Recovering from Entrepreneurial Burnout Using Art with Ali Cranmer

*This is a raw and unedited transcript.

Melanie Knights ( 00:00:03 ):

Okay, Ali. Welcome back to the show.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:00:08 ):

Thank you for having me back. I’m excited to be here.

Melanie Knights ( 00:00:13 ):

Yes. I’m so excited to sit down and chat with you today and just have this like very casual, cozy conversation. As I mentioned in intro, I feel like this is gonna be really fun cuz I know we’re going to probably talk about lots of different things as we do normally. And I’m excited to essentially press record on a box message. <Laugh> a box message essentially, you know, when we go back and forth. Yeah. So before we get into kind of all the casual and conversations that we want to cover today as you know, the theme for this season of entrepreneurial Outlaws is entrepreneurial burnout because we are in the season of finish strong marketing and, you know, finish strong. You still have time. You can still achieve those goals. If you really try all the whilst same time everyone’s talking about holiday promotions and also getting ready for the next year. It’s just, it’s a lot. And, and this time of year, I, I find that personal life tends to get quite busy as well. And inevitably we end up neglecting what we need. So I wanna just start by kind of checking in with you and asking you what your soul needs during this season.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:01:31 ):

Mm. I love that. Okay. I’m quite surprised by myself this summer actually, because normally the summer, I feel like for a lot of people is a time where you’re wanting to rest and take breaks from work and be more playful and adventurous. And I’ve never really resonated with that. <Laugh> I feel like summer, for me has always been a time where I just wanna like kind of stay inside. Maybe that’s because I live in Florida, so it’s hot as heck outside. And it’s like our winter here <laugh> but I’ve been feeling like I do wanna be more playful and connecting with others right now and spending time with my family. So I’ve been kind of I guess not neglecting work, but I just haven’t prioritized my work and my businesses during this season. And that has been totally okay with me.

Melanie Knights ( 00:02:34 ):

It’s interesting. Isn’t it? Because, you know, I mean here in the UK, it is nowhere near as hot. It is, is in Florida, but I do not enjoy hot weather. So for me, the one thing I really look forward to, and so just FYI, everybody listening, we are recording this in the summer. In the summer, I, I tend to look forward to, you know, school finishing for Grayson because that means I get to have slightly lazier days. <Laugh> mm-hmm <affirmative> in terms of not having to be somewhere by quarter to nine every morning. And so my schedule then tends to kind of the schedule loosens. My plans are not so rigid. I kind of work whenever I feel like it. And I do feel like that presents itself with very gentle way of working. Yeah. And of course at the same time comes September.

Melanie Knights ( 00:03:26 ):

I feel a little bit like I shouldn’t have done that because now I’ve gotta try and get back into a kind of routine because there is a reality that I have to kind of have to get back into routine, cuz I have to get this little person to school. And I definitely, it’s funny because then when we were in the pandemic and lockdown and at home, I hated being at home <laugh> so it’s, it’s, it’s, it’s really interesting to look at that, but I know what you mean. I feel like I want to be slower in the summer mm-hmm <affirmative> and then I definitely feel like in the autumn I want, I, I essentially, especially the first couple of months, like September, October, I really like to kind of pick up, but that’s why it can be so easy to fall into that finish strong marketing or deciding that I’m gonna try and do everything that I didn’t do this year in two months,

Ali Cranmer ( 00:04:20 ):

Which yeah.

Melanie Knights ( 00:04:21 ):

Is not healthy <laugh> mm. That isn’t gonna happen. Yeah. So you are a returning guest and I think we can both agree that since you were last on the show, which was, I looked back and it was like March 20, 21, which I didn’t realize it was so long ago, mm-hmm,

Ali Cranmer ( 00:04:40 ):

<Affirmative>

Melanie Knights ( 00:04:41 ):

So much has changed in both of our businesses, but what’s also really interesting. And that’s one of the reasons why we wanted to have this conversation with you all is how we’ve been on such similar paths. I think it’s, it is really, really interesting to me. What are your thoughts about this?

Ali Cranmer ( 00:05:01 ):

Yeah, I’m trying to like pinpoint when our paths became so similar <laugh> I don’t know when it was, but I, I know what you mean. I know like you launched your membership. I had launched a membership, we kind of went through those motions and explored that. And then now here we are pursuing art and TikTok and just really going out there doing something totally different than I was doing. And probably you were doing at the beginning of 2020. It’s pretty wild, but I, I love that we are on such a path and we have that connection and thing we can relate together on and talk about it’s. It’s nice. And I feel like we’re not the only ones either. I’m sure that there are so many people out there. Maybe it’s not art, but I feel like they’re on a somewhat similar path where they’re experiencing a lot of the same feelings we are.

Melanie Knights ( 00:06:08 ):

Yeah, definitely. I mean, I’ve seen a lot of, I’d actually forgotten about the memberships. It’s funny because as you said that I was like, isn’t that interesting? But we kind of, so my membership was the outlaw collective yours being rebel rhythm society. Mm-Hmm <affirmative> and then I guess what I find really interesting is you would send me a box, a message and be like, I’m gonna do this with my business. And I’d be like, this is exactly what I’ve been thinking about doing <laugh>. And it would be really funny because you, you say to me, I’m gonna do this on Patreon. I’s like, I wanna go on Patreon. And like, by the time this airs, I will have Patreon all set up. <Laugh> but it is really interesting how we’ve kind of gone back and forth. And I, I don’t remember exactly when, but I remember kind of seeing that you could picked up a paintbrush and canvases and that you were I was gonna say arting, that is not why meant painting. That’s

Ali Cranmer ( 00:07:07 ):

The way <laugh>

Melanie Knights ( 00:07:09 ):

You were painting. And at the same time or around the same time I was getting back into drawing and you know, our, our a is very, very different like visually. Yeah. <Laugh> but that’s, what’s so great about it and that’s what I love about a anyway, but mm-hmm <affirmative> yeah. I, I think that now we’re on these, like again, similar paths looks very different, but similar paths. And we said that we’re both working on art at the moment, but I’m so curious to know what exactly you’re working on right now.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:07:45 ):

Hmm. Yeah. so kind of, like you said earlier on about not having a very rigid schedule or plan for work and business that’s kind of where I am. I feel like I’m just kind of taking it day by day. I still feel like a very new artist and this year for me I really just wanna explore the different ways I can share and sell my art. I have an Etsy shop, so like, I feel like I explored that the first part of this year and part of the end of last year. Not sure how I feel about that. Like, it’s great. It’s fun, but Etsy and selling work online is hard. <Laugh> it takes a lot of work and a lot of online presence and social media. Next up, I’d really like to explore selling my work locally at a market which there’s lots here in the area I live in.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:08:53 ):

So I’ve been trying to slowly build up my inventory to do that. Maybe this fall, but again, it’s like painting when I can, I still have my five year old daughter at home with me and if I get out the paint, she’s gonna wanna paint. So I rarely ever paint with her around. So I only get to do it so much. But other than painting, I, I do still have a very small community on Patreon where we do still talk about business and creativity and cyclical living. And then I make money via virtual assisting. So I’m not gonna like hide that behind the curtains. That’s, that’s how I’m making my money right now. So that takes up a lot of my time as well.

