7 Habits To 10x Your Productivity As A Solopreneur & Online Creator

No, you don't have to "hustle harder".

Jun 17, 2025

Being productive isn’t just about “working harder” or “hustling more.”

Real productivity is about working smarter, being more intentional, and focusing on what truly moves the needle in your business.

Over the past seven years of running a creator business, I’ve experimented with dozens of productivity strategies.

Some of those worked incredibly well; others were complete flops.

In this article, I’ll share the seven most effective habits that boosted my productivity and drastically improved my results as an online creator.

Let’s dive straight in.

#1: Set Quarterly Goals

Goal-setting is the foundation for peak productivity as a creator or solopreneur.

Why? Because goals give you clarity and direction.

Without clearly defined goals, you’ll end up directionless, drifting from one shiny object to the next, never really knowing what you’re working towards.

Personally, I always work with quarterly goals instead of annual goals.

I’ve found that this 3-month timeframe is:

Long enough to make significant progress on big, meaningful projects (without feeling rushed)
Short enough to keep urgency high and adapt to unexpected changes easily

So, the first productivity habit is simple:

Clearly define what you want to achieve over the next three months. Then, design your weeks and days around those goals.

This alone will skyrocket your productivity and help you avoid distractions, overwhelm, and scattered effort.

#2: Identify Your Top 3 Daily Priorities

A huge misconception I see is that people think you should cram your calendar, tackle endless to-do lists, and constantly hustle in order to be productive.

But productivity isn't about being busy, it's about achieving the outcomes you want in the most efficient way possible.

So, start every day by identifying your top 3 priorities for that day.

Which tasks, if completed, truly move the needle toward the quarterly goals you've just defined?

For example, some of my highest-priority tasks include:

Writing a high-value, long-form article
Creating digital products
Refining our high-ticket offers
Crafting high-converting sales copy
Engaging directly with qualified leads and clients

These tasks directly impact my growth, revenue, and business outcomes.

Notice what I didn't mention here:

Tweaking my website colors
Playing around with my Substack logo design
Answering every single email or notification the minute it arrives
Filling my calendar with endless busy work

Sure, those things can feel productive in the moment. But they rarely move the needle in a meaningful way.

Again: productivity isn't about doing more things—it's about doing the right things.

At the beginning of each day, ask yourself:

"What are the 3 most important tasks I can do today to get closer to my goals?"

By identifying what matters most, you prevent yourself from getting distracted by what matters least.

When you do this consistently, your days become more focused, intentional, and productive.

#3: Batch Produce Your Content

As a content creator or online solopreneur, you probably spend a huge chunk of your week creating content.

And for good reason. Content attracts new people (potential leads and customers) and helps build deeper relationships with those who already follow you.

But creating content (like Substack Notes, long-form articles, emails, podcasts, videos, or social media posts) can be very time-consuming and overwhelming, especially if you have to do it daily.

That’s why one of the absolute best habits for productivity is batch producing your content. Batching simply means doing a bunch of similar tasks at once, rather than spreading them out.

For example, I publish Substack Notes daily, but I don’t actually sit down every single day to write them.

That would mean constantly switching into “writing mode” or “creative mode,” which is mentally draining and inefficient.

Instead, I pick one dedicated time each week (usually just an hour or so) to sit down and write all of my Notes at once.

This means I only have to get into "note-writing mode" once per week, not daily. And it saves me a ton of mental energy, friction, and distraction.

Another example would be YouTube videos.

Setting up your recording gear, checking your lighting, and getting into “presenter mode” takes time and effort.

So if you're already set up and in recording mode, use that momentum and record multiple videos instead of just one.

By batching one type of task—writing, recording, designing—you drastically reduce the mental cost of switching tasks.

So, take a look at your content calendar and ask yourself:

Which recurring tasks can I group together and tackle in one efficient batch per week/month?

Start batching consistently, and you'll quickly notice how much easier, faster, and more efficient your content creation process becomes.

#4: Morning Is For Deep Work

One of the best productivity rules I’ve followed for years now is this:

The morning is for making, and the afternoon is for managing.

This means I protect my mornings for tasks that require intense mental focus, creativity, and "deep work."

(Deep work, as defined by author Cal Newport, is cognitively demanding work that demands your complete, uninterrupted attention.)

For example, in the morning, I usually:

Write detailed, long-form articles
Develop new digital products and courses
Build out funnels and automations
Work on content creation

These types of tasks are mentally demanding. They require a lot of focus and creative energy. And my brain performs significantly better on these tasks early in the day.

