Soulful Solopreneur Solutions Podcast

I stumbled onto something recently that I can’t stop thinking about.It’s a new feature Substack quietly added — and if you’re publishing here regularly, this one’s going to save you real time.It’s called Templates.The Problem It SolvesIf you’ve been on Substack for any length of time, you probably have a few things you drop into almost every post.A custom divider image. A subscribe button. A “share this” graphic. A buy me a coffee link.Maybe you’ve been doing what I was doing — storing everything in a folder, copying from a clipboard manager, then re-adding the links every single time.It worked. But it was clunky.Every time I inserted one of my custom images, I still had to go back in and manually add the link. Leave the editor, grab the asset, come back, repeat.Not anymore.What Templates Actually DoTemplates let you create reusable snippets right inside the Substack editor — complete with images, text, buttons, and links already baked in.Once it’s set up, you click a single button, and it drops the whole thing in, exactly where you want it.No leaving the editor. No hunting for the file. No re-linking.Here’s how I’m using it:* Custom divider. Instead of Substack’s default thin divider bar, I have my own branded divider image. One click. Done.* Upgrade button. I created a custom image-based button linked to my subscribe page — a lot more eye-catching than the standard Substack button. It’s a template now.* Share graphic. A bigger, more visual share prompt — with the share button already embedded in the template. The whole thing comes in at once.* Buy Me a Coffee. My custom image, already linked. I insert it and move on.How to Create OneIt’s genuinely simple.In the Substack editor toolbar, look for a tab that says Template. Click it, and you’ll see any templates you’ve already created — plus a + New Template button.Click that, and it opens what looks exactly like a post editor.Give your template a name (just for your reference — readers never see it). Then build whatever you want inside it: text, images, buttons, links. Format it exactly how you want it to appear.Save it, and it shows up in your template list from that point forward. You don’t even have to save your images in the gallery.Why This Is a Bigger Deal Than It SoundsThe real value here isn’t just convenience.It’s consistency.Every post gets the same branded elements, exactly the same way, every time. No forgetting to add the link. No slightly different version of the button depending on when you made it.And because it lives inside Substack — not in a separate folder or a third-party clipboard app — there’s no context switching. You stay in the flow of writing.I can see using this for recurring footers, standard CTAs, affiliate disclosures, section intros, podcast episode callouts — anything you find yourself building from scratch over and over again.Try It This WeekOpen a post you’re working on and look for the Template tab in your editor toolbar.Even if you only create one template to start — maybe just a simple subscribe prompt or a divider — you’ll immediately see how useful this is going to be.Substack keeps adding tools that make the writing experience cleaner and more professional. This one’s worth five minutes of your time. Watch the video to see it in action.Let me know what templates you end up creating. I’m curious what people come up with.Brian D. Smith is a grief guide, certified grief educator, and host of the Grief 2 Growth podcast. After losing his daughter Shayna in 2015, he has dedicated his work to helping others find evidence-based hope in the face of loss. Get full access to Soulful Solopreneur Solutions at soulfulsolutions.substack.com/subscribe

I always have about 20 tabs open in Chrome. I often work in multiple Chrome windows with one Chrome window on the left and the other on the right, so I don’t have to jump back and forth between tabs. MacOS has made this pretty easy for a while.Chrome now has a “split tab” view that allows you to work with multiple tabs in the same window. The video above is a short demonstration.This is going to make things so much easier for me! Get full access to Soulful Solopreneur Solutions at soulfulsolutions.substack.com/subscribe

I didn’t set out to build a product.I set out to solve a problem—cheaply, simply, and in a way that actually worked for me.Like a lot of solopreneurs, I juggle too many projects across too many tools. Tasks here, ideas there, a calendar full of loose ends. Everything technically existed—but none of it felt truly managed. I’d start a book and forget I was writing it. Or I’d start an article and leave it in draft mode. And what did I call that ebook I was working on, so I can find it in my Google Drive?So I asked AI for help.Asking the Right Questions (and Trusting My Gut)I told ChatGPT and Claude I needed a way to manage projects. Ideally, free or low-cost. They gave me with thoughtful rundowns of the usual platforms, including Notion, Trello, Asana, and others. I’ve tried Notion and