Melanie Knights ( 00:09:49 ):

Yeah. Yeah. So I think I’ve mentioned this before on the show, but again, similar, you know, being transparent. So why freelance as you know for an agency and I do content marketing and things like that. So yeah, I think that’s the thing like in an ideal world and my vision is that I can, one day become a full-time podcaster and full-time artist, but that’s not where I’m at right now. Like I understand that. And especially because I don’t have, because I don’t want to be quote, famous online for the work I do. Mm-Hmm <affirmative> like that terrifies me. Therefore, it’s going to, you know, I’m not gonna suddenly go viral. At least I don’t think I’m going to mm-hmm <affirmative> and my artwork tends to some people off. So there’s a good chance I won’t, but at the same time, I think it’s really, it’s really interesting when you start to take on this kind of, this part of a career where you are having to create something.

Melanie Knights ( 00:11:00 ):

And I know that that sounds silly, cuz if you’re a coach, you know, you have to give up time to do your coaching or you give time to your clients for coaching. And I was thinking about just this just this week is that I don’t think I realized the, I don’t wanna say balance, but I’m gonna use that word for now. The, the fine art of balancing drawing and spending time on my art, because I go through these moments where I’m like, this is what I’m gonna work on and it will just come, come together really quickly. And then I have periods of time where I just feel like I everything’s I’m. And I dunno why I’m creating right now. <Laugh>

Melanie Knights ( 00:11:45 ):

And that can be very draining because you want to create something. And I am primarily right now selling online and I don’t because it’s different to selling a service where you can just kind of essentially switch it on and off whenever you want to, because you are in full control of my time. Like, here’s my schedule. I have these slots available. You can book them art or anything like that. You’ve got to create it. <Laugh> mm-hmm <affirmative>. And like I knew that, but I didn’t necessarily think about the first creation was fine, cuz everything was working towards that. But like as soon as you’ve created one thing, you’ve gotta move on to the next thing <laugh> yeah. And I find, I personally find that very hard, like right now, thinking about what I wanna create in the autumn. So I’m like super cozy and really wanna draw all these Autum things. But I’m also finding that very hard when it’s really high outside. And it’s, it’s really, really interesting because I feel like at least I feel like I have to be kind of ahead of everything. Like it’s really tapping into trends, which I’m not used to. And that feels really different compared to when I was working kind of in coaching or mentoring before.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:13:04 ):

Yeah. I can relate to that cuz like pride month, I’m like, oh I wish I’d created something for a pride month, a sticker or something like that. Would’ve been so fun, but I’m just not thinking ahead. Like you’re like, I’m not used to that until the time is here and I’m like, well I’m not gonna rush around and create something. Halfassed like, I’m just, I’m not gonna do that to people. So yeah, that is a learning curve. I’m hoping to learn how to do that because I think that I love when I see other artists creating things with the seasons or even with the holidays or whatever. So I’m with you there.

Melanie Knights ( 00:13:51 ):

Yeah. Had the exact same sort for pride. I was like, oh, well that that’s been and gone. And, and I think that’s the thing for me. It’s like shifting my, my brain into this place where I’m having to think ahead, which I haven’t done for such a long time and it’s not necessarily pressure filled, but it’s making that decision now, do I want to do this? And

Ali Cranmer ( 00:14:15 ):

Yeah.

Melanie Knights ( 00:14:16 ):

Trying to recognize, okay, well if I, you know, if I create autumn sticker sheets, do I then wanna create winter sticker sheets? And like, what does that look like? And do I want to be doing this every season or every, and I guess that then just leaves me into lots more questions <laugh> and I’m like, now I need to take a nap.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:14:35 ):

<Laugh>

Melanie Knights ( 00:14:36 ):

It’s a lot, so, okay. Where did your creative journey start? Like was there a defining moment last year?

Ali Cranmer ( 00:14:47 ):

Oh yeah. Very defining moment. It was September that I bought supplies like paints and brushes and paper and all that and decided that I’m going to start painting and I’ve done this where I’ve bought supplies and told myself I’m gonna start painting several times over the last several years. And I just never stuck with it or found the time for it. I didn’t prioritize it, but there was just something about the way I was feeling at the end of last summer that I knew I had to do this and I wanted it like more than I ever wanted it before. And I was like, I need to prioritize this. So I think I was painting like once or twice a week last September in October and just really practicing and trying different things. So that was my dividing moment. And I think pretty early on, I knew like, okay, I’m really enjoying this. I put some stuff up on Etsy at the end of November and sold some things and it felt so good that people were finding something from my art, whether it was joy or inspiration or whatever, they were enjoying it enough to buy it. And that felt really good. So and it feels good to create it. So that was, I guess my defining moment.

Melanie Knights ( 00:16:19 ):

And you said that you previously hadn’t really made the time for it mm-hmm <affirmative> what kind of shifted that allowed you to make the time for it?

Ali Cranmer ( 00:16:32 ):

Yeah. Okay. Yeah. That’s a great question. Because again, like I said, I think the end of last summer I was feeling very burned out and tired of online business. And kind of just like needing feeling the need to do something totally different. I’ve been doing some sort of online business. Gosh, I mean, I started as a photographer in 2010, which yes, it’s like photographing people right in front of me, but a lot of it is also online sharing your work online and social media and stuff. So since then really I’ve had some sort of business that had an online presence and 2020 was a decent year of business wise. I felt like people really needed psycho alignment at that time, which is what I was teaching. And then it just felt like I was just always having to try so hard to have a successful business.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:17:43 ):

It’s exhausting. You’re having to just try new things constantly because social media’s changing and what people need is always changing and what people want is always changing. And I just think by the end of the summer, last year, I was just burnt out, which again was really frustrating because I’m very aware of my energy. And I felt like I was good at taking the rest I needed and creating a business that supported my ebbs and flows, but obviously not enough <laugh> cuz I was still feeling burned out. And I think again, that just, that was because I had spent so many years trying to have a successful online business and still was struggling and I was just feeling defeated and burned out and feeling this need to do something totally different and not like anything I’ve done before.

Melanie Knights ( 00:18:50 ):

Unsurprisingly, I can very much relate to this. 2020 was my best year in business, which feels surreal because that wasn’t, you know, if you’d asked me that in March of 2020, I was freaking out and thought everything was gonna fall apart and it didn’t. And then 2021 came along and I was like, oh, okay, last year didn’t really mentally. It was exhausting, but my business didn’t struggle. But then 2021 happened and things totally changed. Mm-Hmm <affirmative> I lost clients. I’ve talked about that on the show before and I found myself really struggling to figure out what was gonna be next for my business. And I was absolutely burnt out at the end of 2020. And I caught my family caught COVID and was really sick. And that was when I started to make intentional changes, but I still found myself. I’ve still found myself burnt out since then.

Melanie Knights ( 00:19:50 ):

And you know, I think, I think that being introduced to cycle alignment, which you introduced me to and having kind of dove into using the Luna cycle in particular for myself and really recognizing that E and flow of my energy, I still burn out, but I’m, I think I’m able to recognize it a lot sooner and I try not to push through it because I can sense, you know, if I’m walking around and my shoulders are hunched and my, my jaws clenched and I maybe just being a horrible person to live with right now. And I can think to myself what is going on. And it’s actually usually that I’m burnt out because my burn, my burnout tends to show up in this like fear and anxiety and scarcity in terms of what I’m doing, isn’t enough and I need to do more and I should be doing this. And, and that kind of infiltrates into different areas of my life, not just in business, but it can be, you know, in my body or like in my health. And it’s, I kind of just become very hard on myself.

