patient with yourself. Consider this an item on your to-do list and tackle it accordingly. Use a time management system, like the Pomodoro technique, to keep yourself focused on the task when you’re working and allow yourself time to take breaks.

Treat Your Computer Like Your Desk

To get started, ask yourself: are you using everything you see on your computer desktop? If not, get rid of files and programs that serve no purpose. Yes, that might mean deleting the drafts of that one blog post from seasons ago (I resemble this remark, by the way). You could even go Marie Kondo on things, in a way, and ask yourself if the file in question serves any purpose for you. If that incredibly adorable photo of your puppy sparks the most joy ever, then it can stay!

Use Names and Folders Wisely  

Speaking of files: how are your files named? Creating a naming convention for files will help you prioritize what’s needed and why, and will also make them easier to find. If you’re looking at an older file and wondering what to call it because you’re not quite sure of its usefulness, that might be a cue that it’s time for it to go.

I also recommend creating two (or three) folders for your desktop. Label one “personal” and another “work.” Place items in said folders accordingly. Remember: you’ve already named files appropriately thanks to your new naming convention, so you won’t lose things. Promise. A third folder might help for items that don’t quite fit into the two main categories. I have a “stuff-n-things” folder where my favorite fun images and GIFs live. Feel free to be creative with this extra folder, if it serves you!

Desktop Wallpaper: Pretty and  Purposeful?

Yes! You can get deeper into clearing your desktop by choosing a clean, simple image for your wallpaper. Some wallpapers can even help you stay organized!  Hiding your dock can also help you stay focused. Start slow; take whichever steps will help you in the here and now to avoid overwhelm.

Our digital spaces have become a big part of our lives, so it’s natural for them to feel stale or cluttered from time to time. By using strategies that we use in the real world, we can make our digital life feel that extra bit fresher.

How Design Communicates

When we build websites, draw logos, and make marketing assets, we’re using our (awesome) creative powers to help our clients share their message.

We use colors, shapes, letterforms, photo assets, and spatial relationships to communicate visually and optimize the message. You could say that design is a method by which we package and deliver content in a pleasing and accessible way, so that everyone who receives your message wants to learn more, sign up, buy, or donate.

Your Message + Our Design = People Compelled to Act!

Making Sense and Looking Awesome

When we know what content we’re working with, we can create intentional, purpose-driven design to showcase the message — tailored just for you. We don’t just drop your content into off-the-shelf themes or templates. Every design is customized for each project’s specific needs, which we help you uncover through Discovery and research.

Dialing in your messaging is so important here in the early phases of design. Whatever it is that you want people to hear from you, you’re going to need some words. The right words, even, that say what you mean with precision!

But Copywriting is Hard!

For most of us, even when ideas come easily, it can be challenging to commit them to precise, effective writing. We know that the Internet has a short attention span (are you even still reading this blog post?), and the pressure to get to the point and pack in all of the critical information is real.

Often when you get into the thick of creating or editing your content, you will likely find that the words and organization change shape — you might need a second level of subheads, or block quotes, or inset boxes, or so many other things! These may seem like minor changes, but they can have a big impact to the overall way your content behaves on a page. If you’re designing for print, the addition of a subhead can add pages to your final count, or require a whole cascade of other visual changes to make the document work and feel cohesive.

Enlist help with your copywriting if you need it. A great editor can help you shape and refine your message without adding a ton of time to your project or to your financial investment. Approaching your designer with ready-to-use copy will save you time and dollars in the design phase.

Get Real

In book-publisher school, I learned that a nascent book moves from editing to design to production — in that order and in only one direction. While that’s a really great system, I have literally never received a project to design that was content-complete while working in the actual world.  For the first few years, it really bothered me.

By now though I have consigned myself to the reality that content may will change a bit during the design process, and I’ve committed to having some grace about it. When a client sees work that they’ve only known in a text editor come to life in a webpage mockup or sample chapter, some new revelations about aesthetic preferences and/or how the content is working often crop up — that’s a normal thing that we expect and build into our process.

So what should we all do? As a client, you should approach your designer with as much ready content as you can — this includes written copy, photos you have the rights to use, and anything that the designer won’t be creating such as logos, forms, and barcodes. Make a plan with your designer that clearly states who is responsible creating, editing and gathering each piece of content. Create a timeline. Understand that your designer can only get so far into a project without your real content. The closer your content is to completion when we start, the more seamless the design process, making the final product that much better.

Whether you are still working on your content, or it’s all ready for design, Team Upswept has your back. We’re a comprehensive creative studio, offering copywriting and editing services, graphic design, photography, as well as web and print design. Get in touch to learn more!

Your website isn’t just a digital storefront, it is a visceral experience you impart to every visitor. Your web site is often the deciding factor if they become a paying customer or not. Taking a fresh look at your website design and incorporating new elements can feel liberating.

If you don’t have a website yet, planning is essential. Assembling a good plan and following through feels powerful and gives you momentum that can carry over into other aspects of your business.

Make Your Website Awesome

Not sure where to begin? Start by asking yourself these questions to nail down some basic elements of design for an awesome web experience:

What is the goal of your website?

Is it to make sales? Have visitors sign up to your newsletter? Ask questions about your products or services? Try to be as specific as possible. Your goals shape the whole experience of visiting your website, and what a visitor sees first. Is it a mind-blowing splash graphic that sets the mood for viewing your art? Or would a horizontal-scrolling bar showing off featured store items be more appropriate for your goal?

How did visitors come to your site in the first place?

The answer to this might require combing through your analytics, but it can still be an important step in the planning process in the meantime. If you use your social media to promote click throughs to your website, you’ll want to have the relevant content front and center.

What kind of image content do you need?

Product photos, team member profiles, or the perfect website background are all major elements in a cohesive web design plan. Make a list of all the types of images you think you’ll need to show off the best of your business to the world.

Don’t you feel better after newly considering those aspects of your website? Now is the time to follow through. Upswept Creative offers free consultations to folks just like you – people who have put serious thought into their business and are ready to take the next step in accomplishing their overall branding goals.

We want you to know that no matter what message you’re getting from society at large, the team here at Upswept Creative knows that your individuality matters, and so does your right to creatively express yourself. Let’s hit your creative goals together!