Five Reasons Your Article Doesn’t Work, And How To Fix It

November 16, 2015 by jennifer mcgahan Leave a Comment

Can you write your way out of a lost cause?

How long do you stay stuck before abandoning your work?

Many writers or content creators ask themselves these questions sooner or later. Do you try to salvage a project gone bad? Or should you drop it and work on something “more productive?”

Picture this: you start writing something, an ebook, a blog post, or story. You believe you have a great idea. You dive in, maybe even devote a week or two to the project before it begins to dawn on you… It’s not working.

Very soon, the curtain of gloom falls over the whole thing. You start thinking, “This is never going to work.”

Then self doubt sets in. You begin to wonder what made you think it was a good idea in the first place…

You can’t get the thing to stick together. No matter how many angles you approach it from, it just won’t gel! You even have an outline or a mind map guiding your creative process, but when you put the words down, it falls short. Either it feels hollow, like something’s missing; or your draft is uncontrolled, as if you have a tiger by the tail.

The Problem: Three Common Reasons Writers Want to Quit

Where did the love go? Let me count the ways. These are the most common situations in which I second-guess the quality of my article, and my ability and desire to finish it. Can you relate to any of these?

You decided the project wasn’t needed anymore. You started researching, and discovered that the topic had been covered thoroughly. You can’t see the value in adding your voice to the lexicon of knowledge already out there, and you lost confidence in your ability to add newness or charisma to the subject. Maybe you realize the project is similar to another completed piece of content you already have. Why bother?

You got totally embroiled in it. At the onset, you believed it was an interesting topic you could write about, but then discovered it was a little too personally demanding. Your involvement pulled your life off course, as if you had embarked on a journey that was too long and required more commitment than you were able to give. Maybe your topic was too large; you had trouble breaking it down into do-able chunks, and couldn’t see the finished project in a completed form. No amount of editing could streamline this hot mess. It simply got away from you and you’re ready to cut the cord.

You had a fast start but you lost interest. You’re so bored, you can’t even stand to work on the project. You wonder how you can expect your readers and viewers or listeners to stay with you. Your distaste for the project rears up every time you sit down to your computer. Bleh.

The terrible truth: You’ve already invested a ton of time…

If only it were easier to walk away! The thing that always gets me when I’m feeling any of the above, is the time I’ve invested. Even when you know a blog post (or a scene, or ebook, or an entire chapter of a book) is a lost cause, it’s natural to want to save at least some of your hard work. The words “Kill your darlings!” chants loudly in your mind, but dang, it’s difficult!

Five Questions to Ask Yourself Before Throwing In the Towel

What you may want to ask is “Should I cut my losses now and start something new, or am I just quitting?” Neither of those extremes is usually the reality, and neither of those questions is productive! Don’t go there yet.

Before you delete the whole shebang and walk away, or file it under “Ideas” somewhere deep on your hard drive, you need to get some perspective. Here’s my thought process when I get lost in the woods with my writing. Instead of feeling like a loser, and cowering to that voice saying you were never meant to write anything more involved than a grocery list, you need to ask yourself a few specific and constructive questions about your project. (Key word is “constructive!”)

Most of all, beware self sabotage that comes from a) abandoning a perfectly good concept before it’s complete, or b) wasting any more time on a pice of content that’s doomed to fail if you’re not objective.

Putting these ideas down on paper helped me get my arms around what feels like a desperate situation when I’m in it. I ask myself these five questions when I’m stuck in the muck. Maybe they will help you, too.

1. First, ask yourself if the “Good Idea” was legitimately good.

What was it at the outset that made you think so, and what changed?
What was the purpose of the piece in the first place?
Was it a problem you identified that needed solving?
Was it a story you wanted to share about an experience you had, or that your company or customers had?
Was it an enlightening or heartwarming tale, or groundbreaking expose?
What was it about the project that had you excited about it when you started?
Do you still believe in these kernels of inspiration?

Get back to that place where it all began and ask yourself if you still feel it.

2. Whom does it serve? You, or your readers?

Has this ever happened to you? You want to solve a problem, so you assume it’s a problem others need solving, too. (I’d say about half of my good ideas start from problems I’m having in business or in life.) The investigator in you wants to get to the bottom of the issue, so you dig in to find the answers. This, you think, is something you should write about. As long as you’re discovering the truth about fill-in-the-blank, you will share the wealth of information with your readers.

Not so fast! If a topic has easy answers, then you may not be adding to the common good by writing about it. Instead of writing, perhaps you should simply read about it, take stock of the solutions for your own personal use, and then get back to the business of adding value for your readers and clients. Regurgitating information from dozens of well-read articles doesn’t help anyone. There’s no harm in linking to these articles, however, as you write content that includes your personal viewpoint on the issue.

Also, save the more introspective pieces for your journal, or at least until you have enough distance to provide wisdom and perspective. To write about problems too soon just takes you swirling down to that icky place. You need to resolve certain issues before you can be any help to someone else. You’re probably not ready for publication when your feelings are too raw, or if you are currently in the heat of the battle.

3. Do you know enough about the topic to write about it?

If you answer NO to this question, don’t worry, it’s not a deal breaker. Sometimes the best articles come about because you’re curious about a subject and decide to learn about it. (See above.) The question that matters is, are you willing to do the research?

Furthermore, how does your knowledge or interest affect the tone you want to convey? If you know a lot about a subject firsthand, you can write without doing much research. It comes from the heart, like this article did for me, in fact. Sure, you might have to find supporting articles to link to, but the original idea rolls out easily for you.

But if you need to go looking for answers from other experts, then you’re in for a double whammy. Not only must you find resources, but make sense of them, and compile facts and ideas into a cohesive piece of writing. It takes more work and time, but I’ve found so often it’s worth it. If you’re naturally curious by nature, as most writers are, it’s a good fit.