Melanie Knights ( 00:21:08 ):

And I think when those thoughts come up, I’m able to recognize it, but it still happens. <Laugh> it’s still, it still happens. And it’s, it’s really hard because then even I think the other thing that’s that’s frustrating is because in online business there’s such consistent message that we should be happy all the time because we chose this, you chose to build your own business. You what you’d rather work, you know, for yourself, what’s the quote. You’d rather work for yourself 60 hours a week than work for somebody else for 35 or whatever. I just butchered that quote, but it’s not true. Like I don’t wanna wake 60 hours a week for anybody. And I guess with the changes that you’ve made in your business, do you think that you would’ve made those choices to pivot, to change your business model, to embrace your creative passions, if you hadn’t already been mindful of your own cycles and energy?

Ali Cranmer ( 00:22:15 ):

Yeah. well, I mean, what you were saying about not being able to avoid burnout, like that’s absolutely true with psycho alignment and this is maybe like sort of a side tangent here or whatever, but as you were saying that, I’m just thinking about how I used to promote psycho alignment and what I do and how I really believed and promoted it as a cure to burnout. And I felt that way genuinely felt that way for a very long time of 20, 20 particular. But now I’m sorry, Melanie. My dog’s about to bark <laugh> it’s alright, so just a second. Let me get her really quick. Yeah, that’s

Melanie Knights ( 00:23:04 ):

Fine.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:29:25 ):

Okay. I’m sorry about that. <Laugh> it’s all right. I had to go outside and fetch her. She is my elderly dog. She’s oh my gosh. Is she gonna be 18 this year? I don’t know, but she is deaf. I could not get her to come for the life of me, like, oh, you’re really gonna make me go out there and fecha in this heat <laugh> okay. I was hoping she’d sleep. Do you

Melanie Knights ( 00:29:50 ):

Want me to go back?

Ali Cranmer ( 00:29:52 ):

Okay. Oh no, I can pick up with my response. I’ll just start my response over. Does that work for you? Sure.

Melanie Knights ( 00:30:00 ):

Yep. That’s fine. Okay.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:30:02 ):

Let me go back to the doc really quick just to refresh my B brain. Okay. Okay. So alright. So yeah, so I feel that cycle alignment has definitely played, played a role in where I’ve kind of ended up. And I, like you said, like, just because you’re aware of it and you’re on doing things to honor your body doesn’t mean that burnout doesn’t happen. And I agree with that. And I think that for, you know, when I was teaching cycle, I met, especially the beginning, the beginning moments, the beginning months of me teaching about it, I truly believed and felt that it was something that could cure burnout and it did help me feel that way for several months I felt like, oh, I’ve, I’ve found the cure for burnout and I’m not having any issues with burnout anymore. This is wonderful. But I was definitely wrong.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:31:20 ):

<Laugh> <laugh> I think the burnout I was experiencing and I think that so many ex of us experience is so much deeper than like that surface level burnout that we may hit weekly or monthly or whatever. It was years and years and years of neglecting my needs and paying attention to my body and what, again, I needed that was the kind of burnout I feel like I was experiencing the end of last summer. And anyways, but yes, I, I do think learning cycle alignment and understanding my body in this new way. Can you hear my dog whining?

Melanie Knights ( 00:32:13 ):

Is that what that is? <Laugh>

Ali Cranmer ( 00:32:14 ):

Yes. God dang it to redo this sometimes because I have my earbuds in so I can hardly hear her, but I, I think you can hear her. So then

Melanie Knights ( 00:32:27 ):

Hang up. I thought it was my throat. I thought I was making that noise and then I was like, oh, that’s not me.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:32:32 ):

<Laugh> okay. Are you good? Now? You laid down. Finally. Are you good? Okay. I think she might be good. She does this thing where I don’t know, like dogs say walk around in circles until they’re comfy, you know? Oh yeah. That’s what she was doing. So BRB. I’m gonna go put her elsewhere. That’s not right next to me. <Laugh>

Ali Cranmer ( 00:35:17 ):

Okay. I guess I need like a babysitter for my dogs too. Take a drink real quick. Do you have more than one? I thought you, when you had one dope, I have two. I have two, I have a beagle and then a little, little like miniature poodle I’ve had since I was a child. <Laugh> all right, but they’re tucked in the living room. So hopefully fingers crossed. They behave <laugh> I had to like, pretend like I was leaving the house because otherwise they’ll think I’m still here. <Laugh> oh my gosh. <Laugh> they will, well, Bella is deaf, so she won’t be able to hear me, but maybe she’ll believe I’m gone. Okay. So back to this question, third, time’s a charm. Again, so basically you’re asking me where’s the question here?

Melanie Knights ( 00:36:19 ):

That’s why I talked about burnout and I was saying that like burnout yeah. Still happens. Mm-Hmm <affirmative> yeah. And then I asked you this question.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:36:27 ):

Okay. All right. Okay. So I do think me learning about cycle alignment has taught me how to pay attention to my body and what it needs. And it’s helped me to honor that. And like you said, though, burnout still happens and although you still experience burnout, you’re able to recognize it really quickly and try and do what you can do to be kinder to yourself during that time. And I guess, quote unquote, to come back from it or heal from it. And I would agree with that. I think though, when I first started learning about psycho alignment myself in sharing it with others, I believed, and I even probably said this on social media a few times that it is a cure for burnout. And it did feel that way for me for a while. I felt like I figured it out.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:37:36 ):

Like I’m good, I’ve set up this business. And this routine for myself that allows me this room to be in my ebb and to rest and take care of myself. But the, the burnout that I was healing from the end of last summer, I think was much deeper than like this surface level burnout that maybe we experienced, like on a daily or weekly or monthly basis. I think that I was experiencing burnout from just years and years and years of neglecting my needs and taking the rest that I needed when I needed. And just trying to keep up with society and what capitalism is and the way we’re expected to go, go, go. Yeah, all that said yes. I think knowing about psycho alignment and using it in my life still has played a huge role in getting me to where I am now.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:38:48 ):

However, I think that I would’ve probably ended up here anyway, somehow. Like I was at that point where I don’t think I could have continued, even if I didn’t know about psycho alignment, it was getting to that point where I was feeling that burnt out where I just couldn’t do it anymore. So yeah, but knowing about psycho alignment really had helped me to, again, like you said, recognize the burnout and what I was feeling and figure out what it was that I needed and allowed me to be more gentle with myself instead of maybe like terrified and feeling not good enough or like I was doing something wrong. It was a much gen more gentle transition from having this online business to pursuing art than it. Maybe it would’ve been if I didn’t know about cycle alignment.

Melanie Knights ( 00:40:00 ):

And I’m curious whether like I I’m thinking about like everyday burnout versus like, dunno, I dunno how to describe it. Not everyday burnout.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:40:13 ):

Yeah.

