You Can’t Write

 


Teachers and contemporaries have opined that I am not a good writer. Many advisors have a low opinion of their own writing skills as well. I was fortunate to work with a group that helped me love writing. This week I’ll share what I learned. Hopefully it will encourage you to start writing ASAP. Our world has changed and the most effective approach to telling others what we know and believe is through writing on any compliance approved social media platform. The three exercises I continue to use are:



Morning Pages

Writing is a habit we can embrace through Morning Pages.  Many writers write everyday.  What they write doesn’t matter as much as writing itself.  Like any new habit you will improve each day.  I have found that I enjoy the exercise and daily writing is my runners high.  I used my best Morning Pages as chapters in my book and several blog posts.  Established writers also use their Morning Pages for TV Episodes or Movie scripts.  Even though I will never turn pro I can still shoot free throws on my backyard hoop.



Read Out Loud 

I did not enjoy  reading out load as a student, but when you read your own work the writing mistakes will become obvious. My writing training encouraged us to read over Zoom. The only rule was the people in the Zoom Room would only provide positive encouragement. This exercise was helpful and the encouragement was inspiring. We all need to read out loud to someone who can provide positive encouragement. Writing can feel lonely and  our insecurities will start to appear. Find an accepting group and read your MorningPages. 



Publishing 

We need a goal to realize our hard work. The good news is we can publish without the approval of a New York City editor. My small training group published over 40 eBooks on Amazon.  I was one of the 40+ and it was a liberating experience. The other item is publishing an eBook on Amazon is free!  My only advice is to publish. Your friends and family will be impressed and you can add author to your LinkedIn profile. My trading leader Seth Godin shared that we only need a minimum viable audience to read our new pushed book. Each of us should think about who that audience is. 


Twitter likes and Best Sellers rankings are a Pyrrhic victory. We need to write!

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