Other times, when you find you’re having trouble writing about something, you need to assess whether your curiosity is enough to keep the fire lit until the very last word. When a project isn’t working, it could be because you just don’t know or care enough about it. Sad but true.

4. Does it fit with your goals?

You get to choose what to write about! That’s the good news. Assuming that you’re not freelancing for businesses and industries you hate; or only writing on assignment for a job, then you do have some leeway on your topics. If you’re writing for your own business or pleasure, or if you’re involved in the content editorial process in any way, then you definitely need to evaluate the purpose of your content piece before you start writing. Your time and resources are an investment, so spend them wisely!

Every business owner has pet projects they want to finish, but the content you are creating for your own business really needs to achieve some end. Either it must draw new readers; teach or entertain your current readers; or it must move your business forward in some way. If your work does none of the above, and you begin to sense that it’s wasting your time, then you’ll find it difficult to stick with it when the going gets rough.

You want to see that your work meets your goals, either professionally or personally. If not, then it’s easy to become resentful of the time and effort it’s taking to finish it.

You’re far more likely to abandon work if you can’t see the point of it. Now that I’m working on a novel (my first attempt after decades of writing nonfiction), I ask myself all the time if the scene helps a character achieve his or her goals or if it has any purpose to move the story forward.

This is the question every business blogger or content creator should ask, too.

In a business, each piece of content should have a distinct purpose. Does this ebook or blog post further your business goals? Does it contribute to the “plot,” or story of your business in any way? If the answer is no, you should probably ditch it. If yes, then find the first thing about it that has meaning. You might even write that down and keep it front and center while you’re writing.

What is the end goal? Don’t lose sight of it. If you have to put a sticky note at the top of your screen to remember it, then do that. Some examples of content goals you might write:

This article, (Title), will attract the ideal client to my website because it solves this initial problem and helps them see that I am the obvious solution to their woes. An appended web form will invite them to learn more.
This ebook will convince a reader that my method of doing (whatever you do) is clearly the way to be successful. They will naturally want to attend my next class or read my next book, and these links will be included in the ebook.

A content calendar or roadmap clarifies topic ideas. If you’re stuck, your mind should be clear on one overarching thing … the health and growth of your business. Every choice you make, including how you spend your writing time, contributes or detracts from your success. If your writing time is wasted, then your business is probably not going to do very well.

When you stumble, stop and ask yourself, if I had to feed this baby (this blog, this business, my readers) one more day to keep it alive and help it thrive, what one thing would I do, write, or post? What is the goal?

Is your article time sensitive? — Hands hold clock with gears. Blue background

5. Is your project time sensitive?

Time is the great equalizer; everyone is working with the same 24 hours. When you’re stressed about time constraints, your heart palpitates every time you look over the cliff of your failing project. Ask yourself these questions to help you decide whether to continue working on that difficult project. Trendy topics can be the most interesting to your readers, so add some weight to your consideration if the content is trending. (In other words, don’t miss out on a hot topic!) If you’ve already put in some good energy on a topic people are currently talking and reading about, then consider giving that last push to the finish.

Ask yourself:

Are you on a deadline?
Is someone else depending on you to finish?
Does completion of this project impede the progress of the next one?
Does your project cover a topic that is trending now, or does it have sticking power for the long term?

Shoot your sights far ahead of where you are today, this week or this month. If you can let the project simmer, even for a few sleeps, then do so!

But if you are on a deadline, or if the topic has a definite shelf life, then you have a decision to make; whether it is better to start over, or if you can work with any original kernels of greatness and restart your engine.

Sometimes you don’t have a choice but to pour it on. It’s the old college effort… just write something you can turn in.

Ok, so your content idea may not seem to be working now. Step back and ask yourself these five questions I shared with you, and don’t lose hope… That great idea you were so gung ho to work on, may only need some tweaking.

The next blog post addresses how to mentally regroup and rewrite your content – if necessary. It’s all part of the content writing process. Don’t give up!

Ever notice how some people always seem to crank out interesting content that appeals to their readers and customers? If you want to write content more easily, head over to the Content Quiz and find out how you can streamline the whole content creation thing. Click the image below to get started.

take the content quiz — Take the content quiz, where bloggers and solopreneurs get insight into their content strategy.

The Peril In Waiting Your Turn, Plus Ten Tips To Make Your Move

September 21, 2015 by jennifer mcgahan 4 Comments

“Going from ‘Why me?’ to ‘Why not me?’ is an important switch you need to make to be an entrepreneur.”

John Lee Dumas’ podcast Entrepreneur on Fire’s guest Edwin Havens suggests that being an entrepreneur requires a change in thinking.

While it sounds simple, that recognition really is the pivot point that changes everything because it leads to action. You can’t be an entrepreneur if you’re not taking action almost every day.

“Why not you? Why not now?” I believe most people would take action if they were more comfortable with imperfect action. Yet, most beginnings are clumsy, painful, and awkward.

No one ever really makes a deliberate decision NOT to act; usually the opportunity just “slips by” one second, maybe five seconds too late. Maybe, while you were working up your nerve, the elevator door opened and everything changed. Maybe once, your boldness was either punished or ignored. As you’re contemplating that memory, opportunity walks on by.

The good news is that opportunities come around all the time. With the right mindset, opportunity is a never-ending flow. Taking a ride on the opportunity highway is like pulling into a busy street. You watch for enough space — again — then you make your move.

My college friend, as less cautious driver than me, used to inform me from the passenger seat, “You could have turned a hundred times.” And many times, she was right.

There will always be opportunity to act on your entrepreneurial idea, pitch a business, test a small group, take your first client, practice out your chops, or sell your product. Always. The problem comes when we wait for an invitation to do it, or we don’t hustle to achieve it.

Timing is everything. Doors are always opening, yes, but they don’t stay open too long. If your heart is set on something, you’re going to have to move fast and push your way in. Nudge politely, have fun, and respect others (you know all that) but DO expect an initial jolt when you enter the flow.