Melanie Knights ( 00:40:14 ):

And, and I, and I guess the thing is like the reality for a lot of us is that we are still experiencing burnout or residual burnout from just existing in the last couple of years. Mm

Ali Cranmer ( 00:40:32 ):

Oh

Melanie Knights ( 00:40:32 ):

Yeah. Especially as empaths because at least I can only speak for the country that I live in here. Things are quote, very normal numbers are rising again, but hospitals don’t have to wear masks now and things like that. And at the same time, I feel like just transitioning from 2020 into 2021 into 2022 still leaves burnout, like the feeling of burnout. And I, and I guess I’m curious to know in what your experience has been the difference between obviously you explained, you know, the difference between everyday burnout and you feeling like you just haven’t been taking care of yourself, but what does everyday burnout look like? I’m curious to know what that looks like in your world.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:41:37 ):

Yeah. And before I go into that, I just, you said something that made me think about these last couple years and how I also think the pandemic has made so many of us slow down and realize these things about ourselves and like how important it is to take care of ourselves. So while again, I said a minute ago, yes. Cyclical living has played a role in where I am now and how I honor my body now and whatnot. But also these last couple years, <laugh>, I’ve played a huge role. Like it’s helped me to really shift my priorities and realize like, what is important and what is sustainable in that type of situation where the whole world shut down. But anyways, so what does everyday burnout for me as a parent with a five year old who is home and works from, I work from home.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:42:48 ):

So I’m just automatically the default parent. That’s usually where my burnout comes up is parenting and being at home, mm-hmm, <affirmative> trying to work with a child at home trying to raise a child, I guess, and all the things that come with that, whether it’s bathing, her, feeding her, making sure I’m fed, making sure we have things to wear cleaning all that. Not that all that falls on my shoulders, cuz it absolutely doesn’t. We don’t try to have a traditional household here. You know, like old, old timey household, I guess is what I’ll say. <Laugh> I feel like it’s not tradition anymore or shouldn’t be but again, like I said, I am the parent that works at home and I’m home with the child. So I do become the default parent. And that is definitely where burnout comes up for me is just the everyday task that you need to do to like get through the day to have a functioning household and have a fed and happy child. <Laugh>

Melanie Knights ( 00:44:00 ):

Yeah, I agree. I feel, I, I think my son’s at school so therefore, you know, for six hours a day, my res he’s not my responsibility, but he’s still my responsibility, but you know, yeah. He’s not here. But again, the same as you, because I work from home I’m here. So therefore kind of those things like getting, just getting him ready for school, getting him to school, picking him up from school. Those things typically follow me and same, we don’t have that kind of archaic household roles here. But I, I, I think there’s still, there’s still a difference in the way I process mm-hmm <affirmative> parenting, you know, my, the way I feel about being a parent, the way I feel about mothering, the way I respond or the things that I concern myself with or worry about are very, very different to what my husband worries about. Or it’s concerning himself with, because a we’re different people, but also because in society, our perceived roles are very different.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:45:15 ):

Yeah.

Melanie Knights ( 00:45:16 ):

And I think because of that as well, even though we, it doesn’t all fall on me. Absolutely. It does not. I still probably, I don’t wanna use this word, but plague myself with things that I probably don’t need to concern myself with things I don’t need to worry about. And so that I find that is kind of my everyday burnout, you know, just even things like bedtime, like on the one hand I don’t wanna give up, you know, being the one that puts my son to bed, but I’m also like, it’s been eight years, I’ve been doing this for eight years. <Laugh> like, it’s, it’s that? And then, you know, then comes that feeling of, you’re not always gonna be able to do this and then you’re gonna not, you’re gonna miss the fact that you couldn’t do it. And it it’s that cycle.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:46:03 ):

Ugh. I relate to that so much, like constantly wanting to complain about being home with my child for the last five years, every day, all day <laugh>. But at the same time I wanted this, this is why I work from home. This is why I pursued online business because I wanted this and I absolutely love it a lot of the times, but I also didn’t expect for there to be a pandemic and for her not to be in school or some type of day care thing by like three or four. So yeah, she’ll be going to school for the first time in August, but yeah, I’m with you like feeling sorry for ourselves and a little bit for me anyway, I feel resentful towards certain people about it and just towards the situation in life itself and society and all that, but also like grateful at the same time. It’s, it’s a weird thing. <Laugh>

Melanie Knights ( 00:47:05 ):

I think it is a really weird feeling. And I agree. I think, you know, I mean, I know you and I have talked about this before, but when Grayson was born, I ha I was, I live in a country where it’s not great, but there are certain things. And I had a year off after he was born paid and cuz I was still employed at the time and that, but then so much of like at least I’d probably say the last six months of that year were plagued with what do I do about work? I don’t wanna go back to work full time. It ended up being my only option and, or at least it felt like it was my only option. And I started my business kind of full time. He was, he would’ve been two or about to turn two money. Yeah. <laugh> trying to work out.

Melanie Knights ( 00:48:02 ):

He would’ve been about two and he still went to like a daycare facility part-time and I felt guilty about that cuz I was at home and, but it all felt everything in that time for a number of reasons just felt so overwhelmingly stressful mm-hmm <affirmative> because it felt like it didn’t matter what I was doing. I felt like I wasn’t getting it right. And that led me to, I would say probably the biggest burnout I’ve had and then it, you know, and I think I’m still technically recovering from that. I think I’m still recovering from that, but I do look back and think to myself, I’m far happier than I was then, but there are still those moments where I do, you know, feel sorry for myself. And I’m like, you know what? I love working from home and I absolutely created this on purpose, but then sometimes I’m just like, what would you all do if I wasn’t here? <Laugh>

Ali Cranmer ( 00:49:05 ):

Yeah,

Melanie Knights ( 00:49:05 ):

Just kind of, that’s how I feel. I’m like seriously cope is what you would all do. Mm-Hmm <affirmative> so, you know, I think there’s that as well. But yeah, I think I was trying to remember where we call, we go here. Burnout <laugh> yeah. I think that, that every day it’s almost like the routines that we have to participate in.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:49:33 ):

Yeah.

Melanie Knights ( 00:49:34 ):

Versus the routines that perhaps we choose and just kind of occur to me cuz I always talk about things in like I have need one scenario and I’m like, it’s almost like the things that we have to do are the things that can kind of wear on us, whereas the things that we need and want to do, perhaps the things we don’t always do because we are burnt out just by doing the things that we have to do in the first place.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:49:57 ):

Yeah. I, I agree with that. And I think also working from home I care a lot more about the state of the house. Like I can’t work in like a, just chaos everywhere and that tends to happen when you have a child at home playing with toys all day. But that’s something I care about that maybe my husband does not because he goes and has somewhere. He works that he gets to clean and tidy and organiz how he wants. And I don’t have that. This is my space. It needs to be a place where I can work and feel not Zen, but you know, like not overwhelmed by my environment. So yeah, I’m with you. I think that sometimes the things we, we have to do as people who work at home we care about a lot of things that maybe our partners who don’t work at home don’t <laugh> and like you said, we’re different people anyway. So even if he did work at home, maybe he wouldn’t care about these things. But anyways, <laugh>, it’s

Melanie Knights ( 00:51:08 ):

Tough. No, I agree. I, I think that it, I think just working from home general, I, I, I think it opens up a lot of other experiences that you don’t have. You know, if you go out somewhere else, either you are potentially in control of that environment and it’s a very small environment and it’s not the environment you live in 24, 7 as well. So I think, you know, you go to make a drink and you walk into the kitchen and there’s something there you kind of inevitably think, oh, I’d tied that up. Perhaps that wouldn’t happen. If you’re going out the, you know, going out away from home. Either because collectively there are people doing it, perhaps it’s someone else that does it, you know, you’re responsible for your own things, but also you just, you leave it behind at the end of the day. You,

Ali Cranmer ( 00:51:54 ):

You,

Melanie Knights ( 00:51:55 ):

You, you close the door and you go and that you don’t have to think about it until the next day, essentially. Mm-Hmm <affirmative> yeah. I’m with you on that one. Mm-Hmm

Ali Cranmer ( 00:52:04 ):

<Affirmative>

Melanie Knights ( 00:52:04 ):