Trello. They’re powerful. But they’re overwhelming.Each had its strengths. But I had a feeling.Google Sheets- it’s boring, humble, and powerful. And it was already part of my workflow. I knew how it behaved. I knew its quirks. And deep down, I suspected it was the right call.Claude confirmed it.From there, the collaboration began.I asked both AIs how I might structure a tracker. They suggested columns, formulas, and workflows. Some of it worked beautifully. Some of it didn’t—Google Sheets can’t do everything they thought it could. They’d say, “Do this,” and that didn’t exist in Google Sheets. “Oh yeah. That’s right, that’s Excel.” Together, we iterated.I brought the practical know-how. They brought the ideas and logic. I created some workarounds. They thought of others.And what emerged was a clean, powerful system that actually makes it easier to run my business.And, I love it.Let Me Tell You About The TrackerMost solopreneurs aren’t drowning in work—they’re drowning in uncertainty.Where are things? What matters most? What’s ready, what’s stuck, and what’s quietly aging on the back burner?The Get It Done Project Tracker solves that by giving you visibility you can act on. It helps you:* See what’s active* Spot what’s stalled* Prioritize your energy* And keep projects moving, not just existingIt’s about clarity. A picture, at a glance, of where all your projects are and what needs action.A Clear, Calm View of Your WorkHere’s what the tracker includes—and why each piece matters:* Project Name – Clear, specific labels (no more “misc” tasks)* Status – So you know what’s in progress, paused, or done* Priority – See what needs attention now* Progress – Add a % or leave it blank if “Next Step” tells the real story* Category – Group by type: Client, Admin, Creative, etc.This is your project list—organized by intention, not chaos.From Stuck to Moving AgainMost tools help you capture ideas. This one helps you move them forward.* Next Step – Arguably the most important column. One action. One nudge. Total momentum shift.* Start Date / Due Date / Last Updated – Time anchors that gently guide, without guilt.* Past Due Filter – And when something does slip? The whole row turns bright red.It’s bold, unapologetic, and incredibly helpful.That red doesn’t say, “You failed.”It says, “Hey! Am I still important? Do I need your attention? Or is it time to let me go?”It's a visual invitation to decide—because indecision is where overwhelm lives. If a project is overdue, ask if it was really important.Tidy, Trackable, and Built to ScaleAs your business grows, this tracker grows with you. No subscriptions. No logins. No app fatigue.* Project Link – Connect directly to the doc, folder, or tool where the real work happens* Add Rows – Just duplicate a blank row—no setup needed* Sort and Filter – Zoom in on priorities, due dates, or categories instantlyAnd best of all?📈 It’s prebuilt to manage up to 500 active projects.* Archive old ones by typing over completed rows* Or keep everything and just keep adding* It’s yours to adapt, expand, and evolveOne Simple Sheet. Dozens of Better Decisions.At the end of the day, it’s not about the spreadsheet.It’s about what it gives you:* Clarity instead of overwhelm* Visibility instead of guessing* Structure that supports your flow—not controls itWhen you can see what matters, you can act without hesitation.And when you act consistently, you start to trust yourself again.⚡ Feature Summary – At a Glance* ✅ Track up to 500 active projects* ✅ Clean, powerful columns: Status, Priority, Progress, Category, and Next Step* ✅ Bright red visual alert for overdue work* ✅ Instant filtering, sorting, and linking to your real work* ✅ Fully editable and scalable—no app required* ✅ Built for momentum, not micromanagementWhat Might You Build with a Little Help?I didn’t expect to build a product. I expected to patch together a solution.But here’s what I learned:When you combine your instincts with a little AI collaboration, you can create more than you thought possible—without hiring a dev team or buying into another platform.So if you’ve got an idea, a friction point, or a system that almost works… maybe now’s the time to rebuild it.Ask AI. Ask yourself. And start shaping what you need.What’s one thing you already suspect might work—and what would happen if you asked AI to help you build it?You don’t need to be a tech genius.You just need to be curious—and willing to get it done.See a DemoDo You Want The Tracker?It’s free for paid subscribers. Just shoot me an email- [email protected] you’d like to purchase it, here’s the link: Get full access to Soulful Solopreneur Solutions at soulfulsolutions.substack.com/subscribe

