What kind of asshole misses her own Accountability Club?

Me, that's who. (Unfortunately.) Here's why:

Last Friday at 11:40 am, I glanced at my clock, and my stomach dropped. My Accountability Club (the free virtual coworking session I host every Friday at 11 am) had started 40 minutes ago… or at least, it would’ve. If I showed up.

I was toggling between Canva, LinkedIn, and about seven other tabs, so completely absorbed in the chaos of doing that I forgot to actually show up for the thing I'd invited other people to show up for.

Cue the world's most embarrassing email: "Hey everyone, I'm so sorry, I completely spaced on my own event..."

If you want me to get really really real with you, though… this wasn’t a one-off.

It’s a symptom of a much bigger problem.

I have started 2026 off with a BANG, and I'm genuinely thrilled about it:

On paper, this is the dream! Business is good, opportunities are flowing. I should be buying myself a damn cake.

Instead, I feel like I'm constantly one missed meeting away from everything falling apart.

I've abandoned my meticulously organized Notion dashboard in favor of handwritten to-do lists, and I haven't been giving my LinkedIn the attention it deserves, even though I recently hit 6,000 followers, a milestone that feels huge.

The funniest part is that none of my clients are complaining! They're happy with my work. They're getting results. One just had a viral post a few weeks ago, not to toot my own horn or anything.

Meaning: Luckily, the chaos I’m feeling is entirely internal.

Here's what I've realized: I've been trying to force myself into a Type A box when I am fundamentally a Type B person.

I keep looking at other freelancers and business owners who have color-coded calendars, morning routines, and perfectly optimized workflows, and I think, "Why can't I just be like that?"

But that's not how my silly old brain works! I'm not someone who thrives on rigid systems and hyper-optimization. I'm someone who works best with flexibility and a little bit (okay, a lotta bit) of controlled chaos.

The problem isn't that I'm disorganized, or lazy, or unprofessional. The problem is that I've been using tools and frameworks designed for someone else's brain, and then beating myself up when they don't stick.

So instead of continuing to force square-peg-me into round-hole systems, here's what I'm implementing:

I am one to miss an email. And my phone is also CONSTANTLY on Do Not Disturb.

So, I’m going to make much better use of my phone’s alarms. STARTING with a 10:55 am alarm every Friday for Accountability Club.

Sometimes the simplest solution is the right one. (Why didn't I think of this before? Truly no idea.)

This is something that I learned from a copywriting course I paid way too much for back in 2024, but never tried to implement. Instead of context-switching all day long, I'm testing out theme days:

These might switch around, but you get the idea.

I had a consulting call with an ops professional months ago who told me to do this. I promptly... did not do that. But I'm finally biting the bullet because I suspect a lot of what I'm doing is a straight-up nothing burger that's eating my time.

Then, I’m going to evaluate my client load to decide if I should pull back from some of my more general writing projects (like contributions to publications) and focus on the one-on-one ghostwriting work that I genuinely love (and that pays better).

THE HARDEST ONE! I have like three creators whose profiles, on rotation, I spam refresh to see how much their follower count has grown. Super unhealthy, I know. But, they’ve all grown so much in such a short time! It’s hard not to be obsessive.

Gag is, if I spent the time I wasted fretting over them on my own stuff, I’d knock out my content easy-peasy.

If you're also someone who's been trying to force yourself into systems that don't fit, or if you're feeling the weight of trying to "have it all together" when you absolutely do not… you're not alone.

And if you want some low-pressure company while you work on your own stuff, join me for Accountability Club this Friday at 11 am. It's free, it's casual, and I will 100% be there this time. (I've set that damn alarm just to be sure.)

If you’re into it, you can use this link to join!

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go play with my cat before he knocks my laptop off the desk.

— Sam

P.S. If you're struggling with what to post or how to make your content strategy actually work without selling your soul, reply to this email. I read every single one.