Okay. So talking about home life and kind of our personal lives and things like that and how this has all experienced, how these experiences kind of worked together. I’m curious to know how pursuing your creative passions and starting your workshop has actually impacted the other areas of your life.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:52:25 ):

Hmm. Well kind of going back to what we were talking a bit about earlier on, about not having such a rigid schedule or routine, I feel like creating art has made me a less rich person <laugh> and I don’t know. I just feel maybe this is just the season again, we’re in summer, so I’m a little bit more relaxed and casual. We’ll see how I feel like come fall. But so far this year, even like looking back to spring, which is when I would normally be like very in a routine and planning mode. But anyway, so I have not really been feeling like that since starting to pursue art. I’ve been feeling a lot more casual and relaxed and laid back and taking, allowing myself to take things day by day. I know I’ve talked to you a bit about, you know, spinning a whole year, really focusing on the moon and attending new and full moon workshops and rituals and all that, as well as tracking my menstrual cycle and paying attention to that.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:53:44 ):

But since pursuing art in particular, I would say the beginning of this year, I haven’t been following it all so closely. I’ve been trusting myself more and planning less though as well. And just again, taking it day by day, creating art when I can cause again, I don’t have a ton of time to do that with a kid at home, but doing it when I can. But also when I feel like it, like if I have an available night to do it and I’m not feeling it, then I don’t always do it. I’ll pick up a book instead or watch TV or whatever I feel like doing. So that’s, that’s been nice to feel like it’s safe to trust myself and to not have this big grand plan for myself that if I don’t do this, this and that, then I’m not gonna hit this goal.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:54:44 ):

I’ve been less worried about all that. Like I said earlier, I wanna attend market sometime a local market soon. And I thought originally that I would do that this summer, but I’m not, I don’t think I’m gonna be able to do that. And instead of beating myself up over it and being like, oh, I didn’t get this done and this done, I don’t have enough inventory. Maybe I should push myself and get it done so I can reach that goal. But I’m more like, eh, I’ll do it in the fall or I’ll do it when I can like just worrying less about that sort of thing. But also I will say having my other stream of income, AK my main stream of income, which is being a virtual assistant, allows me to be more casual and relaxed. Like I’m not gonna hide the fact that that is there. And that is where I get most of my income from if all I had was art, then obviously I don’t think I would be as casual or relaxed about what I’m creating. And I don’t know part of me like wants to keep it that way cuz like I, yes, I want to be a full-time artist. And I think that would be the ultimate dream and goal, but I’m also a little bit scared of what that would look like and how that would change things.

Melanie Knights ( 00:56:07 ):

Yeah, no, I agree. I think that I, I look at a cup, you know, if I look couple of artists on YouTube that I now watch their, you know, studio vlogs and, and things like that. And I think to myself on the one hand, I’m like, that seems so great. And then I’m like, would I really feel like I could get up every day and do that? And I think it’s, I think also part of me

Melanie Knights ( 00:56:36 ):

Is still feels so new. You know, I always being creative. I’ve always been interested in art. I studied at a school, but the idea that I could actually do this full time and that people would buy my work, that wasn’t something I even considered until the end of last year. And I think I’m still not used to that yet. I think I’m still getting used to that transition. And so because of that, the thought that that would be my only source of income at some point is quite overwhelming. And I, and I worry that how will I feel about it if it’s the only thing I do.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:57:23 ):

Yeah.

Melanie Knights ( 00:57:24 ):

That, that kind of, yeah, that worries before mm-hmm, <affirmative>

Ali Cranmer ( 00:57:28 ):

I’m with you. And I think a again, kind of going back to when I first started pursuing art and like that defining moment, I had told myself, like I, as I was packing my first orders for my first pur like buyers or whatever you call them purchasers on Etsy. I was packing orders. I’m like, this is awesome. Like I love doing this with my hands and sending out these packages is these awesome people. Who’ve literally paid me money for my art. That was such a cool experience. And I, at that time, and I, I still do believe that I think that it would be really cool to be a full-time artist and be so busy packaging orders. But yet I see lots of full-time artists complain about how many orders I have to package up. Yes. And I’m sure I would be tired of it by like, after, I don’t know, a week, but it’s just so different from anything that I’ve done before, like online, like you were saying earlier, like, Hey, I’m have my calendar open for this amount of time to have a session with me, yada, yada, Y that’s so much different, a different type of business than a physical product based business.

Ali Cranmer ( 00:58:55 ):

So I don’t know, there’s things about being a full-time artist that really excite me. And I think that I would enjoy, and it would be such a nice change of pace, but at the same time, how would it change my process and how I feel about art? If I’m, if that’s like my only thing <laugh> that is making me income, will it put that added pressure on that? I don’t really have right now.

Melanie Knights ( 00:59:23 ):

Yeah. I, and I think similar to you, it’s funny again how similar this is, but one of the things last year, when I created planning by the moon, I was so excited to pack those orders. And I, and I love putting in that effort and attention to detail, but again, it’s, it’s a thing there’s gonna come a point at which you can’t do that you, you can’t, you know, if you’re only person packing orders, you can’t do those things in the same way. You can still make things personal and people can still get to know you. But I think it also goes back to, I mean, at least for me, one of my biggest values is connection and community. And so because of that, I want people to, I wanna get to know people and I want people to know who I am. You know, I’m not, I’m not just a post on Instagram, but I want them to understand you know, where this work came from and where the idea came from and why I’ve created it.

Melanie Knights ( 01:00:26 ):

And obviously content plays a big part in that. But at the same time, there is inevitably going to be that point at which you can’t decorate, you know, envelopes in the same way and things like that. Mm-Hmm <affirmative> and I, and I actually follow and have bought from a shop owner. She lives in Ireland and she makes so much effort with her packages. And every time I receive one, I’m like, oh, this is so adorable. Like she’s put so much washy tape on and stickers. And like so much thought goes into all of it. And I’m like, she must be exhausted all the time. <Laugh> cause it’s just her. And she has a successful shop and it’s her only income, but I’m just like, I love this, but I need that balance of mm-hmm <affirmative> doing these kind of almost like admin parts of my business, as well as being able to take that time that I need to rest.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:01:28 ):

Yeah. That’s a whole new like learning curve.

Melanie Knights ( 01:01:33 ):

Yes. So speaking of content <laugh>, that was a great segue on my part. Speaking of content, we’re gonna talk about TikTok because you and I frequently talk about TikTok. You have grown on TikTok very quickly. And I think it would be really great to have a conversation about it because so many people have said to me recently, okay, like a few, not so many, <laugh> a few people have said to me recently, how still feeling that disconnection of Instagram and they’re like, what are you do on TikTok? I’m like have fun. So year, last summer I joined TikTok because my husband was driving me crazy about it. <Laugh> and I started to follow. So I was like completely new. I didn’t follow anybody like nothing. And I started following a lot of creative focused accounts and you and I have discussed how, I guess, easy, it feels like it’s been to, I’m gonna use this word, manipulate the algorithm to show us the things that we are actually interested in. I still see some things, you know, there’s horrible stuff on TikTok, absolutely horrible things on every social media platform. And sometimes I see things that I’m like, this is not content I wanna see. It’s usually weight loss related and I’m like, that’s not what I’m here for.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:03:04 ):

Mm-Hmm <affirmative>

Melanie Knights ( 01:03:05 ):

But a majority of the time I see content that I want to see, which is how the algorithm I think is supposed to work. I’m sure that’s what they’ve said. So it’s funny because this is something that literally lit a fire under my to pursue my creativity, because I ended up on this platform that I had no experience with. And I think I started to see some art videos and some unboxing videos and like a lot of ASM R and journaling. And because I liked those videos genuinely liked them. I started to see more and more, and that was just how my feed was created. And then since then there’s been a lot of, you know, fat content creators and some fashion stuff and a lot of more like feminism and conversations around women’s rights and trans rights and I’ll do BTQ rights and things that I’m really passionate about and things that I advocate for. And I think it’s really, really interesting when I go on there, <laugh> compared to going on a different platform. Mm-Hmm <affirmative> and I think at the same time this platform has, for me personally allowed me to kind of show these products that I’ve created and create content for my video. And I’m, I’m, I haven’t posted on that for like a week. I’m not using it consistently, but what are you loving about TikTok?