Research has shown that for most people, cognitive performance, mental energy, and focus tend to be highest in the morning hours (as our cognitive resources haven't yet been drained by the day's demands and distractions).

That’s why I’m strict about protecting my mornings for deep, focused work. In the afternoons, that’s when I tackle “managing tasks”:

Administrative work
Responding to emails, comments, or messages
Attending meetings or calls
Routine or repetitive tasks that require less cognitive power

So, schedule your mornings for your highest-impact, creative work, and reserve afternoons for meetings, emails, and tasks that require less mental intensity.

Try this for just a week, you’ll be amazed at how much more focused, productive, and energized you’ll feel.

#5: Practice Time-Blocking

Time-blocking is simply the practice of scheduling your tasks into specific blocks of time, so you always know exactly when you're working on what.

Here's how I personally approach it:

Every Sunday, I sit down and map out my upcoming week. I schedule all my tasks and activities into clear, dedicated blocks of time on my calendar.

That way, going into Monday morning, I already have complete clarity and structure around my week.

Then, each morning, I take a few minutes to review my daily schedule.

Instead of waking up and wondering what I should be working on, I know exactly what I should be doing at any given time.

For example:

9:00 - 11:00: Writing my long-form Substack article
11:00 - 13:00: Building a new digital product
14:00 - 15:00: Coaching session with a client
15:00 - 16:00: Answering emails and admin tasks

I’ve found that time-blocking gives extra clarity, focus, and structure to my days - and it takes away all the guesswork and indecision that typically leads to procrastination.

Now, here's an important thing to note: Your schedule isn't set in stone.

A schedule is just a tool. It's there to support you, not restrict you.

Meetings get canceled, unexpected tasks pop up, and sometimes you just need to adjust. And that’s totally fine.

But all in all, if you're not already scheduling your days and weeks, I strongly recommend trying time-blocking for a week or two.

#6: Follow a Consistent Content Calendar

You've probably heard it a thousand times before:

Consistency is key.

Well, there's a reason this advice gets repeated over and over. It's true, especially when you're building an audience on a platform like Substack.

If you only publish content when you're "feeling inspired" or whenever you happen to have extra time, your audience growth will suffer.

You'll end up in cycles where one week you're super motivated and pumping out content, and the next week you're overwhelmed or distracted and barely show up at all.

This inconsistency makes it hard to build a true connection with your readers.

People are much more likely to become loyal subscribers, superfans, and eventually paying customers when you regularly show up in their inboxes or feeds.

The solution is simple: Set up a content calendar.

Identify exactly what type of content you’ll post, how often per week you’ll post, and on which platforms you’ll post.

Here's our content calendar, as an example:

Two long-form Substack posts a week (one free post on Tuesday, one paid post on Thursday)
At least one Substack Note a day (often more, but always at least one each day)

By having this clear schedule, we eliminate guesswork and uncertainty. We don't wake up wondering, "Should I post something today?"

We already know exactly what needs to be published, and when. This makes content creation far more manageable.

One important thing when setting up your content calendar is to be realistic.

Don't set an overly ambitious content schedule that's impossible to maintain. Pick a rhythm you can actually stick to over time.

#7: Use The Right Tools

Imagine you have to chop down a tree. If you use a blunt axe, it'll take forever.

If you have a sharper axe, you’ll be a bit faster.

But if you use a chainsaw, you’ll be ten times faster.

The exact same principle applies to your work as an online creator or solopreneur. The tools you choose can make a massive difference in your output.

Better tools save you hours each week, helping you create better content, faster, and with less frustration.

Here are some examples of tools that will boost your productivity:

Calendly: Eliminates the back-and-forth emailing when scheduling meetings or coaching calls. Huge time-saver.
Loom: Quickly record, edit, and share videos for courses, clients, or content. Effortlessly.
ChatGPT: My go-to for writing, brainstorming, and editing. It boosts my content creation speed dramatically.
Grammarly: Instantly fixes grammar, spelling, and style mistakes. No more re-reading the same piece a dozen times.
Notion: Organize your tasks, projects, content calendar, notes, and documents—all in one versatile workspace.
Canva: Quickly design visuals for your posts, thumbnails, social media graphics, and branding—without any design experience.
Zapier: Automate repetitive tasks and workflows between apps, saving hours of manual work weekly.
Kit: Set up automated email funnels, so you can make sales on autopilot
Descript: Easily edit podcasts and videos, and turn long-form pieces into short-form clips. Great if you produce audio or video content regularly.