Expect an inelegant entrance as you announce your presence and give yourself permission to do something uncomfortable. Then put the pedal down so you don’t get run over. Once you’re moving, things start to become more fun. There’s truth to the axiom about apologizing later, so forget about the awkward beginning.

It’s hardly fair to tell this story, because my daughter was so young, only about 8 or 9 years old, when it occurred, . I tell it because it’s as much my story, too.

Permission to Ride

Katie wanted to ride the big water slide at Sea World. She was tall enough, and brave enough; just young. Unfortunately, I was stranded on the ground, so I couldn’t go with her. Her two much younger brothers possessed neither the height nor the desire to slide, so I weighed the options, then decided to let her out of my sight to go on the water slide alone. It meant standing alone in a long line with strangers, most of whom were older than she. Katie gamely agreed.

With dumb trust in the Universe to take care of the situation, I watched my daughter get in the long line. After a few minutes she disappeared, folded into the crowd inside a multi-level bungalow of sorts, winding its way in queue to the top.

While admiring my child’s bravery and adventuresome spirit, I knew that while waiting at the bottom of the slide, I’d be wondering how she was doing, if she was glad she made the decision to go alone, and if she was having fun.

[Go ahead and judge my parenting skills if you like, but functioning as a single mom in public places, the facts are plain. If any of my kids were going to have any fun at all growing up, we had to let go of each other and venture into the world. I know many mothers who would never let their kids out of their sight at an amusement park; but I’m not a fearful mother by nature. My oldest was always self sufficient and comfortable in her skin. She didn’t care for my hovering and, thank goodness, I’m not a hoverer. Thank you, Lenore Skenazy, for the blessing of your blog Free Range Kids.]

So we waited for 45 minutes at the bottom of the slide, watching for her to emerge from the slide into the small pool below. Suddenly, Katie appeared behind us. She was approaching from the stairs where I left her almost an hour ago.

She told me the park employee had turned her away at the top of the steps because she was in the wrong line. Seems there were two lines. One with tubes, and one without. Katie was in the tube line, next to the equally-long queue of sliders without tubes.

Instead of letting her slide in the no-tube line, the idiot monitoring the crowd at the top simply told her “Wrong line. Can’t slide.”

Really?? Where was that benevolent adult or teenager — the one I would be if I saw a kid wanting to slide but who happened to have chosen the wrong line? Why couldn’t someone up there see that she should be allowed to simply transfer to the other line and slide on down. Like everyone else, she waited for 45 freaking minutes!

With no one to advocate for her, she descended the same steps, going against the foot traffic all the way down, and came to find us.

Mamas get angry when kids aren’t given a fair shot. It’s worse when you’re not there to stand up for them. Instead of anger or injustice, some kids just feel sad and hurt. Katie was embarrassed, but didn’t seem to be as upset as I was. She had had her adventure, so I knew I had to let my frustration go.

“It sucks being little.” That’s what I told her. I also told her the guy was a jerk, which did no good. I gave her a hug.

Childhood hurt can last a long time and increase your fear of stepping out again. As her mother, it opened my eyes, too, and provoked the protective Mama Bear in me. Although Katie never stopped being the independent, adventurous, strong and flexible girl I admired; today I see that her skills include outmaneuvering the system by being smarter, quicker and adept at timing her moves; instead of confronting it head on.

Ten years later, I don’t credit this one incident to her mental and social agility, but I do notice how people develop skills that can be traced back to the way they handled things as children.

The Polite Rule-Followers’ Plight.

Polite and Plight, similar sounding words. Hmmm.

There are many ways to overcome an unfair situation, and to flip the switch from “Why is this happening to me?” to “I’m going to make this happen for me.” You have your special gifts for doing that, hardwired into your personality.

The ones I truly feel for are the people who neither confront, nor outsmart, nor sneak around the conventions of society. They are the beautiful, polite souls that accept unfair, unspoken rules — the ones that allow everyone (and no one) permission to stand out.

I can’t help getting pissed off when I see or hear of the breathtaking talent of people who are settling for a position in life that is beneath them.

An experienced and intelligent writer providing ghost blog posts for practically free, or a penny a word on elance. (Rubbish, by the way… don’t ever do that more than once.)
A songwriter who has not shared his songs with actual musicians because no one’s ever exactly “invited’ him to write for them.
A writer who fills journals with her ideas and stories, yet never starts a blog or publishes an ebook because she’s not sure she’s good enough or “doesn’t have the time.”
The entrepreneur/artist who has a dozen good ideas every week, but works at the big box home improvement store and tinkers in his garage every night instead of bringing his projects to light.

What’s shocking about these examples is the placid acceptance with which some folks view their “fate.”

Listen, we’ve all had that feeling of being devastated by a past failure. Just like my daughter’s experience of waiting for what seemed like forever (at least to me, down below) on narrow, dark steps only to be turned away as soon as she came out into the light. In spite of my incredulity of the situation, Katie tried something brave that day and lived to tell.

Everyone gets the opportunity to feel let-down when they’re young. In fact, i’s better to get acquainted with it when you’re young than to be blindsided when you’re older. Maybe you were cut from your team, blew your audition for the school play, or later in life, passed over for a promotion you deserved. It’s a charmed childhood (and motherhood) that doesn’t include the sting of rejection, but we all live through it and become stronger in the long term. I’ll always remember the tears of a colleague, the mother of a thirteen-year-old who was the only kid in her class not invited to a party. “You’ll understand when you’e a mom.”

And so I do. But even though those moments cut to the bone, you MUST try again.

Permission is a joke

I honestly don’t believe that other people intend to be mean. Everyone is dealing with their own stuff all the time. People are generally good; most are just trying to get along in this big old world the same as you.

Still, if you’re not careful, it’s easy to put too much credence into someone’s behavior or reaction to you. As I tell my kids — crassly, so they remember — “Don’t ever let anyone pee on your dream.”

