So, you hang back. You pretend to go get something to drink or use the restroom. But really, what you’re doing is hiding—all because you don’t think you have anything worthwhile to say.

We do this with our writing, too. We hang back, because we see so many other books getting published or having success. We see people launching podcasts and writing articles and being busy on social media.

And we swallow the lie that we have nothing to add.

Don’t believe it for a second. You have your story, your insights, your knowledge, and wisdom. You have so much to add to the conversation.

And it’s not even so much about the opportunity, it’s also about responsibility. You owe it to others to add to the conversation. Part of “paying rent” as a human being on planet Earth, part of the responsibility of being alive, is that you contribute to the human experience. If you had nothing to offer, you wouldn’t be here to begin with.

So get busy sharing your voice. Don’t hide in the shadows. We need you in the conversation.

Daily Question: What can you do today to add to the conversation?

The post Add to the Conversation appeared first on Daily Writer | Essential Habits for Impact & Influence.

So many aspiring authors never write their books because they are always worried about what people will think. Will their book be “good enough” (whatever that means)? What will their family or friends think? Will their friends from high school ten, twenty, or thirty years ago think they are still cool?

I say, “Who cares about all that?” Those people don’t matter in your journey as a writer. Here’s who does matter: the reader out there who is waiting for you to finish your book so they can read it.

We think about a book as a one-to-many communication, but it’s one-to-one. People read as individuals, not as a group. It’s that one reader who just lost their child, who is going through a divorce, who is thinking about taking their own life, who wonders if anybody understands what they’re going through.

THAT is the one you’re writing for—the person who is tired of spending all their energy keeping up their appearances and just wants someone to be honest and authentic about their life. They are looking for connection with another human.

Whether you write fiction or nonfiction, don’t worry about what the imaginary crowd thinks. Just think about what your reader thinks, and imagine how they are going to love what you are delivering to them through your book.

Daily Question: Are you concerned about what your family and friends think about your writing? Why?

The post The One You’re Writing For appeared first on Daily Writer | Essential Habits for Impact & Influence.