How To Become A Better Writer: Connecting Well, Part 10 Of 12

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Only three left to go in the How To Become A Better Writer series! We’ve covered everything from the basics of writing through making it habitual all the way to helping other writers and becoming more known through your writing. Part 10 deals with professionally branching out, continuing to assist other writers in ways that benefit them long-term and adding value to other businesses and individuals over a lifetime.

1. How Can You Add Value To Others?

This may sound like a really easy question or a really difficult question – depending of course on your perspective of yourself and what you bring to the table. Fortunately, everyone can add value – you just need the right perspective.

Everyone can add value - you just need the right perspective. Share on X

Unfortunately, you can miss your strongest ways to add value if you aren’t in the right mindset and aren’t creating the right habits. Ask yourself these questions:

What do I find myself constantly thinking about?
What do I spend my free time on?
What could I talk about forever, if asked questions constantly?
In what area of life or the world do I clearly see room for improvement?

This last question leads us to the next section…

2. Where Do You See A Need For Improvement?

I believe everyone has the capacity to be an improvement engineer, whether through words, deeds or both.

Everyone has the capacity to be an improvement engineer. Share on X

In other words, everyone is an expert in something. We can all learn from each other because of this, since it is impossible for everyone to be an expert in everything.

We have to learn from each other because no one can be an expert in everything. Share on X

Sadly, most people get hung up before they even begin. This can happen for a number of reasons. When looking to improve the game or challenge the system, people:

Get worried that others won’t listen to their advice
Fear the results of imposter syndrome
Postpone their work due to perfectionism
Do a sloppy job just to get it done
Avoid everything altogether just to evade criticism

Have you found yourself falling for any of these traps recently? If so, don’t beat yourself up too much. We all fall for at least one of these traps a few times, if not for a season of time. It’s only human to find reasons to avoid or self-contradict one’s best work. Yet, you must press into other, more human elements of your work to truly let your potential shine.

There are a few common ways to defeat the fears of failure or success. For one, keep in mind that every role model you have once started from ground zero. That’s right – even the face and name you just pictured in your mind had to start at the very bottom at some point.

Another way to remain motivated in the toughest (and best) of times is to remember that since our world is so messed up, work is never truly finished. If we all want the ideal world we say we do, we must constantly be chasing after and building up that ideal.

3. What Bugs You?

One of the most powerful ways to keep yourself constantly motivated is to remind yourself of what frustrates you. Discomfort is one of the strongest motivators, because it prevents you from sitting forever on what’s already done.

Discomfort prevents you from sitting forever on what's already done. Share on X

Getting irritated about something that isn’t as great as it could be is often the best catalyst for long-term improvement.

4. Using Social Media And Syndication

It’s been the buzzphrase of the decade, but social media truly can expedite and grow your business efforts when used properly. There are a few keys to remember when going for long-term social media success:

Social media is an aspect of your business, not your business itself.
Lean on experts when need be. They got results through certain actions, and if they’re reputable, you can repeat their patterns to get similar results.
Social media is ideal for drawing people in, starting conversations and keeping conversations going.
There is always more to learn. Never assume you know everything.

There is always more to learn. Never assume you know everything. Share on X

Another fantastic social media resource that is only growing in popularity is Thunderclap.it. This is a free “newsblast” resource that authors, entrepreneurs, filmmakers and more can use to share the launch of their product or service. For every person who agrees to allow Thunderclap to promote your campaign and access their social media account for one day, their software will make a post on their Facebook account to further leverage public attention for your campaign.

5. Finding Likeminded People

Just like I mentioned in How To Become A Better Writer: Community Action, Part 9, branching out and finding likeminded people is a boon to all elements of your business:

It keeps you encouraged as you battle uphill with goals
You can learn from people who have already produced the results you want
You’re more likely to experience exponentially-increasing momentum in your current phase of business

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6. Find Fellow Movers And Shakers

Finding influential figures, even if they are influential on a smaller scale, is necessary if you want to become a leader within writing. Leadership is all about influence, and influence is all about having an audience that likes, knows and trusts you.

Leadership is all about influence. Share on X

Here are some tips for finding fellow movers and shakers:

Examine the top 10 influencers you like and follow, and then examine who follows them
Look for individuals who are a bit further than you but not as far as the original list of your top influencers
Look for people who have the same general voice as you – whether academic, conversational, prophetic, relaxed or precise (the more people you find who share your voice, the more likely you’ll all be able to collaborate)

Here are a few tips for becoming more influential:

Constantly give your audience more value than they are expecting
Dive into meaningful conversations with those who want to hear more from you
Look for ways to offer content that no one else is offering
Go against the grain – especially if the grain is not a good standard
Connect with people who want what you offer
Provide more in quality and quantity than those around you (be so good they can’t ignore you)

7. Offer More Than Is Expected

As shared above, going above and beyond for all you meet is an essential part of both successful business and excellent ethics.

Double the quality and length of what you’d normally offer for free
Give people truth, authenticity and justice – these traits are so lacking in our world that anyone who exhibits them is automatically unique
Ask people what they want, then overdeliver
Give people unexpected gifts
Provide four times as much free content as you do paid content
Make your free content incredible so your paid content blows the mind

Check out this article on how to triple your results within the workplace or your career.

8. Where Have (Fill In The Blank) Writers Never Gone Before?

What type of writer are you? Once you’ve answered this question, you can look into what types of works writers similar to you have accomplished. The reason for this is so you can more accurately assess new ground to break. In other words, the best writers aren’t necessarily the ones with the most memorable sentences or even the largest sales numbers – they’re the ones who create unexpectedly powerful work in familiar areas.

The best writers are the ones who create unexpectedly powerful work in familiar areas. Share on X

What are you dying to hear or see in your particular niche? What itch are you looking to have scratched? What type of statements, observations and truths are you waiting to hear breathed to life on your stomping grounds? As a writer, be that person – you will be highly fulfilled and your readers will thank you.

9. How Can You Make Your Work Consistent?

In order to get noticed as a writer (or as an anything), you have to be consistent. You have to show up day after day, week after week, month after month and year after year. The world is so saturated in information and options that unless you’re highly engaging for the right reasons, people who would otherwise be your readers and subscribers will go elsewhere.

In order to get noticed as a writer, you have to be consistent. Share on X

In order to make your work so consistent you regularly stand out to faces new and old, ask yourself these questions:

What type of work do I want to accomplish?
Are there people who are seeking solutions to painful problems within my desired scope of work?
Where do they hang out? What websites do they go to? Who do they look to for help?
How can I meet their needs? (Not their wants or their wishes; their needs)
How can I connect with them in a personal way that is above their standards of expectation?

10. How Do You Best Connect With Others?

In order to make a lasting impact on people and what they perceive themselves to be capable of, you have to connect with them first. But in order to connect with them, you have to stand out. We just covered how to be consistent enough to stand out to new people above, but we didn’t talk as much about how to know your strengths in connecting with people.

In order to connect short- and long-term with others, you have to be authentic. Share on X

In order to connect, you have to be yourself. People won’t be interested in what you can offer if you aren’t being yourself; they’ll also notice if you’re secluded or stiff. You have to be completely free to be your normal self if you’re going to connect well and be memorable. So, what are the practical sides of this?

What stands out to me? What do I find useful and valuable?
What are the solutions that mean the most to me?
What websites can I go to to find likeminded people? Where do people go when they want solutions similar to those I seek?
What have people said I do well? When have people said they’ve seen me at my best?
How do my skills overlap with these areas of solutions? How do my innate abilities overlap with problems people want and need solutions for?