Episode 259 - Working Harder, Working Smarter with Diane Vallere
October 8, 2024
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Diane Vallere discusses WORKING HARDER, WORKING SMARTER, including the trap of busywork; the danger of getting caught on autopilot; how small tasks can add up to big chunks of time and the importance of always assigning value to your time; pursuing a minimum viable product; understanding what you’re doing for your audience versus what you’re doing for yourself (and acknowledging what work is strictly for your own enjoyment); considering the indirect as well as direct value of work; when outsourcing is the smart option; and when doing nothing is sometimes the smart choice.
National bestselling author Diane Vallere writes funny and fashionable character-based mysteries. After two decades in luxury retailing, she traded fashion accessories for accessories to murder. As past president of the national Sisters in Crime organization, she edited the Agatha-Award-winning essay collection PROMOPHOBIA: Taking the Mystery out of Promoting Crime Fiction. Diane started her own detective agency at age ten and has maintained a passion for shoes, clues, and clothes ever since.
Links
Diane's Links:
https://dianevallere.com/
https://facebook.com/dianevallereauthor
https://instagram.com/dianevallere
https://pinterest.com/dianevallere
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4739022.Diane_Vallere
https://www.youtube.com/@DianeVallere
Matty's Links:
Affiliate links
Events
https://dianevallere.com/
https://facebook.com/dianevallereauthor
https://instagram.com/dianevallere
https://pinterest.com/dianevallere
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4739022.Diane_Vallere
https://www.youtube.com/@DianeVallere
Matty's Links:
Affiliate links
Events
I hope you enjoyed my conversation with Diane! Where do you come down on the working harder / working smarter question? Are there importance questions to ask oneself when assessing one’s work that Diane and I didn’t cover?
Please post your comments on YouTube--and I'd love it if you would subscribe while you're there!
Are you getting value from the podcast? Consider supporting me on Patreon or through Buy Me a Coffee!
Summary
This week on The Indy Author Podcast, Matty Dalrymple talks with Diane Vallere about the nuanced balance between working harder and working smarter as an indie author. Vallere shares valuable insights on managing time, prioritizing tasks, and leveraging community to enhance productivity while maintaining a healthy and fulfilling writing life.
In the episode, Matty and Diane dive deep into the philosophies of working harder and working smarter. Matty starts by explaining her own approach: "I like to work harder and smarter. I figure I get double benefit if I do both of them." She asks Diane about her philosophy on this topic.
Diane and Matty’s Philosophies about Working Harder and Working Smarter
Diane reveals, “I have definitely fallen into the trap of working harder, not smarter. A lot of people who had day jobs are used to fitting more into a day to get as much done as possible.” She talks about the endless to-do lists that indie authors face, emphasizing that there's always something to improve or update. However, Diane notes that self-acceptance is crucial, saying, “We're all doing enough, and just accepting that is a big hurdle to get past."
Having Another Pair of Eyes on Where You're Focusing Your Work
Matty highlights the importance of external perspectives, sharing her experience with her business manager who helped her identify uneven investments in time and money across different business activities. This outside perspective showed her how shifting focus from less profitable to more profitable tasks could have a significant impact.
Diane adds, “Those kinds of things are fantastic because, for that exact reason, we function, we just do what we normally do and we don't question it because it's just what we've done.”
Being Clear on Your Goals
Diane underscores the necessity of having clear goals, suggesting, “We should have a concrete goal attached to everything we do.” She talks about using recaps as checkpoints to ensure that time and resources are being utilized effectively.
The Trap of Busywork
Describing busy work as a form of self-deception, Diane says, “We don’t give ourselves that ability to step away from the task and see if it's actually an important thing to do.” She explains that unnecessary tasks, like tweaking a website endlessly, might give temporary satisfaction but don't necessarily yield productive outcomes.
Minimum Viable Product
Matty and Diane discuss the concept of the "minimum viable product" in the context of indie publishing. Matty mentions how simplifying her website by following the advice to maintain fewer pages significantly decreased her maintenance tasks. Diane agrees, adding, “It felt so good to just wipe them, like just blow them up and be like, I don’t even have to think about that anymore."
Acknowledging What Work is Strictly for Your Enjoyment
Matty acknowledges that some tasks may not have direct business benefits but are worth doing because they bring joy. She enjoys making book trailers, admitting that while they may not boost sales significantly, they are fulfilling.
When Outsourcing is the Smart Option
Matty and Diane concur that delegating tasks that don't align with their strengths can be tremendously beneficial. Matty shares how she outsourced financial management, and Diane mentions how hiring professional editors allowed her to focus more on writing, thereby increasing her output.
Effective Use of Time
Diane discusses how eliminating distractions, like unnecessary social media use, helped her gain more productive time. She realized that small pockets of time add up and eliminating even minor distractions can lead to significant cumulative benefits.
Always Assign Value to Your Time
Matty stresses the importance of assigning value to one's time. She encourages authors to put a monetary value on their hours to understand better the costs of doing tasks themselves versus outsourcing them. Diane supports this by sharing an example of how recalibrating her approach to editing freed up her time for more profitable tasks.
You Don't Know What You Don't Know
Both Diane and Matty emphasize the importance of staying open to learning new practices and tools that can save time and improve efficiency. Diane talks about discovering Vellum for ebook formatting, which drastically reduced the time she spent on formatting tasks.