Women probably do this to themselves more than men. We buy into the belief that we “read people better.” Then we read too much into “clues” about their opinions of us. We often misinterpret subtle facial expressions or careless words, giving them so much more meaning than we should.

I don’t want to change the system or even fix the perpetrators of injustice. There will always be more thoughtless people than heroes. The trick — the joy — is to live and thrive among them with the stronger core, the more stable character. The secret is to remind that little child inside you, of your power.

Your missions is to live your glorious life. You must never sit around and wait for someone to hand you your own power on a plate. It is already inside you.

Everything else is detail, circumstances, and trivia.

_______________

The Strength of an Elephant

When a baby elephant is still small and weak, elephant trainers tie it to a tree so that it cannot pull its leg free from the rope, nor tug against the strength of the tree. They know that the animal will tug until it’s tired, then give up in exhaustion.

Over the years, the elephant gets bigger and stronger; certainly strong enough to pull down any tree to simply walk away from it. But it never does that. The now-grown elephant stands obediently tied to the tree because it’s never tested the tree after the first few attempts as a baby elephant.

It accepts its bondage as the truth.

People are likely to do the same thing unless we continually test our limits. Maybe you can see very well that others are achieving things you want to do. I admit, many times I look around and see others’ successes and think, “Hey, I could do that. I should do that. Do I even want to do something like that? How would I make that happen?”

Then (and here’s the icky part) sometimes before I even know it, my imagination comes up with excuses why it’s different for them. She has support I don’t have. He’s has more freedom to travel. She’s younger; has lived here longer; doesn’t struggle with this or that issue, pain, heartache, etc. All bullshit.

The devil loves it when you forget your power and stand there encumbered by bogus baggage that you invented. Before you know it, you’re tossing in a sea of excuses, while those others are on solid ground, clearing the way to make things happen.

The worst excuse you can possibly invent is the one that says, basically, it’s not your turn yet — or some variation of it:

This isn’t my time.
The world isn’t ready for this.
I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes.
This other thing needs to be done first.
I need more experience.
I’ve only been at this for ten years. Five more years and then I can do that.
As soon as I get new carpets, fix my teeth, lose thirty pounds… then I’ll go for it.
After the youngest is finished with school…

I know this internal discussion intimately, by the way. I also know that, as Mother Teresa said,“Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.” It pays to remind yourself every day why you’re doing those small moves, and to keep a watchful eye on every door that swings open. It could be the next one you should go through.

Whatever you do, don’t just sit it out for awhile. Stay engaged and be ready.

Whether you are ready to pounce, or are using your extreme mojo to take small steps (often the more difficult path); be ready to act. Your opportunity to step out of line is always at hand. The extraordinary possible.

When you decide to make your move, remember this:

Never let others’ self consciousness, ignorance, fear, or negativity dictate your value. It’s their problem, not yours. In more cases than not, their sour attitude doesn’t even reflect their beliefs! I think a lot of people simply don’t feel good. Their frowns are due to a rock in their shoe, or indigestion, or something they heard on the news… something that has nothing to do with you! Once you start looking at others this way, you’ll be amazed how the world changes. You actually start feeling sympathetic toward negative people. At the very least, you can veer away from them without getting scathed.

Know that you are worthy. If you put in the work, the hours, the energy, or planning… heck even if you just have a dream that you are daring enough to share with someone; It’s enough to start the wheels in motion. Your truth is as true as others’ truth.

Don’t settle for someone else’s NO. Accept that some people will never see things from your point of view; how could they? That’s exactly why you must persist in the truth of your point of view.

Learn and follow the rules in order to get your ticket to play. Especially at the beginning. Sometimes the biggest barrier to entry is simply filling out an application. For goodness sake, buck up and do this work! Set up your profile, build your website, register for the course, etc. This is the easy stuff. Anyone can do it. That’s exactly why it filters out the players from the rest. If you can’t do the little stuff to get your toe in the door, you probably won’t be able to handle the bigger problems that come from bigger rewards. You must be willing to take the first steps.

No complaining. If you must complain, write it down and throw it away. I have journals from my past completely full of hopes, dreams… and complaints. Now I know now why the good parts didn’t win out. Hopes and dreams cannot exist side by side complaints. As soon as I stopped exploring the ways other people hurt me, and the way I could never measure up, things started to change for me. A few years ago, I made a decision to change and set upon a deliberate refusal to contaminate my plans, thoughts, actions, written goals, and stories with crap.

I am not a ray of sunshine every minute of the day, for sure, but now I take a moment (sometimes even a day or two) to acknowledge the dark clouds. Then I force them away with a prayer, or an act of kindness, or a written plan. If you’re prone to complaints, take action against it. Replace it with something different. You are stronger than your complaints. You will overcome it.

Don’t blame another person who doesn’t get you. It’s not their fault they don’t get you. By the way, the people closest to you are often the ones who “don’t get you” the most. Forgive them.

Appreciate your weirdness. It’s your blessing. God made you that way. Thank him daily.

Not right away, maybe. Many beginners have a flurry of beginner’s luck, a comfortable, warm current in which they can do no wrong. I hope you are lucky in this way. This will keep you moving forward until you get smacked down the first time. The memory of that first bliss of success is usually enough to whet your appetite to stick with it. But be ready. Success, especially that which comes from beginner’s luck, never lasts.

Know that once you start, you will be met with opposition. Crazy stuff will happen to throw you off course. There will be a hurricane, or a sickness, or a car crash. This stuff isn’t “speaking to you.” Don’t ascribe meaning to it. It will seem like the Universe is against you, but it’s not. If you lean toward that way of thinking, the more accurate truth is that you are probably on the right course when all that crap starts “happening to you.”

More likely, you will encounter resistance from yourself and from others. (I’m only addressing the subject of resistance from others here because self-sabotage is a whole ‘nuther thing!) When you meet resistance you’ll have, you’ll have three choices.

