Social media is not only a great place to connect and network with other writers… it’s also a low-stakes environment to work on your writing skills.

For example, you can tell a story about something that happened to you today. You can give somebody a shout-out or acknowledge another writer. You can share a quote you liked. You can ask an insightful question. You can comment on other people’s posts. You can share what books you’re reading. You can share something you’re learning right now.

People’s greatest emotional need is to be affirmed and validated. If you make a list of all the things that make a big difference in your writing career, your writing talent is not item #1. A far more important item is the way you make people feel.

If you can make people feel good, if you can validate and affirm and encourage them through social media, you will go a long way.

Question: Can you think of an example of a social media post that impacted you or inspired to take action? How could you do the same for others by writing on social media?

The post Start Writing Today: Social Media appeared first on Daily Writer | Essential Habits for Impact & Influence.

Now that you have a basic idea of what The Writer’s Path is all about, I’d like to share my story of traveling this pathway myself.

I began blogging around 2007 or 2008. I had several blogs and was just writing for fun. I wanted to build a business but didn’t know how. I was a college professor and wanted to create more income to support my family.

Then, around 2010, I began following Dan Miller, the founder of the 48 Days brand. He emphasized building a business around your writing using multiple streams of income. I was intrigued and attended his “Write to the Bank” conference in 2012. As I continued to follow his teaching, as well as material from people like Cliff Ravenscraft, Michael Hyatt, Jeff Goins, and of course Dan Miller, I started to have a strong desire to create a business.

My first paid writing gig was writing podcast show notes for a client. That soon expanded into several clients. My business was growing slowly and I was also trying several other kinds of side businesses to see if I could make faster progress. I tried networking marketing, selling used books on Amazon, business consulting, and doing part-time church ministry. None of those were successful or greatly fulfilling.

During the same time, starting around 2015, I began writing books and hosting a podcast. Although I wasn’t making any money from those things, they gave me the desire to continue creating my own content. I saw lots of other people doing the same thing and making a great living, so I decided to keep plugging away at it.

In 2019, I was introduced to ghostwriting, which is where I have continued to focus most of my energy. As that side of my business has grown, I’ve also put a bigger focus on growing the side of my business that is the Daily Writer, which includes the podcast, a membership community, books—including the upcoming Daily Writer book—courses, and eventually, other products.

I really enjoy doing both client work and having my own material. I love having multiple streams of income. Some of them are very small right now but I think it’s important to get things started and then find ways to grow them. The Writer’s Path represents what I see others doing who are successful, as well as where I’m headed also.

My point in sharing this is to encourage you in your own journey. I believe you can do the exact same thing I have done. I’m not anyone special. I’m just highly motivated. If you feel the same motivation, you can be far more successful if you take consistent action and don’t give up.

Daily Question: What could your life and writing business be like three years from today if you took consistent action toward your goals?

The post My Story of Traveling the Writer’s Path appeared first on Daily Writer | Essential Habits for Impact & Influence.

You might know (or maybe you don’t) that about a year ago, I left my full-time job as a college professor to do ghostwriting full-time. That’s my main gig, but I also run The Daily Writer Club, which is our membership community, as well as produce this daily podcast. I also write my own books.

Most writers have a desire to make money and build either a part-time or full-time career with their writing, so we’re going to lean into this topic for a while. As I’ve thought about my own journey and examined the journey of many other writers I know who have successful businesses, I’ve distilled it down into 7 key components.

Before I give you the 7 steps, let me share with you the key idea of what this is all about:

Key Idea: The Writer’s Path is a sequential, achievable process to help you build a multi-faceted, robust writing business based on a growing network and multiple streams of income.

Let’s break this down into 7 clear steps:

1. Clarify a powerful message for a specific audience.
2. Build the platforms where you will share your content.
3. Write consistent content that helps your readers.
4. Publish and market books that solve problems for your audience.
5. Expand your network of friends, fans, and connections.
6. Create streams of income based on your writing and services.
7. Practice key habits for wellness, productivity, and success.

For the next couple of weeks, I’m going to give you an introduction to this concept of the Writer’s Path. Then, over the next few months, we will dive into each one of these steps in detail.

This material is part of a course I’m teaching right now in our Daily Writer Club, so if you’d like to dive into this material immediately and work through it with a group of positive, motivated writers, make sure to check it out by going to DailyWriterLife.com!

Daily Question: Do you want to build a business around your writing? If so, why?

The post New Series—The Writer’s Path: 7 Steps to Building a Writing Business appeared first on Daily Writer | Essential Habits for Impact & Influence.

In yesterday’s episode, we talked about the power of being a guest on other people’s podcasts. Today, we will turn the tables and talk about the importance of starting your own podcast.

Podcasting is a powerful and inexpensive way to build an audience and share your ideas. One of the big advantages of podcasting over video is that people can listen to podcasts, while they are doing other things such as walking, driving, or chores.

People also listen to podcasts for much longer than they view videos. It is not unusual for a listener to tune into a podcast for an hour or two per week. When you are “in someone’s head” for that much time, they develop an intimate relationship with you as a listener.

You don’t have to do a podcast about writing. It can be about any topic you’re interested in. Podcasting is a phenomenal way to build relationships, and establish your credibility and expertise on a topic.

Daily Question: If you started a podcast, what would you talk about, and whom would the target audience be?

The post Create Your Own Podcast appeared first on Daily Writer | Essential Habits for Impact & Influence.

Being an author in our media age isn’t just about creating books or written content. It’s also about creating a media platform that can consist of video, podcasts, and social media.

Of course, I encourage you to take advantage of all these for yourself. In addition, you can greatly increase your network if you are a guest on other people’s media platforms. The most common way to do this is by being a guest on other people’s podcasts. It’s an incredibly powerful way to borrow someone’s audience, add value to their listeners, grow your network, and share your message.

If you are a new to this strategy, find a few shows in your niche and share with the podcast host why would make a great guest. Put the focus on adding value. After you have done a few of these, you will begin to get more invitations until it eventually builds its own momentum.

In fact, you can build a great online presence if you only focus on this strategy. Being a guest on other people’s podcasts, shows, and media platforms is the easiest, cheapest, and most effective way to grow your audience.

Daily Question: What are three topics you could talk about as a podcast guest?

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