Archive for the ‘Writing and Publishing’ Category

Why write a book?

Tuesday, May 17th, 2011

In my previous post I took a sort of subtle approach to encourage you to really think through why you would really want to write a book. Here are a few considerations. Because, at the end of the day, I believe everyone should write a book.

Here are three good reasons:
1) Convert your intellectual capital into intellectual property

Everybody is very knowledgeable about something (although they usually minimize their experience and expertise and take it for granted). By writing a book you organize, refine and showcase your expertise for the benefit of others as well as yourself. This knowledge can then be monitized directly and indirectly. We live in an information age. A book is one of the most revered ways to package your expertise.

2) For who it will make of you to achieve it.

Jim Rohn, one of my greatest mentors always inspired his students to set ANY goal not for what you would get, but for who it would make of you to achieve it. The goal of writing a book will certainly make something more of you. That should be a major reason for embarking on such a large and challenging goal.

3) Leave a legacy

When I say legacy, you don’t have to be a Mother Theresa. What if you could pass on some wisdom and perspective that would empower future generations within your own family. I always imagined my great, great, great grandchildren unpacking a box with a dusty copy of The Success Compass and feeling proud that they came from a bloodline that included the authoring of that book. It might raise them to a higher level without even reading it. It might really make a difference if they did. Leaving a legacy within your family is plenty. We live in such modern times that we have no excuse for not learning, growing and shaping a philosophy that would benefit future generations.

Do you REALLY want to write a book?

Sunday, May 15th, 2011

It has been estimated that over 80% of people have dreamed of writing a book. However, the statistics for people who actually A) begin pursuing this dream and B) achieve this dream are far from 80%.

In fact, I would bet the number on that side of the fence is less than 5%. The question then becomes, why? There are plenty of answers to this questions but I will tell you one of the best places to start:

You must ask yourself WHY you really want to write a book in the first place. This should not be a casual conversation with yourself. You should also probably ignore the first few answers that come to mind. They will not be the real reason. Oh, your mind will try to convince you they are, but they usually aren’t.

I don’t believe that most people fail to accomplish the dream of writing a book. Not at all. I believe that most people don’t really have it as a dream, they just think they do. If you do some real soul searching you will discover if this dream is real. If it is, you will accomplish it regardless of what obstacles you may face on the road to completetion.

So… why do you want to write a book… why else… besides that… if you had to pick another reason…is that really true…. Go for it!