Ali Cranmer ( 01:04:37 ):

Hmm. You’ve covered so much of what I love about TikTok already. <Laugh> so Instagram was always my jam. Like that’s where I was. I think it was last, last summer. Maybe, maybe, I don’t know when exactly, but I started getting rid of other social media. So I was done with Twitter. I deleted my Facebook. And then it was just like, Instagram is what I used, but also I dabbled a little bit in TikTok, AK. I just scrolled the feed. Because like you, my husband was enjoying it <laugh> and was like, you know, let’s watch some talks together and there’s a lot of funny stuff on there. Like my TikTok feed looks totally different from my husband’s. His is funny stuff and mine’s a lot like yours, like artists, a SMR body positivity and women’s rights like parenthood, like all of that stuff.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:05:43 ):

But yes, I that’s what I’ve noticed first was how you can manipulate the algorithm on TikTok versus Instagram. Instagram was made for CIS white women <laugh> and it shows <laugh>, it definitely shows like that is. And I follow, I mean, I don’t know, but I feel like I just am drained by Instagram these days. They’re, they’re constantly changing things and going further and further away from what Instagram used to be. Which felt more of like a mini blog, I guess, where you post a photo and a little caption and the photo was genuine and real and I mean, yeah, you put like a filter on it or whatever, but now you’ve got graphics and that’s all fun and stuff maybe for some people, but I’m just like, why try and have the same type of platform as somebody else? Like, I want a different experience on Instagram and I’m not getting it now.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:06:55 ):

It’s like, they’re trying to be TikTok or somebody else. I don’t know, but it’s not working for me. <Laugh> but again, like you said, the algorithm on TikTok is just, it, it’s just, I am very happy that I’ve been able to create a feed that I can scroll and not be triggered. <Laugh> like to, yeah. Genuinely love the content I’m seeing and to relate to it. And it happens so fast. And I just feel like also as far as somebody who creates on TikTok, what I love about it is that I can create content on there and it doesn’t die the next day. Like it can live on for weeks months, maybe, even I’m not sure yet. Whereas on Instagram, you post it one day and if it doesn’t get any traction within minutes, pretty much, then it’s, it’s done.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:07:57 ):

Like you might as well delete it. <Laugh>. But that’s that I don’t get that from TikTok. The community over there feels really supportive. Not that I haven’t felt that on Instagram ever. I certainly have, but <affirmative>, I don’t know. I just, I feel like content does really well over there, especially art content and what we’re doing, but really anything. I think, I think that there are so many sides of TikTok that I don’t even know about yet. Mm-Hmm, <affirmative> I think, no matter what you’re doing or creating, if video content is your thing, like you would thrive on TikTok. Anyways, I could go on and on about this, but basically to sum it all up, what you said, the algorithm is fantastic. And I get to put effort into creating content there that doesn’t die the next day. Like <laugh>, it shows it lives on and it reaches other people for days and days and days. A lot of the time, not all the time, but most of the time.

Melanie Knights ( 01:09:06 ):

Okay. So I’m, I’m curious and I’m interested because I agree for transparency at the time of recording this, I am, I am still very much trying to grow on TikTok. And I’ve had some posts that have done really well or some videos that have done really well for like my platform. You know, they’re not quite viral, but they’re viral for me. But what’s really interesting, you’re saying about how the kind of content lives on versus on Instagram. It’s like you post on the grid and that’s it. And that had me thinking, because it feels like perhaps tick. So you also mentioned the fact that Instagram is like trying to be to in terms of like bringing reels on and things like that. I absolutely agree with that. Personally, Instagram still frustrates me. I think it frustrates me, not just because of how it behaves.

Melanie Knights ( 01:10:06 ):

It frustrates me because I feel so dependent on it still. Yeah. And because I, I want to connect with the people that I’ve spent so much time getting to know and a community that I’ve spent so long building. And, but it’s that there is definitely a difference in terms of if I put something on, on TikTok and it doesn’t really do what I was expecting or it doesn’t just, it just doesn’t do anything I’m like, all right. I, I kind of, I’m more accepting of the fact that it doesn’t do anything because I have no idea what to because it’s still so new for me as a, as a creator, but it made me think like TikTok is almost like this. Perfect. Okay. I’m not gonna say perfect, but it’s, it’s, it’s like this combination of Pinterest and Instagram in terms of Pinterest being a search engine, a search engine, also trying to be T Tolo at the moment.

Melanie Knights ( 01:11:13 ):

And I feel like on TikTok, you do search for things like, I don’t know, for example, I wanted to show grace and the, the recent trend, the tortilla game thing <laugh> and I just had to search tortilla challenge and, you know, loads of videos came out and I just, you know, looked for the first few and showed him. And so you do use TikTok in that such engine way. Obviously you’re looking for either specific trends or people, or maybe sounds like you’re looking for something specific. You’re probably not looking for absolutely anything, but then the algorithm plays a part in that because it shows you things that perhaps you’ve not seen before. And I’ve noticed that more recently on my four you page, cuz I wasn’t using my four year page. We had this conversation recently. I was like, I wasn’t using that. I was just looking at who I followed and I noticed over the last week or so there was a couple of times where I’d see somebody on my four you page and perhaps I liked their video, but I didn’t follow them.

Melanie Knights ( 01:12:11 ):

And then I’d see it again. And I’d be like, I recognize this person <laugh> and then I’d look at their account. I’m like, oh, I’ve already seen some of their videos. And it was, it was really interesting the way it presented me with more of their content and you know, either I’m going to make the decision, I’m still not gonna follow you. Or actually now I’ve actually looked a bit deeper into your content. I’m now gonna follow you. And so it’s kind of interesting from, you know, I can only say it from my, my experiences being a consumer on that platform, how I’ve consumed content on there as well, but I’ve made some connections with some great small businesses. I’ve, you know, book talk, apparently I post books. They were like not the greatest videos, but people liked that it’s there is so much stuff on there.

Melanie Knights ( 01:13:01 ):

And I do feel like for me personally, at the moment with TikTok, I’ve said this to you as well. I kind of approach here with, I don’t have a community yet, so I can do what I like. <Laugh> if I wanna post about books one day and then the next day I’m posting about the patriarchy and business and then the next day I’m posting about sticker. Like that’s what I do because I think also the interesting thing is we don’t, we typically don’t go to a feed. Yeah. We go to a feed perhaps to view more of their content, but we’re more likely to just see a video it’s gonna be presented to us for whatever reason, whatever the algorithm is doing. And so it doesn’t really matter if you are sharing different parts of yourself, especially if you’re a multi passionate person and have 12,000 different things going on in your business. Like I do, I very much want to be able to share all those pieces, but on Instagram I feel still like I can’t always do that.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:14:01 ):

Yeah. And you know, TikTok is such a great place to be discovered because of the four you page like on Instagram, I feel like you’re just scrolling through everyone. You already follow, unless there’s a promoted post. But like you said, like you may be on your refer you page and like somebody’s TikTok, but don’t follow them. And then they show back up, like, even if you don’t resonate enough or like them enough to follow right away, like they’re gonna probably come back up and you’re gonna learn about this person more and more and start to see maybe like how, how much you do enjoy their content and choose to follow them. Then, you know, it’s just, I, I love how you can be so easily discovered on there. And yeah, I don’t know where else I was going with that, but basically I’m 100% in agreement with you.