Push back, move on to the next person, or give up completely.

1. Pushing back: Have you ever known the pleasure of changing someone’s mind? Me neither.

Minds don’t change like a chameleons’s colors. Everyone brings their history, prejudices and personalities to the table in any meeting of minds. You can rarely change minds completely (only a control freak wants to!) but you can, however negotiate a mutual agreement that allows everyone to get some of what they came for.

The best outcomes serve both parties better than each’s original plan. So, at least sometimes, be open to a plan B…

Unless, in your mind, there is no plan B.

2. If negotiation is impossible, then move on.

Some dreams, missions, and ideas are just too important to dice up. If your goal, as you define it, matters a lot, negotiation may not be an option.

In that case, moving on is your only choice. Move on to the next person, the next bank, the next angel investor, the next publisher, the next house, the next phone number, or even the next friend.

3. Lastly, of course, you can turn around and go back where you came from. Giving up is better than not trying at all, and some days there may be very good reasons for doing so. No judgment here. Only hugs. But I hope you try again.

A related note: Your past is gone. If it was amazing, I’m happy for you, but it’s still gone. Poof. You may personally and professionally identify yourself by your experiences; attribute great value to them and allow them to determine your future. Many people cling to the past with certainty, but it’s no more real than the future. You may argue that you have bruises to show for your troubles, but in fact, the punch or the fall, whatever cased the bruise, was yesterday. You have so much more than a bruise now; you have the knowledge of what came before it and what came after. You may choose to wear your bruise out into the open today, to cast your past cares aside, to dissociate with them and walk away.

It’s your choice.

Finally, whatever you do, don’t wait for permission from someone else. I know, I said that already. If most of your life is spent waiting for permission from people who hold power over your actions, then think about changing your situation. Decide whether their permission has any effect on your well being; for example, your ability to make and keep friends, obtain food and shelter, raise your family, your desire to pray, etc. If so, rethink their power over you.

_________

“You have no power over me.”

One of the best movie lines ever is from Labyrinth — that movie with David Bowie as the Goblin King. The young princess battles the evil king’s spell and deals with all of his trickery. For hours she navigates his twisted Labyrinth with grace and persistence, until she finally meets him face to face.

After one last offer from the King, she finally realizes her righteousness and stands up to him, saying,

“My will is as strong as yours, and my kingdom is as great. You have no power over me.”

I love the way she performs this line. She says it with wonder and conviction. At the exact same moment she owns them herself, the words fall from her lips, ending the fantasy. She gets her baby brother back and returns to real life. (Never mind that David Bowie just promised to be her slave.)

Try saying the words aloud. It’s actually fun.

Your Real and Fantastic Life

The wonder of childhood stays with some of us for a long time. We remember the stories, people and places from our early years because they had so much power of us when we were kids. Sometimes too much power.

Oddly, when I retell the Sea World story to Katie, she insists she doesn’t remember it with as much gravitas as me. She got over it pretty quickly, in fact.

I was the one hurt. Somewhere, certainly, I was turned back from something I wanted to do. my fearless parenting was not rewarded with a triumphant child. Seeing my child stumble through it brought my claws out. I admit that even now, after I know Katie’s OK, and probably even stronger for that tiny set-back, the incident pulls a fierce reaction from my gut.

I work with entrepreneurs and business owners and other self-made people. They’re my favorite kind, these folks; all misfits in the best sense of the word. Being super sensitive to others who have this same misfit quality, I encourage you to fortify yourself against any established powers-that-be that get in the way of a friend, acquaintance, or child with a big vision.

While it’s perfectly lovely to be patient and polite, there comes a time when you have to step on it and pull out into traffic. Remember, the cross traffic does not stop. No one driving by will ever invite you to ride; they may even advise you to turn back… And that, my friend, is totally unacceptable.

Out of Steps:Flickr CC, Kara Javi

Circus Elephant: Flickr CC, Angela N.

Carp: Flickr CC, Ashley Van Haeften

One Insanely Predictable But Effective Move For Business Building Success

April 17, 2015 by jennifer mcgahan Leave a Comment

In early February I saw a Facebook post written by an acquaintance that read something like, “OMG, I am simply beside myself with a great idea, can’t sleep, so excited, etc.” While others were congratulating her, I felt pity.

I felt her pain because I know she is in the throes of business building. You know how it is when you’re molding your business. The ups and downs are part of the landscape. If you’re like most, your restless, creative mind brings disorder as well as inspiration.

The Curse of Creativity

Don’t you wish it would stop? There are times I’ve thought, “If one more great idea comes furiously flapping in my face like a bat looking for food on a moonless night, I just might go crazy. While I’m grateful for sparks of creativity, my left brain is thinking, “No thank you very much to new ideas. Can we all just get back to work?”

For the past few years, I’ve made it my New Year’s tradition to choose two words to frame the coming year. It’s April already, and they’re still firmly stuck to my steering wheel and framed on my desk, so I haven’t given up. But I tell you, these are hard words to live by when you’re prone to great ideas.

The theory behind the year’s word choice is this: I force myself to choose two exclusive words, one to internalize and one that inspires action (sometimes a very specific action). Just seeing the two words one on top of the other, reminds me of the brutal importance of editing.

Editing, cutting things out, saying “No” to stuff… is not easy.

If you want to accomplish anything in twelve months, you must say no to a lot of alluring prospects. If you’re honest, you probably have some excellent choices on your table. The trick is choosing whom to listen to, and what to build. Editing is more difficult than writing. Just ask any writer.

I was stymied the whole month of January, I admit. Hogtied and buzzing with new ideas after a professional, spiritual and personal shake-up mid month, I knew this was Officially Not Good. While the self-created upheaval provided an exhilarating start to the new year, I realized I had been hoping and expecting a different kind of year. You know, the kind where you’re just pedaling consistently hard; not having too much fun, not pinching yourself with disbelief, just plodding forward. It’s why I chose these strong words in the first place. Listen. Build. Ugh.

