Starting with the end in mind. Why are you writing a book?
In the last blog post we talked about how having the courage to commit to sharing your story with the world is the first step. To be brave and to say, “Yes, I am going to do this!” If you have a story to tell that requires you to dig deep into your past – that may or may not feel comfortable – that’s okay! By simply acknowledging that you are uncomfortable is a great first step. To read the post about having courage click here.
Telling your story doesn’t mean that the book you write and the stories that you share have to be exclusively a memoir or autobiography. This is one type of book. Yours might look entirely different.
Having a book provides a strong foundation for you to build your personal brand upon. Depending on who you are, what you do and what you want to write about, will make all the difference in the world for what the end goal and purpose of your book become.
Let’s talk about what some of your end goals might look like –
- I want my book to help me get new clients
- I want my book to help me grow my business
- I want my book to help position me as a thought leader in my industry
- I want my book to provide hope and inspiration to those who read it
- I want my book to be utilized as a tool to raise money for a cause I am passionate about
Feel free to post in the comments below, what you think your end goal would be, if you were to decide today that you are going to write a book.
Having the end goal in mind while writing a book is a critical piece to the puzzle. However, the next step is to really understand the purpose of your book. Your goal and purpose might look the same but you need to dig deeper.
If your goal is for your book to position you as a thought leader in your industry, then what is your purpose? What is your ‘why’ for doing this?
Your purpose could be that you want to bring your valuable information to the masses in a way that is easy for them to understand – something no one else in your industry has gotten a grasp on. Perhaps your purpose is that you want to write the book you wish you had been able to read as a child, that may have made you feel less alone.
Regardless of your end goal and the purpose of your book, there’s no time like the present to start thinking about what you would write about. What do you stand for? What does your personal brand stand for? What do you dream your platform will stand for? Visualizing those outcomes will help you gain clarity on whether or not writing a book is the right path for you.
I truly believe anyone and everyone can and should write a book. I’ve read stats that show 8 out of 10 people want to write a book, but very few do.
So what is stopping you?
You’ve worked through your courage. You’ve decided, “Yes, I can do this!” But what is holding you back?
Many people are frozen in fear, saying things such as –
- “I don’t know where to start.”
- “I’m not an expert, why would anyone listen to me.”
- “I just don’t have enough time.”
I can assure you that whether or not you feel like an expert – there is an audience willing and wanting to listen to what you have to say. You just need to identify what your message is and what your personal brand will stand for. Once that is done – you’ll be on your way.
If you are frozen because you don’t know where to start or think writing a book is going to take you an unimaginable amount of hours, that’s where I can help!
The February 2016 class is full, but the next one starts on June 6, 2016 (with another class starting in October!) I’ve launched a live group author program where I will be walking 12 participants through the process of writing a book in 90 days. I am so excited to be helping this first class of future authors.
I’ve helped publish nearly a dozen books in the last few years and am working on eight in 2016 alone, which does not include the books from the February class of this program.
If joining a program to help you with this is not your thing, guess what? It’s all good! All throughout 2016 I will be posting new blog content that goes through the process step by step. You’ll just have to keep coming back here to find out what happens next!
In the next blog post we are going to talk about where to start. Once you have the courage to say, “Yes, lets do this!” and have your goal and purpose in mind, the next step is getting started…. Or is it? Find out here!
