Hello Indiana, As you know, I do a lot of coaching these days. Besides coaching teams, I also coach individuals who are freelancers, agency owners, or team leads. A common concern among these people is that they wish they wrote more. In fact, it is common for people in general to comment on the amount I write and express their desire to do the same.
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With that in mind, I thought I would share a few thoughts on how to establish a routine of writing regularly and publishing what you know.
However, before we do, I wanted to remind you about my upcoming workshop.
Fast and Budget-Friendly User Research and Testing
As I mentioned in my last email, I intend to run a workshop for those of you who struggle to make user research and testing happen. You can find out the details here, but the TDLR is that the workshop is happening over 5 online sessions starting on the 29th of April and costs £450. All sessions are recorded, so don't worry if you miss a session or two.
If you would like to attend or have questions, reply to this email, and I will do my best to help.
That said, let's get back to today's subject, starting with the basics: why write?
The Why: The Benefits of Writing
In my opinion, there are three reasons to write:
Beneficial for Your Career: Writing helps you express ideas clearly, boosting problem-solving skills. It also helps to raise your profile within the sector, which often leads to job opportunities.
Boost for Your Business: Writing is key for freelancers and agency owners. It helps share knowledge, connect with customers, and stand out in a busy market.
A Memory Aid: Writing helps solidify what you've learned, turning fleeting thoughts into concrete ideas. It's like having a conversation with yourself that you can refer back to at any time. In fact, I use my blog as a second brain to help remind me what I think on certain subjects!
Of course, you probably know all of this. You don't need to be convinced of the value of writing. Your problem is overcoming the fears associated with it. So, let's look at those.
Overcoming the Fear of Criticism
A big barrier for many is the fear that somebody will read what you have written and tear it apart. Well, here is a secret; to start with, nobody will read it. Or at least not many people, anyway. You will have ample time to practice before you become well-known enough to receive criticism.
However, even then, you can mitigate the impact of criticism by writing about your personal experience or what worked for you. As long as you don't claim to have definitive answers, you will be fine.
Of course, your biggest critic is yourself, and that can be a huge issue.
Silence That Inner Critic
In my experience, I am at my most critical when I give myself too much space to be so. In other words, if I spend too much time looking at what I have written, I tend to become increasingly critical of it. To combat this problem, I have a regimented process I use for writing. I follow the following steps based on Ernest Hemingway's wonderful quote "Write drunk, edit sober."
Write Drunk: Well, not literally unless you want to. But write your first draft without pausing to edit. Let your ideas flow freely. Write as if you were drunk and didn't care about the results.
Tidy Up: Go through your draft once, cleaning up the rough edges. You may have to delete chunks, move bits around, or expand areas to make it easier to understand. However, it is important you only do this once.
Grammar and Spelling: Use tools like Grammarly or the Hemingway App to catch errors.
Make It Scannable: Add images, headings, and bullet points to break up the text.
Publish: Share your work and never look at it again. Remember, perfection is the enemy of done.
Of course, that is all fine if you have something you want to write about. But what if you struggle for ideas?
Never Run Out of Ideas
Nothing is worse than sitting down to write. You stare at that flashing cursor and wonder what to write about. That is why I highly recommend keeping a running list of ideas to draw from.
Look around you. Inspiration is everywhere. Questions from clients, everyday annoyances, or casual conversations can spark your next piece.
And don't let your inner critic tell you it has all been said a thousand times.
Recognize Your Unique Voice
It is easy to fall into the trap of trying to find something unique to say. I can tell you now that is impossible. Everything has been said. But not in the way you would say it.
What will draw people to your writing is not what you say but how you say it. Think about this topic right now. It's not like I am the first person to talk about the challenges of writing. But, hopefully the way I talk about it resonates with you. You are subscribed to my content because you like the way I talk.
Finally, we come to the elephant in the room: procrastination.
Beating Procrastination: Set Time and Commit Publicly
To be fair, a lot of your desire to avoid writing comes down to the reasons I have already given. Address those, and you will feel more inclined to write.
However, there will always be a degree of procrastination. To combat that, I suggest two techniques.
Set a writing schedule and stick to it. A set time to write will stop other things from pushing writing down your task list.
Commit to a schedule. If you tell your subscribers you will send a newsletter every two weeks, you will be much more likely to stick to it.
Look, I recognize that writing is not for everybody, and that is absolutely fine. However, if you have a desire to write more, then don't let your fears and inner critic stop you. Writing can be one of the most useful skills to cultivate and, given time, can be incredibly satisfying too.
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