We don't have to do so much.
Sat Dec 20 2025
There’s nothing like being taken out with a bad cold in the first week of December to humble and hobble one’s best-laid holiday plans, is there? And even before I started getting the sniffles on December 1, I had the nagging feeling I was already behind.
But…behind on what? What if the problem isn’t that the season (or the year!) is too short, but that I’m crowding it by trying to do too much - not only in my holiday mothering but in my career, my creative life, and elsewhere - and just overwhelming both myself and the intended recipients of my work in the effort?
In this episode, my last of 2025, I share about my complicated history with “producing”, and how this simple statement - “I don’t have to do so much” - has been acting like a mantra for me, helping me make more clear-eyed decisions about what I can let go of (or simply the fact that I can let go of anything at all.)
I talk about how “overproduction” can overwhelm both the producer and those who are trying to enjoy the fruits of her efforts (I compare it to throwing a dinner party where, eager to impress and delight, the host loads the table with dishes and everyone winds up too stuffed to really enjoy themselves), how this tends to show up in my creative life and the content I create, and the ways I push gently back against those tendencies to create space for a slower, more satisfying type of productivity.
If you prefer, you can also watch this episode as a video:
While this will be the final regular episode of The Kettle podcast, my monthly Journal episodes and newsletters will live on for paying subscribers! These are the slow, seasonal, resource-rich episodes and accompanying newsletters that come out on the first of each month. The Monthly Journals are in a private feed and get emailed to paying subscribers each month. If you’re a paying subscriber and aren’t sure how to access the Journal episodes, just respond to this email and I’ll help you out.
We’ve also got some great seasonal conversations going on in our private Discord chat: I shared my “holiday fatalism” - the belief that if everything isn’t done by December 20 I may as well just give up until next year; member Katie shares that she actually tends to be an “under-doer” at the holiday and how she’s gently expanding her participation this year, plus lots of holiday baking ideas and inspiration. It’s all in the private chat for paying subscribers.
A note that I have decided to continue to offer annual memberships at a deeply-discounted rate indefinitely, while raising the price on monthly memberships. I know people upgrade to paid for all kinds of reasons: to access our community offerings, to read and listen to a specific piece or two of exclusive content, to have access to all the exclusive content whenever they want it, or sometimes just to support my work. Offering different subscription options allows people to decide what works best for them, and then I don’t have to do that thing where I stress out wondering if I’m giving everyone what they need. (Enneagram 2 over here!)
That’s all for this final pre-holiday check-in. I hope you are well, and your holiday is shaping up to be exactly what you need it to be. Merry Christmas, and I’ll talk to you soon, friends.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit meaganfrancis.substack.com/subscribe
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There’s nothing like being taken out with a bad cold in the first week of December to humble and hobble one’s best-laid holiday plans, is there? And even before I started getting the sniffles on December 1, I had the nagging feeling I was already behind. But…behind on what? What if the problem isn’t that the season (or the year!) is too short, but that I’m crowding it by trying to do too much - not only in my holiday mothering but in my career, my creative life, and elsewhere - and just overwhelming both myself and the intended recipients of my work in the effort? In this episode, my last of 2025, I share about my complicated history with “producing”, and how this simple statement - “I don’t have to do so much” - has been acting like a mantra for me, helping me make more clear-eyed decisions about what I can let go of (or simply the fact that I can let go of anything at all.) I talk about how “overproduction” can overwhelm both the producer and those who are trying to enjoy the fruits of her efforts (I compare it to throwing a dinner party where, eager to impress and delight, the host loads the table with dishes and everyone winds up too stuffed to really enjoy themselves), how this tends to show up in my creative life and the content I create, and the ways I push gently back against those tendencies to create space for a slower, more satisfying type of productivity. If you prefer, you can also watch this episode as a video: While this will be the final regular episode of The Kettle podcast, my monthly Journal episodes and newsletters will live on for paying subscribers! These are the slow, seasonal, resource-rich episodes and accompanying newsletters that come out on the first of each month. The Monthly Journals are in a private feed and get emailed to paying subscribers each month. If you’re a paying subscriber and aren’t sure how to access the Journal episodes, just respond to this email and I’ll help you out. We’ve also got some great seasonal conversations going on in our private Discord chat: I shared my “holiday fatalism” - the belief that if everything isn’t done by December 20 I may as well just give up until next year; member Katie shares that she actually tends to be an “under-doer” at the holiday and how she’s gently expanding her participation this year, plus lots of holiday baking ideas and inspiration. It’s all in the private chat for paying subscribers. A note that I have decided to continue to offer annual memberships at a deeply-discounted rate indefinitely, while raising the price on monthly memberships. I know people upgrade to paid for all kinds of reasons: to access our community offerings, to read and listen to a specific piece or two of exclusive content, to have access to all the exclusive content whenever they want it, or sometimes just to support my work. Offering different subscription options allows people to decide what works best for them, and then I don’t have to do that thing where I stress out wondering if I’m giving everyone what they need. (Enneagram 2 over here!) That’s all for this final pre-holiday check-in. I hope you are well, and your holiday is shaping up to be exactly what you need it to be. Merry Christmas, and I’ll talk to you soon, friends. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit meaganfrancis.substack.com/subscribe