This week felt overwhelming, probably for a few reasons. I had more meetings than usual (lots of stuff happening on a few fronts) but wore out my inner introvert. I haven’t been getting good deep sleep. And caregiving had its challenges. Suffice to say; my mental health has not been the best. One bit of good news, though, is that I realized that my health insurance covers acupuncture visits!! Huzzah. 🎉 I’m hoping to see one in a couple of weeks. I’ve done acupuncture a couple of times to help with pain, anxiety, and sleep, so I hope to get back on track with that soon.In other news, I received some questions in my survey (thank you) that I’m planning to answer throughout the coming months. So this week, I’d like to focus on this question:Q: What do you do if you just can’t -for any number of possible reasons- get an issue out?A: Let me start by saying a bit about my process for creating my issues. I try to work on my newsletter every day or every other day. So after #jesspicks goes out on Saturdays, that following Monday or Tuesday, I’m going in there, duplicating the previous issue and setting up my draft for the next week.Wednesdays, I make sure I have info for sponsorships for that week. Or following up with folks to make sure I have text/images/etc. for anything needed to go out that week. I’m also adding ideas for things I might want to include in different sections and notes on what I might like to discuss in the intro note. Then I have an hour (or two) set aside every Friday to pull it all together, make final edits and schedule it to go out.Working on it a little bit throughout the week helps me be in better shape. But if, for some reason, things go haywire that week or I’m just not able to do it all by Friday, I can do one of two things:If I have zero time to pull something together and it’s just not happening for whatever reason, I’d skip that week. I try not to do this if I can help it. Because I know my readers are expecting it. And if I have a sponsor, that can cause issues as well.  I can put together a short issue. This could look like a brief intro note and maybe pulling in some favorite resources from prior issues without adding new articles.If there are situations where I feel like getting issues out are harder a few times in a row, I might decide to take a planned break for a couple of weeks and then let my subscribers know. I believe in being as transparent as I can. And just saying, “Hey, I’m feeling really burnt out, and I need to take a break.” I did this last year.  This way, I can notify readers and sponsors that I’ll be away for a bit.If you can’t get an issue out for some reason, can you send a short and sweet issue? Can you skip a week? Of course, and address it in your next issue. But also, please check in with yourself to see if you need to plan a proper break. Your readers will understand and support you.Being a creator is not easy, and sometimes we need time and space to fill up our cups to continue to do our best work.I hope that answers your question, and please hit reply with any follow-up questions if you have ’em.On to the picks!P.S. If you need a smile, watch this 43-second clip. Thanks, Brandy!