What happened, right at the get-go, was a bit of a boondoggle of my own making. “Uh oh,” I thought for a second, “Maybe I could change my words to ‘Play’ and ‘Pray.’” I quickly decided it’s no fair changing my Words of the Year. That would be a sign of drama, which I’ve sworn off for good. If I were to see these words bear any fruit, I would have to buckle down and quit changing channels.

And anyway, they were already on my steering wheel.

So I’m (still) committed. The lightning strikes of creativity are beginning to lose their power over me. This doesn’t mean I did not act on some of these ideas raining down. But I didn’t run in every direction trying to catch them all, either. Instead I continued doing my usual work, while allowing them to fall to the ground.

My commitment to listen meant that I had to personally “check in” when something made an impression, but not lift a finger or move in its direction until I had bounced it up against these 15 decision-making guidelines and talked it over with a friend or colleague.

All that patient listening will have an impact on the “building” part of it, which will be coming right along in Q2. I can feel it.

pouncing on a great idea — Red Fox hunting on Prince Edward Island, Canada

Creativity’s Evil Twin: Your “Next Best Move”

Entrepreneurs often kid themselves into thinking that every creative impulse could be defined as their Next Best Move.

This happens a lot when the work that got you to where you are now isn’t new anymore. The fun part was beginning it; now the finish line is nowhere in sight. In fact, you can’t even imagine being in the same place this time next year. It must be time to do something different, bold, daring!

Whenever I feel like things aren’t happening as fast and dramatically as I would like, I start falling prey to the “Next Best Moves” trap. Most creative types love to imagine and discuss NBMs with their team, their masterminds or their friends. We imagine this new project, product, addition of skillsets, etc. will fill in for whatever excitement (and potential new revenue) is missing in our business.

Have you ever felt that desire urging you away from your beaten path? Like a fox, you stop, prick up your ears, and dart toward it. NBMs are significant and “game-changing.” They are not what you’ve done in the past. They are moves about which you’ll look back and say (for surely someone will ask about the time the big transformation occurred), “Now, that was a good move.”

In your imagination, that NBM is a turning point, the year you finally hit a specific goal because you’ll have finally deviated from the common and fruitless path you were once on.

Except that’s where the whole house of cards comes crashing down.

The hard truth is that many times your next best move is indecipherable from that move you just made.

Most likely, your next best move is boring.

It looks a lot like last month’s move, and the move before that. Your next best move may actually be no more than a mere, small adjustment that folds easily into the direction you’re already moving:

Adding a tool that makes you more productive
Asking your prospect what they need to move forward
Asking a current customer for a referral, or a repeat order
Redesigning your home page of your website so that it’s clearer to your buyer personas

It could be something that’s not nearly as fun as developing something band new, but flows in the direction of the moves you’ve already set in place to get you this far.

Predictability means staying on track, and doing the work. But it also frequently defines your next best move. It may not be the most exciting NBM you could take today, but chances are it will allow your business to gain momentum that results in success. The day you realize you’re pretty predictable, and also productive, is a day to rejoice, because you’re doing the thing that defines a successful business.

The Power of Predictable Moves

In the business classic Good to Great, Jim Collins describes the flywheel, a large, heavy, horizontal disk you must turn to bring up to speed. One dogged revolution at a time; the wheel slowly makes one turn on its axis, then another, then another. Eventually, it takes on a life of its own, its weight and momentum creating a force that easily revolves by its own weight and momentum.

Can you identify which move contributed the most to this flywheel’s energy? No, all the pushes to get it up to speed were important, and they all were nearly identical. It was the succession of simple, repetitive, boring moves them that got the wheel moving so fast.

If the flywheel theory makes perfect sense to you, you may already own the title of Chief Buzzkill on your team. While everyone else is falling in love with the latest new idea, you’re shooting holes in it.

Stick with it.

This shiny new idea, as James Chartrand describes here, will own you if you let it. Like a faceted rubber ball ricocheting off its own energy, the dynamics and enthusiasm of your team for this shiny new thing can be difficult to rein in. Before you spend too much time on it, make sure this NBR is a genuine contribution to the overall goal, and not just a diversion from work that’s lost its luster. Failed sparks of genius take a huge toll on a business (in time, energy and motivation) if they don’t produce results.

If you’ve listened and qualified a particularly good idea, maybe you’ve decided that you really do have an idea worth exploring. The next step is deciding how to move in on it. Will you pounce or will you quietly sneak up on it? Maybe you’ll get some outside help to research or establish preliminary steps.

When you do decide to take action and build on it, make sure it contributes to your core competencies, your talents and skills. You don’t want to undo work that got you this far by chasing something new.

With the responsibility to edit your life and business to ensure progress, comes responsibility for your own happiness. If you try to fit thirteen hours of joy into eight hours, you’ll make yourself miserable.

If you chase after every creative jot and wiggle your brilliant mind can dream up you may satisfy that inner creator who always likes to feel busy, but you’ll also feel like you’re always missing something just out of reach. (I know this because I’m all to familiar with this tendency.) The only thing you’ll really be missing is the opportunity to grow and develop a sense of purpose that’s the hallmark of a well-lived life.

If the grass is always greener, go peek over that fence over there. It has bare patches and weeds, maybe even more than your own patch of sod. What a relief, then, to get back to your real business at hand and build it big. Build it steadily, one revolution at a time.

What’s your best, predictable move that got you where you are today?

What’s Stopping You From Owning Your Own Media Channel?

June 13, 2014 by jennifer mcgahan Leave a Comment

The allure of print. Why the glamour around published material; trade magazines and newspapers?

