Let’s talk about something that’s low effort, high reward, and just might save your brand sanity: a capsule brand. This is for you if: You already have a brand (even a half-baked one) You’re tired of second-guessing every Canva design You’re feeling “meh” after design sessions and you’re not sure why Why You’re Burnt Out Every Time You Open Canva Every time you sit down to “make something cute,” you’re making hundreds  of tiny design decisions. Color, font size, line spacing, alignment, texture, border, shadow, icon style—and that’s before you even get to the content. That kind of cognitive load is design fatigue 101. And you know what happens then: You burn out halfway through You hate what you made You swear off content creation for a week Here’s the fix: make 16 design decisions up front —your capsule brand—and reuse them for the next 90 days. This will save you thousands of micro-decisions. I’m not exaggerating. What’s a Capsule Brand? Think capsule wardrobe, but for your visuals. You pick 16 visual elements  (like fonts, colors, corner radius, textures, etc.) and commit to using only those for 90 days. Not forever. Just long enough to: Build consistency Reduce choice overload Practice executing a vibe It’s not a rebrand. It’s a focus tool. You’re working within creative constraints so you can actually create . Why 90 Days? Two reasons: Design skills come from repetition.  If you’re not a trained designer, you need reps. This lets you “wear” your brand for a while and figure out what works (and what doesn’t) before you commit long term. Brands evolve.  Your business changes. The internet changes. Design trends shift. A capsule brand gives you a structured way to adapt without totally derailing your look every time something new drops. Eventually, you won’t need this. But until you’ve really built up design confidence (usually 12–18 months of intentional practice), this 90-day rhythm gives you permission to change slowly , not reactively. What Goes Into Your Capsule Brand Here’s the full lineup of the 16 elements you’ll define. You can grab the free Capsule Brand Decision Guide I made [insert link] if you want help mapping this out. 1–4: Color Palette Lightest color (your white or background tone) Darkest color (your black or main text color) Two others that feel natural to you Pro tip: if you’re unsure, screenshot the colors you use most often, grayscale them in Canva, and look at their value  (lightness/darkness). You want contrast. Not everything should be mid-toned beige. 5: Background Texture This one sneaks under the radar. Are your backgrounds flat? Do you use gradients? Subtle textures? A crumpled sheet photo? (That’s what I use—because WorkShy is about being cozy and lazy.) Pick one , and stick with it. This tiny choice keeps your templates from looking like a design mood swing. 6–7: Fonts Title font:  This is your personality font. It can be fun, weird, expressive. Everything-else font:  Boring on purpose. Clear, legible, versatile. Pick one with multiple weights (regular, bold, italic, etc.) so you can actually format text without breaking the vibe. 8: Corner Radius Decide if your stuff has sharp corners, soft corners, or full-on pill shapes. This controls buttons, image frames, boxes—so many things. Choose once, apply everywhere. 9: Line Style Do you want: Thin lines? Thick lines? Dashed lines? Scribbly, hand-drawn ones? Choose one. Consistency makes you look intentional, even when you’re winging it. 10: Drop Shadow Sometimes you need a shadow—especially to make text readable. Choose a style and opacity level that feels right and stick with it . Shadow or no shadow—just commit. 11: Image/Video Filter If you’re editing visuals or videos, define your favorite filter or LUT (look-up table). Apply it consistently so your stuff has a “feel.” Even TikTok filters count here. Put it in your brand doc. 12–16: Pick Your Own These are the flexible five. Some examples of what you could add, depending on your branding: A pattern you use An illustration or icon style Your favorite “extra” color A specific element you love (like paper tears, scribbles, photo corners) An extra font (if you must) Just make sure these are things you actually  use often. And be specific—don’t just write “icons,” write “hand-drawn scribbly icons.” Make It Easy to Use Don’t just think about your capsule brand. Build it. In Canva or your design tool of choice, drop all these elements onto one page. Use it like a living, breathing brand book . Copy and paste from it. Reuse. Tweak. Test. Start every new Canva project by duplicating your capsule brand doc. Don’t start from scratch again. That’s how people end up with three different fonts and eight shades of pink in the same Instagram carousel. Final Thought Branding doesn’t have to feel like performance art. A capsule brand keeps things simple, clean, and consistent—even if you’re figuring it out as you go. You're allowed to change things, but do it deliberately , not on a whim. Give your brand time to breathe before you overhaul it again. You’ll learn faster, look more polished, and actually get your content done. If you want to try it, grab the [free Capsule Brand Decision Guide here] and tag me on Instagram when you finish yours. I wanna see.

