The only reason I write is because I’m selfish.
I feel like writing helps me to deal with a lot of the things going on in my head and the world around me.
So even though I publish almost all of my stuff online, I’m probably the one it helps the most. I don’t even know where I’d be at if I didn’t write.
I’d probably be feeling stuck somewhere in a cubicle...
Writing in public has helped me to deal with a ton of stuff.
Did it make me a better person?
I don't know. Maybe.
Do I make a lot of money with my blog?
No, not at all.
As a matter of fact I don’t make any money with my blog at all.
Not even with all of the books I’ve published over the past couple of years.
I probably make less than $100 with all of my books on Amazon combined.
I stopped trying to make money with my writing and my books a long time ago...
So why do I keep writing?
Good question…
And I’ve thought about it a lot recently.
Especially because I didn't put in the time and energy I wish I could have put in.
And consequently a lot of my stuff wasn’t really that great.
So why do I even keep writing then?
Because if I stopped it would be like a part deep down inside of me would die. But there are a ton of other reasons why I keep writing. And why I will (hopefully) keep writing for as long as I can.
I made this list mostly for myself. As some sort of reminder. Just like I write most of my stuff for myself. But you’re more than welcome to keep reading...
# FAILURE
I’ve now written and published one blog post every day for more than two years. I’m not saying this to brag about it. Because there’s nothing to brag about. Most of the 730+ articles I wrote weren’t really that great.
Most of them were mediocre at best. And some of them don’t even deserve to be called articles or blog posts. Some of them consisted of less than ten words. While others consisted of more than 4000 words.
But it doesn't matter. And I don’t really care about it anymore. Because writing and publishing one piece every single day helped me to deal with a disease that a lot of us have…
Perfectionism… and the fear of failure...
Writing and publishing one piece a day is incredibly hard. It really is. I struggle with it almost every single day.
And there were many days where I just didn’t have the time and energy to put out great stuff. But because I made this deal with myself to put out one piece a day, no matter what it takes, I had to ship it.
And even though the results were sometimes not as I would have loved them to be, I had to ship it. And that's what it all boils down to at the end of the day...
It all boils down to showing up, even when you don't feel like showing up. Even when you feel like hiding.
Here's the thing…
Everybody can show up on their good days. But almost no one shows up on their bad days.
And to me, that's what makes all the difference.
Because it's never your good days that will either make or break you, it's almost always your bad days that will either make or break you…
# GIVING UP
I’ve given up so many times, I can't even remember. Dozens of relationships, ideas, businesses, careers and on and on and on.
Whenever I break the chain, whenever I stop doing something just once, it’s almost guaranteed that I’ll stop it all together over the next couple of weeks. Sometimes months.
That’s why I keep writing, even though I sometimes feel like it doesn’t get me anywhere, that I don’t really improve that much and that I’m wasting my time.
Because if I stopped, I don’t even know what else I’d have that keeps me sane in a world that’s seemingly getting more and more insane every single day...
# EXPERIMENTS
Every single thing I write is a micro experiment. To see what works and what doesn't. To challenge myself. Every single day. To see whether or not I can still pull it off. To wrestle with my demons that want me to do what’s safe. That want to keep me small. And hidden under the blanket of anonymity where no one can see me…
# COMPLEXITY
The world we live in seems to be getting more and more complex every single day. Technology gets more and more complex. Life gets more and more complex. People get more and more complex. Situations get more and more complex.
But at the end of the day it’s all simple. Most of the things in life are simple. But because of the millions of layers of complexity and B.S. presented to us every single day it seems to be getting more and more complex. When the truth is that it’s not…
Writing helps me to cut through all the B.S. To get to the core of things. It helps me to take away all the complexity from things that aren’t really that complex after all. Writing helps me to better understand the way the world works, to come up with theories that make my life easier instead of more complicated.
Whether these theories are valid doesn't really matter. At least not to me. What matters to me is to make my life easier and to take away all of the complexity so I can spend more time on the things that give me and hopefully also other people some joy, hope and maybe even happiness...
# HABIT
I’m not a big habit guy. As a matter of fact I’m really bad with habits. And I don’t believe in all of this get up before 6am in the morning to become more successful stuff. I think this is all B.S. What works for one person doesn’t necessarily work for another.
What works for me doesn't necessarily work for you. As a matter of fact many of the things I do might even harm you instead of helping you. Just like my habit of only taking a shower after I went for a run might not be a good idea for anybody else except me. And yes, I don’t go for a run every single day. Now go figure...
# STUPID
It’s a fine line between stupidity and genius. They are essentially the same thing. The only difference is that most of the time it’s too early for an idea to be considered good.
So it’ll be considered stupid. Because most people still believe in the old way. But stupid paves the road to good. Sometimes even to genius...
Not getting it right is part of the process of getting it right.
Now what does that have to do with writing?
Nothing.
And everything...
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|
# IDENTITY
Whenever we meet someone new we usually introduce ourselves by telling people what our business cards say. We tell people what we do. Most of the time our job is our identity. Even though our jobs never really say what we really do, what we really stand for or who we really are. They’re just masks hiding our true identity. Who we really are deep down inside.
Whenever I meet someone new, I don't really understand what they're doing. Because what does an account manager really do? What does a project manager really do? What does a risk manager really do? What does a community manager really do? How does a day of someone like that even look like?
Do you just call people all day long to check in or what do you REALLY do? Do you go to meetings all day coordinating things or what do you do? I don’t get it. But that’s ok. Maybe I’m just stupid. Or curious. Or both…
I don't have a job. I didn't have a job for almost five years now. So I can't really tell people what my job is. Because I have none…
So every time I meet new people it gets weird. because I do so many different things. And sometimes I even tell people that I just don't have a job.
