There’s something that has been bothering you. It’s like a pebble in your shoe that irritates you just enough that you think about it all the time. It intimidates you, taunts you, and won’t let you stop thinking about it.

It might be a phone call or email that you’re too afraid to send because you might be rejected. It might be a book that you’re afraid to start writing because you don’t know how it will be received. It might be the writing business that seems too daunting because you’ve never done this before.

Eleanor Roosevelt said, “You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” If you have something that intimidates you and is weighing on your mind, you must do it. You must stare it in the face and declare that it has no power over you. You’ve got to face it head-on and just get it done.

There is no other way. You will be blocked and cannot move forward until you tackle this task. It is the only pathway forward.

Daily Question: What is the one thing you think you cannot do? What are you going to do about it today?

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We deal with a lot of obstacles as writers, but one of the biggest is rejection.

Rejection can come in many forms. A publisher or agent can reject your book proposal. Your subscribers can reject your emails by not opening them. Your followers can reject your social media posts by not liking or sharing them. Readers can reject your books by not reading or buying them. Clients can reject your services by not signing a contract or ignoring your emails.

Whatever form rejection takes… it hurts. And let’s be honest, it can hurt pretty badly. Some writers never recover from it. So how can we deal with it?

J. K. Rowling offers some great advice. She said, “Resilience and humility. These go hand-in-hand, because rejection and criticism are part of a writer’s life. Informed feedback is useful and necessary, but some of the greatest writers were rejected multiple times.”

So, the next time you’re rejected, remember that all professionals get rejected sometimes. Nobody has a 100% batting average. Even major league baseball players only get a hit about a third of the time.

Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and keep going. If you’ve been rejected by someone lately, join the club. It happens to the best of us sometimes. But remember: professionals not only get rejected, they also never give up.

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It is important that you learn from other writers who can share their knowledge. In the same way, you must help other writers be more successful. There are plenty of people in your orbit who would love to achieve your level of success, whatever that might be.

Even if your only level of experience is starting a blog, there are plenty of writers who would love to learn how to do that. Don’t dismiss your skills just because they seem common. If you’ve taken time to build or create something, you can teach it to someone else.

It doesn’t mean you have to label yourself as a teacher or set yourself up as some big expert. It just means that you’re sharing what you have learned. You can do this on social media, your blog, an email newsletter, speaking, and so many other ways.

A simple but powerful way to help other writers is to host a weekly mastermind call. I have been a part of a writer’s mastermind group for years. Each week, we meet on Zoom and talk about our successes and challenges. That weekly meeting has an amazing way of encouraging my spirit.

It also helps the other writers because they have challenges of their own. The whole idea of a mastermind is to bring together like-minded people to help each other solve your problems. I can’t begin to tell you how many times over the years that a mastermind has helped me push through a problem or obstacle.

And many times, the obstacle isn’t somewhere out there… it’s in my own head. I’m my own worst enemy. But when I help other people, it gets the focus off myself and reminds me that I do have some things to teach others. If you have a brain and you can write words, you can teach others.

Somebody out there needs your knowledge, and you can change their life by sharing it with them.

The post Someone Needs Your Knowledge appeared first on Daily Writer | Essential Habits for Impact & Influence.

I am thrilled to bring you this conversation with my good friend Alex Barker. He is the founder of The Happy PharmD, a company that helps pharmacists find work that is fulfilling and inspiring. He’s also the author of the book Indispensable: The Prescription for a Fulfilling Pharmacy Career.

Because we have been involved in several of the same groups and online entrepreneur communities, I’ve known Alex for a number of years. I’ve asked him to come on the show to talk about the importance of thinking like a business owner. He’s not only a great thinker, but a humble and generous leader, as well as a fantastic coach.

Today, Alex shares about his experience as a business owner, the benefits of owning your own business, why it’s hard for creative types to think like entrepreneurs, and much more.

You can find Alex on his website, Facebook, or LinkedIn, and you can buy his book on Amazon.

The post Alex Barker: Learning to Think Like a Business Owner appeared first on Daily Writer | Essential Habits for Impact & Influence.