The Double-Edged Sword of Community
Matty and Diane discuss the pros and cons of author communities. While communities can provide valuable insights and support, they can also lead to shiny object syndrome. Diane suggests adopting practices from the community while being clear about personal goals and values to avoid this pitfall.
Finding a Community That Shares Your Goals
Diane advises that aligning with people who share similar goals is more beneficial than just joining any author community. Matty shares her experience of finding alignment among rapid release authors and realizing that these practices didn’t align with her goals.
You Probably Know More Than You Think
Diane closes by encouraging authors to trust their instincts. She states, “You’re not starting at ground zero, you're not starting in a vacuum with no knowledge.” This recognition can help authors feel more confident in their decisions and strategies.
Conclusion
Matty and Diane's discussion offers a comprehensive guide for indie authors striving to balance working harder and working smarter. By setting clear goals, acknowledging the value of their time, leveraging community wisely, and being open to learning, authors can achieve a sustainable and successful writing career.
For more about Diane Vallere, visit her website at DianeVallere.com, follow her on social media, or subscribe to her newsletter, The Weekly Diva.
In the episode, Matty and Diane dive deep into the philosophies of working harder and working smarter. Matty starts by explaining her own approach: "I like to work harder and smarter. I figure I get double benefit if I do both of them." She asks Diane about her philosophy on this topic.
Diane and Matty’s Philosophies about Working Harder and Working Smarter
Diane reveals, “I have definitely fallen into the trap of working harder, not smarter. A lot of people who had day jobs are used to fitting more into a day to get as much done as possible.” She talks about the endless to-do lists that indie authors face, emphasizing that there's always something to improve or update. However, Diane notes that self-acceptance is crucial, saying, “We're all doing enough, and just accepting that is a big hurdle to get past."
Having Another Pair of Eyes on Where You're Focusing Your Work
Matty highlights the importance of external perspectives, sharing her experience with her business manager who helped her identify uneven investments in time and money across different business activities. This outside perspective showed her how shifting focus from less profitable to more profitable tasks could have a significant impact.
Diane adds, “Those kinds of things are fantastic because, for that exact reason, we function, we just do what we normally do and we don't question it because it's just what we've done.”
Being Clear on Your Goals
Diane underscores the necessity of having clear goals, suggesting, “We should have a concrete goal attached to everything we do.” She talks about using recaps as checkpoints to ensure that time and resources are being utilized effectively.
The Trap of Busywork
Describing busy work as a form of self-deception, Diane says, “We don’t give ourselves that ability to step away from the task and see if it's actually an important thing to do.” She explains that unnecessary tasks, like tweaking a website endlessly, might give temporary satisfaction but don't necessarily yield productive outcomes.
Minimum Viable Product
Matty and Diane discuss the concept of the "minimum viable product" in the context of indie publishing. Matty mentions how simplifying her website by following the advice to maintain fewer pages significantly decreased her maintenance tasks. Diane agrees, adding, “It felt so good to just wipe them, like just blow them up and be like, I don’t even have to think about that anymore."
Acknowledging What Work is Strictly for Your Enjoyment
Matty acknowledges that some tasks may not have direct business benefits but are worth doing because they bring joy. She enjoys making book trailers, admitting that while they may not boost sales significantly, they are fulfilling.
When Outsourcing is the Smart Option
Matty and Diane concur that delegating tasks that don't align with their strengths can be tremendously beneficial. Matty shares how she outsourced financial management, and Diane mentions how hiring professional editors allowed her to focus more on writing, thereby increasing her output.
Effective Use of Time
Diane discusses how eliminating distractions, like unnecessary social media use, helped her gain more productive time. She realized that small pockets of time add up and eliminating even minor distractions can lead to significant cumulative benefits.
Always Assign Value to Your Time
Matty stresses the importance of assigning value to one's time. She encourages authors to put a monetary value on their hours to understand better the costs of doing tasks themselves versus outsourcing them. Diane supports this by sharing an example of how recalibrating her approach to editing freed up her time for more profitable tasks.
You Don't Know What You Don't Know
Both Diane and Matty emphasize the importance of staying open to learning new practices and tools that can save time and improve efficiency. Diane talks about discovering Vellum for ebook formatting, which drastically reduced the time she spent on formatting tasks.
The Double-Edged Sword of Community
Matty and Diane discuss the pros and cons of author communities. While communities can provide valuable insights and support, they can also lead to shiny object syndrome. Diane suggests adopting practices from the community while being clear about personal goals and values to avoid this pitfall.
Finding a Community That Shares Your Goals
Diane advises that aligning with people who share similar goals is more beneficial than just joining any author community. Matty shares her experience of finding alignment among rapid release authors and realizing that these practices didn’t align with her goals.
You Probably Know More Than You Think
Diane closes by encouraging authors to trust their instincts. She states, “You’re not starting at ground zero, you're not starting in a vacuum with no knowledge.” This recognition can help authors feel more confident in their decisions and strategies.
Conclusion
Matty and Diane's discussion offers a comprehensive guide for indie authors striving to balance working harder and working smarter. By setting clear goals, acknowledging the value of their time, leveraging community wisely, and being open to learning, authors can achieve a sustainable and successful writing career.
For more about Diane Vallere, visit her website at DianeVallere.com, follow her on social media, or subscribe to her newsletter, The Weekly Diva.