A local business man was recently telling me about his marketing strategy when the talk turned toward that ever-so-sexy word “content marketing.” This guy loved the idea of writing articles that he could share to show expertise, build trust and get in front of people he hasn’t met yet. A seriously active phone dialer and networker, he was looking for some ideas about getting himself “out there” more.

What he really wanted, he confided, was to get some articles published in some established business magazines. Not their websites, but the actual hard copy, printed magazines or newspapers. Ahh, the tantalizing scent of ink!

Being featured in an reputable publication, especially one with prestige and readership, draws attention to your business, promotes the writer as an expert, and throws you into the spotlight, or so it would seem. Don’t those big magazines have thousands of subscribers? what a great way to be seen!

The idea of “being published” is tantalizing to relatively unknown people whose business is their brand. Instant exposure. What could be better? Though that accomplishment used to be something you could flaunt fro years, today content marketing is about pumping out your own content on your own channel as well as publish the occasional feature in a printed journal.

As soon as I brought up the idea of a blog, my new friend winced. “Too much work, I don’t like to write, too time consuming and not prestigious enough.”

Oh. I have to admit, that last one stumped me. He was looking for acclamation and presence in traditional trade magazines. The funny thing is, when I asked him what trade magazines he read, he couldn’t think of any. He said, “All I ever read is the shit on the internet.”

The shit on the internet. Blogs. (Hey! What an idea!) Although that’s all he was used to reading, he wanted to stand out by publishing something in some distant, exclusive land called print media.

Yeah, it is kind of cool to see yourself in print. Something you hold in your hands. If you remember life before Amazon and Kindle, the holy grail for writers was publishing.

I’m not immune. I have sitting on my shelf the 2013 edition of The Writer’s Market, the Bible of sources, guidelines, and addresses of publications in any imaginable field. (Now, of course, it’s an online subscription.)

Bought, but never used, the tome is a reminder of the change in media today. I have no real need to mark it up the way I used to, partly because I’m writing about topic which favors the internet — copywriting and content marketing — and mainly because just about everyone I want to reach is accessible online. Linked in helps you find people who know the person you want to meet. As my friend Amy Cole, a Linkedin expert, says we’re all less than six degrees away from our dream job. Or in this case, the dream agent, dream published article, dream writing gig.

For writers and other experts (and people with ghost writers), you get exposure by writing online.

Yet, still there’s still this old time-y fascination with print. If it’s difficult to get published, it must mean you really deserve to be there if some editor on high deems your writing worthy of ink.

I love paper. Magazines are still best read by physically turning pages, unmatched by reading the same content on a Kindle. I still subscribe to some, and love plopping on the sofa and opening a glossy magazine. But there’s that nagging disconnect between digital and paper. As I flip pages, I note the things I want to check out online, but I never manage to do it, in spite of the “blip this page” icon.

The hold-in-your-hands newsletter, delivered via the mail carrier and landing in your mailbox is one of culture’s uncommon objects. Introducing one to your followers would make you really stand out — but it takes commitment and money for postage and printing.

The best start you can give yourself in content marketing is to simply publish your own articles under your name in your own space, your website. Give your readers access to a blog and your live followers, all your fans in real life, will see you’re committed to getting them the best information you can about what you know to be true.

Content marketing is personal and direct. It’s not about pulling out a copy of a magazine from two seasons ago and pointing to an article with your name in it. It’s about sharing and being the same “you” — but online.

Besides being more accessible by creating your own content in a blog, you actually make it easier for those magazines to eventually publish one of your articles in the form of a guest post or a contributing author. And the beautiful thing about that is the ability to link back to your website.

For many, whose business is wrapped up in their personal efforts, your face and your name is your brand. While you gain clout to be seen in an established source, content marketing is all about become your own media, the source, that place where people go because they trust you to produce and curate content that reflects your sensibilities and distinct point of view.

This change in perspective requires some bravado on your part. That confidence is required to get your own vibe going. When you don’t fit in nicely with some established magazine’s content, you boldly declare your own.

The ironic truth behind all of this is that the more you identify your own content and your own readership and whatever it is that makes your stuff special — and that means not fitting in with the other guys — the more YOU you are, the better chance you have of being noticed by some of the websites and media sources with similar audiences. You become a more attractive possibility for a future guest post or editorial within their pages just by audaciously coming up with your own content in your own space.

So why NOT you?

Three easy steps to owning your media channel.

Start your blog… or video blog or podcast. Tell your story! No one has the right to tell it but you. Your blog is the easiest, fastest, most economical way to become that media channel you want to appear in, so start today. Buy your domain name, host it somewhere, purchase a snazzy, robust wordpress theme, and Boom! you’re up and running for less than a couple hundred dollars.

Stop thinking small. Stop figuring out a way to land on someone else’s stage. Be audacious and real and raw. Why the hell NOT you? There’s no real trick to it. You’re already swimming in the water of your own ideas, so own them and take some responsibility for getting them out there. Stop waiting and positioning yourself and hoping for someone else to do it for you.

Whatever you are doing in person, do online. There. That’s the big secret.

What a mistake NOT to.

Regarding the “shit” available online — the stuff my friend read, but didn’t think was good enough for the people he hoped to impress — I should have pointed out that a lot of that stuff wasn’t junk, but actually helpful content, written by serious authors with some style. Have you noticed that when the quality of writing on the Internet is very good…you know where to go to find it.

So seize the day. Go all in. Own your content.

I promise, you’ll never regret publishing content for your own media channel. The sooner the better.

Newsboy photo: Flickr CC, Children’s Bureau Centennial

Woman with magazine photo: Flickr CC, Pedro Ribeiro Simões

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How to Blog In a Busy, Loud, Distracting Place

May 27, 2014 by jennifer mcgahan Leave a Comment

Sometimes the best thing about being your own boss is the worst thing about being your own boss — you can work anywhere and set your own schedule.