Brand consistency sounds like the easiest part of branding. Pick your fonts, pick your colors, show up online every week, repeat. Right? Not even close. Most people I talk to know exactly what they’re supposed to be doing. You’ve got a brand book, or at least a rough idea. You’ve listened to all the podcasts. You’ve read all the “how to brand your business” posts. And yet… you still can’t seem to keep it together week to week. That’s not because you’re lazy. It’s because of something I call the Consistency Gap. Skip to the bits you care about! There are chapters! What’s the Consistency Gap? The Consistency Gap is the space between the version of you your brand plan expects—and the version of you who wakes up with a migraine, has a crying toddler, gets distracted by a leaky sink, or can’t focus because of anxiety. Brand consistency is built for ideal conditions. Real life doesn’t have those. We’re not consistent creatures. Energy levels shift. Focus evaporates. Life throws things at you. You can’t plan your brand the same way a corporate team of 15 does—and expect it to work. Why This Matters Your brand is supposed to be consistent across time, platforms, and touchpoints. But that model doesn’t work when you’re a one-person show, or even a small team where everything depends on your brain working properly that day. If you keep trying to run a high-capacity brand on low-capacity energy, you’re going to burn out. That’s the core of the Consistency Gap. So instead of building a brand plan for your best self, we’re going to plan around your worst. The Fix: A 4-Step Walkthrough Using My Notion Template This isn’t theoretical. I made a free Notion template that walks you through this exact process, and here’s what each step looks like: Step 1: Identify Your Consistency Gap In the template, you’ll see two columns. Left column: List everything your brand expects from you consistently. Regular Instagram posts, newsletters, YouTube, client outreach, etc. Right column: List everything that regularly gets in your way. This is where you’re allowed to whine. Be honest. Hormonal fluctuations, bad sleep, depression, screaming kids, no motivation, you name it. Why it matters: Looking at these two lists side by side makes it clear why your brand plan isn’t working. It’s not aligned with your reality. Bonus: I sometimes color-code the right column: Red = things I beat myself up for Blue = things I don’t Purple = circumstantial things out of my control This can help you spot where you’re being unfair to yourself—and what might actually be solvable. Step 2: Capacity Buckets Now take that left column of brand tasks and break each one down by type and capacity required. For example: Don’t just write “Instagram post.” Break it down into types: quote graphics, talking head reels, carousels, etc. Don’t just write “email.” Break it into “quick tip email” vs. “long-form sales email.” Then ask yourself: can I do this task on a low-capacity day? Or does it require a high-capacity version of me? The goal here is to sort all tasks into low capacity and high capacity buckets. Step 3: Evaluate What Stays From here, go down the list and be brutally honest: Does this task give me energy or drain me? Is it worth the effort? Is it crucial or optional? Can I batch it or delegate it? Anything that’s high capacity and draining and not pulling its weight? It’s either getting cut or radically adjusted. Step 4: Prioritize & Make a Plan The last part of the template helps you turn this into a usable plan: Keep only the tasks that are realistic and essential Decide which ones can be batched, delegated, or postponed Write out what batching or delegating actually looks like (what time of day it’ll happen, what systems or SOPs are needed, etc.) Create action steps to make each task feel easier or more automated Don’t overthink this part. It’s better to solve one problem well than write out a master plan you’ll never execute. Final Thoughts This process isn’t magic. You’ll still have days where things don’t go as planned. But what it does is lower the friction. You’ll start building a brand that functions on your worst day—not just your best. That’s what WorkShy is about. Low-maintenance, high-impact branding for the inconsistent human behind the brand. Download the free Notion template below. Walk through it. Don’t overachieve—just be honest. That’s the real work. 👉 Grab the free Consistency Gap Notion template here