Melanie Knights ( 01:14:57 ):

<Laugh> with very much an agreement with each other. I agree because I mean, I started posting about my stickers when I first released them. And I haven’t even posted that again. Like I, there is that part of me, it’s like, you really need to sort the shower, Melanie. But at the time I had not posted that much about my stickers and I made a sale on TikTok. Let me tell you, I sent Allie a very excited message

Ali Cranmer ( 01:15:21 ):

<Laugh>

Melanie Knights ( 01:15:22 ):

Because it was like a few days in, and I was like, who is this person? Because I expected the people to, who were gonna buy would be people I knew, which, you know, you know, was for the most part people that I knew. And so to have this person, and then to realize that this person had not just commented on my video, but because I screwed up and didn’t put the link in my bio to buy the stickers and this person had gone off and found the link and had made this sale. And I think that’s, what’s really great as well is it is such a great platform. Even if you know my experience so far, if you don’t have this like massive audience and you don’t have these videos that go really viral, you can still make these kind of connections and they might look different to what we are used to on Instagram, because I think on Instagram, we’re so used to the DMS, you know, that became, that has become that trend of, you know, it all happens in the DMS and that hasn’t been my experience on TikTok at all.

Melanie Knights ( 01:16:20 ):

You know, conversations happen in the comments from what I can see so far, and people are so willing to give, you know, somebody commented on one of my book videos the other day and was like, this is the person that got me into thriller books. And I’ll send you some books if you’d like. And I was like, okay, this is, you know, it’s, it’s those kinds of things that are very different to what we see on Instagram. And I think you’re right, we see a lot of what we, who we already follow and they keep changing things. So IQ keep seeing loads of posts that are connected to hashtags that I like, but they’re always posts that don’t interest me. Yeah. And I think that’s because of Instagram being more established, there’s so many videos under these hashtags that are not relevant or they’re not how I’m perceiving that hashtag to be used in my, like somebody’s using it in a totally different way. And so I’m seeing content I don’t really care about. Yeah. I think it’s it’s yeah. It’s just really interesting to see where all of this is going.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:17:21 ):

Mm-Hmm

Melanie Knights ( 01:17:22 ):

<Affirmative> and I think because also on TikTok, you don’t have the pressure to write like a massive caption as well.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:17:27 ):

That place great.

Melanie Knights ( 01:17:28 ):

Quite nice.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:17:29 ):

It is so nice, like written content. I think that was another thing that led to my deep burnout, cuz it takes so much energy for me to write content emails, Instagram posts for wild blog posts. Like it just takes for me so much time and I never thought that I’d be somebody who would enjoy making video content. Like that sounds time consuming and, and exhausting as well in some ways it is. And you know, it’s not always easy necessarily, but it feels good to be able to create like a five second video and just let it go and not have to write this big lengthy thing. I don’t know it’s different, but yeah. Yeah. I’m I’m into it so far. <Laugh>

Melanie Knights ( 01:18:17 ):

I think also with the difference in the, in the video, I, I I’ve had experience with video feels really hard and, and it feels like it’s very time consuming and I think it comes when you’re trying to make like, you know, for example, the YouTube video there’s editing involved. And if you’re something that enjoys the editing process, great. You do you, I do not enjoy that process. And I think on TikTok because there are those trends, which of course you absolutely don’t have to do, and they’re not all dancing, but because like the voice for trends, for example, they can really help to show you as a creator in the sense of either your values or, you know, you might choose to do a user sound in a very different way of with different context, but because the sound is popular, it’s being shown. Yeah. And that takes off a lot of the pressure, as long as you’re, you know, as long as you feel comfortable doing a voiceover and spending that time doing that, then that means that you don’t have to come up with something entirely new. I, I don’t know, like perhaps that doesn’t sound fun to some people, but I’m like, I’ve spent six years Korean content. That’s like new. It’s quite nice to use sounds <laugh>

Ali Cranmer ( 01:19:41 ):

Oh, I agree. Have fun. Yeah. And I mean, I think for the longest time when I thought of TikTok, I thought, okay, like that seems so time consuming all the edits, learning these sounds and like lip syncing them or whatever you’re doing, trying to do all these trendy things. Like it’s a lot to keep up with. That sounds exhausting, but I’m with you, like mm-hmm, <affirmative> the sounds help so much. You don’t have to think of something new constantly. You can save a sound and go record it real quick and add your little spin to it or not whatever <laugh> and those videos do really well. And it’s, it’s fun to see others using that sound and how they chose to use it. But also like you don’t have to use the trends, I’ve follow a few people who just record like a quick few second clip of how they’re doing that morning. Like, you know what I mean? Like it’s can be whatever you want, you can put as little or as much effort into it as you want. And I still feel like there’s somebody on there who will enjoy it, it’ll land on their feed and they’ll resonate with it and enjoyed enough to follow you or like it.

Melanie Knights ( 01:21:05 ):

Yeah. So with your content, I know obviously you enjoy kind of using a mixture of different content. What’s the word mediums, but are you being strategic at all on there?

Ali Cranmer ( 01:21:24 ):

Sometimes yes and no. I think that very early on, I noticed that again, the trending sounds is great. Especially if you can use that sound and post it like right in the sweet spot, like when it’s really trending especially within like your little community on there, like the art community is what I’m feel like I’m popping a lot, a lot up in is that corner of TikTok mm-hmm <affirmative> so trending sounds for other artists. Those do really well for me. Like for example, I feel like people, again, going back to how supportive a lot of people are on there and how it feels like there’s less pressure there and it feels safe to ask for support there. Like though some of those sounds will be like, Hey, I’m a small artist, like follow me. Or if you like my work, yada yada Y.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:22:28 ):

And I’m like, there’s so many of those sounds and anytime I use one of those people are so nice and will save it. They’ll like it they’ll share it they’ll follow me. And I just think that’s awesome. So sounds where you’re literally asking for support do well. For me, and I think for a lot of other creators and artists on there posting on the weekends is something I tend to do more because I think a lot of people are scrolling to talk on the weekend versus during the week. We do that here, like my husband and I will be on TikTok more often on the weekend. So that’s something I’ve noticed as well. But I mean, other than that, no, I’m not really following any sort of strategy. If I see a sound or a trend that I like, then I’ll try and make note of it, save the sound and film it when I can, as soon as I can. But other than that, that is about it. <Laugh> just kind of doing what feels good on there, having fun.