When you need to make a call you, can pick up the phone just as easily at the beach as your home office, though you run the risk of getting sand in your phone. If a client needs something tomorrow, you don’t have to “stay late” to finish it; you fit it in sitting in the back seat of your minivan while waiting for your kid to finish her dance rehearsal. And when it’s raining and three boys need to burn off some serious energy, you can take them to an indoor trampoline mega center and still get that blog post done.

This is why I started this business in the first place. I wanted to make a real difference in my customers’ businesses, and I wanted flexibility and family time. The lure of the work-from-home business drew me to start a writing business of my own.

If you’re living the same kind of lifestyle, you already know its many perks. Like taking phone calls at the beach, meeting deadlines from your car, and writing articles at JumpStreet. (I got $6 off for liking and following.)

If pressed to find downsides to this entrepreneur lifestyle, only three come to mind (although they are gifts in disguise):

1. Since I’ve been doing this for eight years now, I’ve made myself unemployable in a physical sense. I’ll never commit to a nine-to-five workday, not in my own home and not in someone’s office. The idea fills me with dread.

2. The second is my fear that my kids will have a skewed idea of productivity. They are learning that (take your pick) I’m either always working, or never working. The “work ethic” my grandfather admired is neither obvious nor definable.

3. And the third slippery slope of working from home is the problem of setting your own boundaries. Because the fact is, you can always be working on your business!

You probably won’t get very far if you can’t focus on what needs to be done. So let’s talk about focus when you know what needs to be done, and you’ve chosen to do it in a less than optimal location…like I have today.

Sitting in Jumpstreet writing my blog. Can it be done? Why yes, it can. This blog post is proof.

The din is your friend. Dive in and blog.

Oddly, it’s the noisiest places that are the best. Next time you step into a large cavernous spaces with high ceilings and echoes, stop and listen. You hear everything, and…nothing at all. That vacuous, constant dull roar is almost like white noise. Auditory people may actually find it easier to concentrate in these environments because there is no single noise that catches your attention. Since you are immersed in sound, it’s fairly easy to shut it out.

(Kind of like when you’re underwater, you’re not thinking you’re wet. It’s only when you get out of the pool that it registers, “Hey, I’m all wet!” Ever notice that?)

If you really aren’t comfortable inside the wall of sound, then plan ahead. Invest in some noise canceling headphones and listen to calming music. Ambient sounds won’t touch you or your productivity.

When you can’t NOT look, put on blinders.

Visually, the bright colors and constant movement rattle your focus if you concentrate best in calm environments. Stay in your groove by positioning yourself in a corner where passing traffic is low. You could also turn a chair around and face a wall. Who cares what people think? You’re multitasking. You can always find somewhere out of the way of the most commotion if you take the time to look for it. These coveted spots are where you’ll find other people with their laptops open. Guaranteed.

Need blinders? Wear a baseball cap to block the visibility of almost everything. Or you could contact Joe Malia for one of his hoodie creations. Pull it over your computer to create an intimate workspace in the midst of chaos. Ahh, total privacy + zero visual stimulation.

Sometimes you just can’t avoid the need to produce some intense and thoughtful work. Entrepreneurs are always on some kind of deadline (or they should be), if they are serious about meeting their goals.

The alternative: Get the easy stuff done when you’re in a non work-friendly environment.

Creating content doesn’t have to be one of those intensely stressful items to check off your to-do list. If you have a plan and a content calendar, your marketing plan becomes a whole lot easier to manage.

With a planned-out schedule of upcoming blog post ideas, you could easily spend an hour or two filling in the smaller content pieces on the fly. There are many small jobs perfectly suited for those times when you know you need to get stuff done, even though your mind and attention are not at peak performance, like my two hours here at the trampoline place.

The key is identifying the content you can create without a lot of effort. The pieces that fit into the big picture, even though on their own you don’t consider them to be urgent and/or important.

For example, instead of writing a blog post or article, you could spend your time doing less strenuous jobs:

Curating some content to share on social sites.
Commenting on blogs.
Finding appropriate pictures for upcoming blog post and Facebook updates.
Scheduling tweets. (I love Buffer for this.)

These don’t require your undivided attention for long periods of time, so make the most of the times you find yourself in a loud, distracting environment.

A Content Strategy is the key.

Anything you get done here and now is something you won’t need to do later. Save the weightier chunks of content for a more focus-worthy situation.

There’s only one way to know what you’re doing and where you’re going: A calendar that holds all the important pieces of content you’ll publish over the next couple of months. As a small biz guy or gal, you really don’t need to look ahead much more than that. But you do need to know what your best clients are looking for at each step of the buying cycle. Do you have something they can use as they are just taking stock of a new problem? Do you provide insight when they start comparing prices and solutions? These are questions that you tackle as you put together a strategy and content calendar that address the unique needs of your buyer.

You want to be there for them every step of the way, not just waste their time with any old content published willy nilly on any channel. That blog post you’re writing in the hurricane of busy-ness and “real life” is much easier when you know what you need to say and the precise words to say it. The keywords have already been selected, and the main ideas are in place. Now it’s merely a matter of filling in the details with stories and information you know very well.

I love people and all the wiggly warm fuzzies, but the scientific side of me knows it’s only logical to have a roadmap. I don’t have time to figure it all out on the fly — or guess!

With a strategy, your blog post practically writes itself. Without one, you stare at your laptop for hours with nothing to say.

This life you’re choosing is in constant motion. As a small business owner you get to live it your style. It’s all you, baby! Whether you prefer to get everything done in one designated spot, or if, like me, you take it on the road many days; you are the choreographer of your own beautiful life and business. With a little planning, a strategy, a content calendar to guide you, and a willingness to bust out some content right here and now — wherever that may be — you will keep all those balls in the air and successfully connect with your customers and clients.

Here’s a shot of the boys playing bouncy dodgeball. I stood and watched them for awhile…awesome! If you want the freedom to do the same, keep the helpful, valuable content flowing to your customers and clients, and run your business all at the same time, you can do it.