Imagine being able to accomplish in minutes what once took hours. What if you had an assistant who could handle tedious tasks, freeing you to focus on your creativity and passion? This assistant would work for as many hours as you need for free or maybe $20/ month. Would you hire them? You can right now.For many solopreneurs, AI feels like both an opportunity and a dilemma. Are we sacrificing authenticity for efficiency? Are we giving up too much control?Soulful Solopreneur Solutions is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.The Fear of AI: A Tale as Old as TimeFor many people, using AI in their businesses feels like cheating. We want our words to be our own to maintain authenticity in our work. There's also a lingering fear about what AI means for society—will it take jobs? Will it replace human creativity? These concerns are valid, but they are not new.Throughout history, every technological leap has sparked resistance. The printing press was feared because it threatened the role of scribes. Reading itself was once seen as lazy, much like watching television is today. Yet, the march of technology is inevitable. We didn’t abandon automobiles to save the horse-drawn carriage industry. My cousin was a television repairman—an occupation that has largely disappeared. But is that a bad thing? Or is it just the natural evolution of progress?From Typewriters to AI: The Evolution of ProductivityI’m old enough to remember when word processors revolutionized offices. Before that, typing meant working with single sheets of paper—if you needed to reformat, you started over. Secretaries were in every office, typing letters, answering phones, and keeping calendars. Today, those roles have been automated or absorbed into our workflows, allowing us to be more productive than ever. I’m writing this article on my laptop while waiting at a car dealership—something unthinkable a few decades ago. Technology, when used wisely, is a blessing. Instead of being two unproductive hours, I’ve taken my office with me.How AI Has Transformed My WorkflowI started using AI over a year ago, and it has already become an integral part of my daily work. My go-to tools are ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Claude, but ChatGPT does about 90% of the heavy lifting. Here are only a few ways AI has transformed my workflow as a solopreneur:* Podcasting: AI helps me prepare for interviews by writing intros and generating potential questions. It refines my rough ideas into compelling narratives. Yesterday, I had an interview coming up in a few minutes, and I hadn’t had the time to prep for it. ChatGPT to the rescue. In less than five minutes, the introduction was written, and I had fifteen thought-provoking questions * Content Creation: Headlines that grab attention? AI helps craft them. Social media posts? AI turns my ideas into coherent, engaging content.* Efficiency: Tasks like writing YouTube descriptions, chapters, tags, podcast show notes, and blog articles once took hours—AI cuts that down to minutes.* Personal Life: AI even suggests dinner ideas and helps me create recipes when I need inspiration.The Limitations of AI: Why Human Connection MattersInstead of replacing me, AI amplifies my creativity. It doesn’t strip away authenticity; it enhances it by removing tedious tasks and letting me focus on what matters. My voice is still mine—AI helps me refine and deliver it more effectively. I don't allow AI to write my articles, intros, or anything else. AI is my assistant, carrying out what I instruct it to do.That said, AI has its limitations. Some fear it will replace coaches, creatives, and consultants, but I don’t see it that way. People will always seek genuine human connection. AI may imitate caring, empathy, and understanding but lacks actual lived experience and intuition. I’m not worried about AI replacing deep, meaningful interactions. As someone once said about lawyers, "AI isn’t going to take your job—a lawyer using AI is going to take your job." The same applies to many industries. The advantage will go to those who learn to use AI as a tool rather than fear it as a competitor.The Choice is Ours: Resist or Leverage AI?As small business owners, we can resist change or leverage it. It’s a binary choice. Ignoring AI isn’t going to make it go away. Those who embrace it will have an edge. Rather than seeing AI as a threat, let’s view it as a tool—just like the printing press, the word processor, or the internet. The key is to use it ethically to enhance our work rather than replace what makes us human.Getting Started with AI: A Solopreneur's AdviceIf you’re a solopreneur wondering whether to integrate AI into your workflow, my advice is simple: start small, experiment, and see where it takes you. You may be surprised at how much it frees you to focus on what truly matters in your business and life.Your Turn: How Will You Embrace AI?AI is here, and it’s evolving fast. Will you harness it to amplify your work, or will you hold back and risk falling behind? How do you see AI shaping your business in the next year? Share your thoughts, concerns, and experiences in the comments—I’d love to hear how you navigate this transformation! Thanks for reading Soulful Solopreneur Solutions! This post is public, so feel free to share it. Get full access to Soulful Solopreneur Solutions at soulfulsolutions.substack.com/subscribe