Meaningful Creations

EDITION 17 / 2026

Hey Reader!

I was having a conversation with a couple of other small business owners this week, and we got to discussing something that I actually feel needs to be addressed more: the slow build.

These days there's this pressure - especially if you're a creator or a small business owner - to always be moving fast. To be changing with every new trend, new algorithm, new platform, new format.

And I totally understand why - when everything around you is changing at an increasing pace, it's easy to slip into the mindset that you have to keep up or you get left behind.🙄

But here's the thing. I've watched so many creators and businesses burst onto the scene, be everywhere all at once, and then just quietly fad away... burnt out from trying to keep up. And honestly, that's not surprising.

A recent survey found that 52% of online business onwers have experienced burnout, and 37% have actually considered quitting because of it. Another found that close to half of new creators stop posting consistently within their first six months. That's not a coincidence or a lack of commitment - that's a warning sign!

Paul Jarvis puts it well in his book Company of One when he says that there are times when: "Slow but sustainable growth makes the most sense sense." I think about that a lot, especially as I'm trying to build this business at a pace that actually feels sustainable for me, not the pace I sometimes think I'm "supposed" to be at. (Altho I would be lying if I said I don't have to keep reminding myself of that!! 😬)

And sometimes that slower pace is something that is not just an option, but is better for you. Maybe you're neurodivergent, and things that seem to come easily to other people take you a lot more energy and a lot more steps. Maybe you're working with ADHD, and procrastination is a very real (and ridiculously frustrating!) part of how your brain works. Maybe you just enjoy focusing on the craft & creation process. Or maybe it's simpler than that, and you're just at a stage in your life where you want to take things a little easier and spend time enjoying life.

All of those are valid considerations - not negatives! (No matter what the marketing bro's will try tell you!) The bit that actually matters is planning and structuring around them, rather than pretending they're not there. Cos when you factor something in, it stops feeling like it's holding you back, and it just becomes part of how you work. I think it's such a sign of wisdom to intentionally shape your life and business so that it works BETTER for you in the long-term.

So if you're building slowly at the minute, whilst everyone around you seems to be scaling up and shouting louder, that's not necessarily a failure. If it means you don't burn out or lose yourself....then it's a valid strategy.

Canva Kondo

This week's video is the first part of my new "Canva & Claude" series, and it's a good one if your Canva account currently looks like mine used to (Sooooo...basically just chaos! 🤣).

I focus a lot on organisation inside my CanvaOS course, because I know it's something that a lot of people struggle with in Canva. But I've now discovered that it's one of the places where AI can really add value and remove the tedium from managing Canva.

In this video I bring Claude in to not just move things around, but to interview me and help build a folder structure that works for how I operate, rather than another "standard organisation system" that lasts about a week before I give up. And it's all just with simple conversations.

Check out the new video live on my channel now.

You know I love a bit of property porn 😜 - so let me share a really exceptional home called Earth House, designed by architect Ken Nishiguchi for his own parents. The whole thing is built from granite, cedar bark, glass and slate, with a planted courtyard that blurs the line between inside and outside, and every material in it seems to be carrying some kind of memory of the landscape he grew up in.

What gets me about it isn't the materials list (altho I am obviously obsessed with the textures & natural elements 😁) - it's the intention behind it. He wasn't designing a house that just looks impressive, he was designing a home that reconnects the people living in it with where they're from. But in a way that works for where they are now in their lives.

And it's so intelligently structured - it is a literal journey from nature to inner sanctum, from exposed to protected. On his website Nishiguchi says:

"First, a courtyard was placed in the centre of the site, and then the Outer space, Half-Outer space, Half-Inner space and Inner space were arranged around the courtyard in a clockwise direction. Each of these spaces is a 'transparent space' that gradually transitions from the the landscaping to the architecture, with a composition that gradually transitions from the streetscape to the house."

It's also known as 'the silent house' because the natural elements and materials used absorb sound...and what a sanctuary it must be. And I can only imagine how good the air must smell, with that many plants filtering the atmosphere around you. And have you thought about what Autumn will be like there?! (Sigh 😊) Sorry - I geek out on stuff like this.😜

Go have a look at the full project photo gallery on his website, it's genuinely beautiful. And tell him I sent ya.😉

You can also see an instagram feature on the house here.

A reminder, of 'course' 😜

I also just wanted to drop a little nudge: if you have been thinking about sharing your knowledge & experience (and adding a revenue stream) with online courses or digita products, my favourite course platform - Teachery - has a Lifetime Deal that is retiring on August 15 and increasing by $400. So if it's been on your 'one day' list, this is a good time to take the leap and join.

With the lifetime deal you pay ONCE and there's no further subscription costs. And Lifetime buyers get access to everything the platform currently offers, plus Teachery 4.0 included when it launches: with communities, memberships, PayPal, even better customisation, and a faster mobile-friendly rebuild.

If you want to sell courses, sell digital products or build a community without adding another monthly bill, you have only a couple of weeks before the price jumps.