Melanie Knights ( 01:23:42 ):

Okay. So I wanna ask a question cuz I’m gonna figure otherwise <laugh>

Melanie Knights ( 01:23:46 ):

In terms of, you said you post on the weekend mm-hmm <affirmative> so are you, and I, I dunno the answer to this, I’m just curious, are you posting multiple videos on like a weekend or are you posting once on Saturday? Once on Sunday? Like, I mean, obviously the weekend could technically start on Friday, but like, because I, I’m not being strategic <laugh>, I’m having fun with it. And I feel like that allows it to be playful and allows me to put less pressure on myself and to see what potentially works. But at the same time the one thing I have tried to do except haven’t done it the last week is to post every day, like to post something every day and cuz I have so many audios saved. Yeah. It doesn’t feel particularly difficult. I think, as you said, like yes, video can be a little bit more time consuming if you want to video a process or, you know, if I wanna put something together of my stickers or something like that, that can be a little bit more time consuming, but I’m just curious to know whether you’re posting like multiple videos on a weekend and nothing Monday to Friday.

Melanie Knights ( 01:24:55 ):

What does that look like?

Ali Cranmer ( 01:24:57 ):

Yeah, that’s a great question. Again, I’m, I’m not following it like super rigidly, like I tend to try it and record a few videos during the week. Like maybe like Wednesday or Thursday sometime in the middle of the week and then I’ll just save those and then probably around Thursday I might start posting me. It just depends on how many I have or sometimes I get afraid that a trend won’t be or a sound won’t be trending anymore. So then I’ll post like another one after the other <laugh> so yeah, I don’t really have any routine there I’m I’m still very much learning it and kind of just doing whatever I feel like. But I have definitely noticed posting between like Thursday and Sunday is when I feel like my videos do their best. If I post earlier on in the week, like a Monday or Tuesday, I’m not getting as many views.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:26:02 ):

You mentioned type of video, like process and stuff like that. Those do really well for me. So I will just record a time lapse. Those are really easy to do, very low effort for me. And it doesn’t take a lot of energy for me to put, set my camera up and record a time lapse of me painting and then just post it on TikTok. So that’s always nice sharing those because they do well in their low effort. Yeah. Anyway, so that’s, that’s kind of my routine right now. I sometimes I’ll post in the middle of the week if I feel like it or if I have a, a video that has a trending sound that I feel I need to hop on quick, then I’ll post it. But mainly in batch recording or creating videos and then sharing them Thursday through Sunday.

Melanie Knights ( 01:26:56 ):

Yeah. And I just wanna say, if anybody listening, who’s not on TikTok and is, is not a creative person as, or has a creative, it does, doesn’t have a creative business and it’s thinking, but how would I do like a, a work in progress or something like that? Like there’s plenty of like day in the life videos. And this is the thing for me is again, as you said, it’s really simple to do a time lapse. I cannot tell you how many times I forget though. And it, and this is, this is the, I think I have so many different plates that I’m spinning that I then go, I should have recorded that <laugh> or the other day I recorded one. Cuz obviously it’s a little bit different. I’m using an iPad. So I’m filming myself using the iPad and I watched the video back and for some reason my phone decided it was just gonna slowly move across.

Melanie Knights ( 01:27:42 ):

So you couldn’t see the iPad anymore. And I didn’t know. And I was like, no <laugh> but yeah, there are like so many different ways you can share that. And I follow somebody who just she’s a business coach and she just shares tips all the time, like most of the time. So it doesn’t have to look, you know, the way Allie and I are doing it is right for potentially our audience and our businesses. I’ve also done plenty of talking head videos where I’m just talking about things that me off about the online space mm-hmm <affirmative> and repurposing also just here I’ve repurposed a lot of my Instagram stuff as videos. Yeah. And some of them have done quite well

Ali Cranmer ( 01:28:23 ):

And also like repurposing is awesome. I know you love repurposing and I don’t think any of us do it enough. <Laugh> like, I really don’t. And on TikTok you may be wondering like, well, how do you repurpose on TikTok? You could literally post the exact same TikTok if you want. Or you can take video from the clips you used in a previous TikTok and just put a different sound with it or whatever, it’s somebody new’s gonna see it. You know, somebody that hasn’t seen it the first time will see it. So repurposing always you can do that with anything. Yeah. Anywhere <laugh>.

Melanie Knights ( 01:29:02 ):

Yeah. And one of the things I I did more recently was I took some posts that, again, going back to 2020, which was like what we talked about at the beginning of this episode I had some content that did so well on Instagram and I was like, you know, what would be interesting to see if it does just as well to a completely different audience on a completely different platform as a video. And these posts were a lot of carousel cuz that was when carousel first became really popular mm-hmm <affirmative> and I, I cut it down from like five things to three tips. And I talked about those and it’s one of my most popular videos on my feed and I kind of accidentally on purpose died the, the series of correlations between business coaching and diet culture,

Ali Cranmer ( 01:29:49 ):

Which genius

Melanie Knights ( 01:29:50 ):

I just kind of did for fun. And again, like it, it didn’t really, it did well for me, like it did well for what I have. So it’s, it’s fun to just, again, like just kind of have fun with it and see what works and what reaches people.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:30:09 ):

Yeah.

Melanie Knights ( 01:30:12 ):

So, okay. We’ve covered a lot in today’s episode <laugh> but that was the point I warned you all at the beginning that this conversation was gonna go into lots of different directions and I hope that you’ve enjoyed it just as much as I have. So Allie, thank you for joining me today. Thank you for sharing with us and we are gonna wrap things up now. <Laugh> but I do have one last question for you. What does being an entrepreneurial outlaw look and feel like for you during this season of your business?

Ali Cranmer ( 01:30:45 ):

Hmm. And I feel like this has been a theme just again, taking things day by day and really paying attention to how I feel on this new journey. And figuring out my new process and routine for this new type of business and creating harmony while I’m doing that and figuring out what harmony actually means to me and looks like in my life now that I’m pursuing all these new things and trying to do that with not as much pressure as I had on myself before.

Melanie Knights ( 01:31:32 ):

Mm I like that. I love the use of the word harmony. I always think that’s such a beautiful, sorry. <Laugh>

Ali Cranmer ( 01:31:43 ):

<Laugh> that’s my word of the year is what I was gonna say. And when I picked the word harmony as my word of the year, I had this like envision like this vision of me being an artist and like being at these local markets and my husband and my daughter being there, like having fun and helping me and just how I felt supported and in harmony with those around me and accepted their support and their love and encouragement and just being happy. And I don’t know, like that’s, that’s what I’m trying to create. Like that’s what it being an entrepreneurial outlaw for me right now means is just kind of taking a day by day and seeing how it goes and trying to trust the process, I guess. Suppose.

Melanie Knights ( 01:32:39 ):

Yeah. I love that. Thank you for sharing. Thank you for sharing everything that you shared with us today.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:32:46 ):

Thank you for having me.

Melanie Knights ( 01:32:49 ):

So what is your TikTok handle and where can everybody see your art learn more about your patron? Where can everybody find you?

Ali Cranmer ( 01:33:01 ):

Yeah, so everywhere online, I am Allie brown at Cranmer art. I’m sure Melanie will put like all the spelling somewhere because a little bit of a tricky, last name. Yeah, on TikTok. That’s where you can find me. My Etsy shop is named the same thing. Patreon as well.

Melanie Knights ( 01:33:26 ):

Yeah. So we will link to everything over in the show notes. So all of the links to Allie’s social media and also her work will be over there. And you can also find a full transcript of today’s episode@outlawcreatives.com slash podcast. Thank you so much for coming on Allie. I really appreciate you taking the time to sit down with me today.

Ali Cranmer ( 01:33:52 ):

Thank you. This was an awesome conversation.

Melanie Knights ( 01:33:55 ):

Thanks, bye.