But deep down I feel like I’m a writer. Whatever a writer really is. Or does. Even though I sometimes feel like it doesn't get me anywhere…
# LEARNING
Writing helps me to learn a lot. Mostly about myself. It helps me to uncover the hidden truth that’s hidden deep down inside of me. The truth we all carry deep down inside of us.
That truth that’s so hard to uncover. That truth that's hidden under hundreds of masks.
And sometimes, but only sometimes when I write I feel like I can touch that truth that’s hidden deep down inside of me. Even if it's just for a tiny moment. Because that moment is what this is all about.
You know, that rare moment when you hear someone sing a song with all of their heart, with all of their pain, all of their joy and all of their emotions that are usually hidden deep down inside of them.
Those are the moments that truly make me feel alive...
# HONESTY
Writing helps me to be more honest. First and foremost with myself. And being honest with myself helps me to also be honest with other people. I think. I hope. But I don’t really know. I’m just trying to be honest here...
# REALITY
It’s easy to ignore reality. To ignore the things that are going on around us. It’s easy to just turn on your phone, scroll your brains out and keep yourself busy doing useless things that don’t add any value to anything. Things that help you to ignore the truth. The truth that’s out there. The truth about the way things are going. And the way things are going to be. And how you can do your part to make this world just a tiny little bit better...
# CREATION
One of the things that I always felt was missing in my life was to create something tangible. I didn't learn any craft or craftsmanship and I never really learned how to produce anything tangible.
So everything I ever did was totally intangible. I could never really see what I was creating. That's why I always felt like something was missing in my life. I wanted to create stuff. Something that lasts. Even if it's just for a few seconds. Maybe a smile. Maybe a tear. Maybe a few nice words.
And writing seems to fill that void. It satisfies my desire to create something tangible. Something that might be useful. Something that people might be able to use. Something that changes people’s lives. No matter how big or small.
I can see it. Feel it. Touch it. Smell it. Breathe it. Live it...
# PURPOSE
Writing gives my life purpose. Even if no one reads my stuff I’ll still feel good about myself because I created something. Something that might or might not make this world a better place. And just the thought that something that I’ve created could spark a thought, an idea, a change, a smile or whatever is just phenomenal and something that I don’t want to miss in my life ever again….
# BREAK
Writing is like meditation for me. It helps me to sit still and take a few moments in a busy or hectic day. It’s a break from all the noise out there. So I can grab that moment, hold it tight and turn it into a signal. For whom? Mostly for myself… and everybody else who needs a signal… or just a break from a hectic day...
# JOY
Writing makes me happy. It’s something I look forward to every single day. But it’s also painful. Very, very painful…
# PAIN
The more I procrastinate, the less I look forward to writing.
Just like everything in life. Just like life itself…
The more you deprive yourself of the things that make you happy, the more miserable you’ll feel deep down inside….
The only reason I write is because I’m selfish.
I feel like writing helps me to deal with a lot of the things going on in my head and the world around me.
So even though I publish almost all of my stuff online, I’m probably the one it helps the most. I don’t even know where I’d be at if I didn’t write.
I’d probably be feeling stuck somewhere in a cubicle...
Writing in public has helped me to deal with a ton of stuff.
Did it make me a better person?
I don't know. Maybe.
Do I make a lot of money with my blog?
No, not at all.
As a matter of fact I don’t make any money with my blog at all.
Not even with all of the books I’ve published over the past couple of years.
I probably make less than $100 with all of my books on Amazon combined.
I stopped trying to make money with my writing and my books a long time ago...
So why do I keep writing?
Good question…
And I’ve thought about it a lot recently.
Especially because I didn't put in the time and energy I wish I could have put in.
And consequently a lot of my stuff wasn’t really that great.
So why do I even keep writing then?
Because if I stopped it would be like a part deep down inside of me would die. But there are a ton of other reasons why I keep writing. And why I will (hopefully) keep writing for as long as I can.
I made this list mostly for myself. As some sort of reminder. Just like I write most of my stuff for myself. But you’re more than welcome to keep reading...
[Related: 121 Unusual Tips To Being A Better Writer]
# FAILURE
I’ve now written and published one blog post every day for more than two years. I’m not saying this to brag about it. Because there’s nothing to brag about. Most of the 730+ articles I wrote weren’t really that great.
Most of them were mediocre at best. And some of them don’t even deserve to be called articles or blog posts. Some of them consisted of less than ten words. While others consisted of more than 4000 words.
But it doesn't matter. And I don’t really care about it anymore. Because writing and publishing one piece every single day helped me to deal with a disease that a lot of us have…
Perfectionism… and the fear of failure...
Writing and publishing one piece a day is incredibly hard. It really is. I struggle with it almost every single day.
And there were many days where I just didn’t have the time and energy to put out great stuff. But because I made this deal with myself to put out one piece a day, no matter what it takes, I had to ship it.
And even though the results were sometimes not as I would have loved them to be, I had to ship it. And that's what it all boils down to at the end of the day...
It all boils down to showing up, even when you don't feel like showing up. Even when you feel like hiding.
Here's the thing…
Everybody can show up on their good days. But almost no one shows up on their bad days.
And to me, that's what makes all the difference.
Because it's never your good days that will either make or break you, it's almost always your bad days that will either make or break you…
# GIVING UP
I’ve given up so many times, I can't even remember. Dozens of relationships, ideas, businesses, careers and on and on and on.
Whenever I break the chain, whenever I stop doing something just once, it’s almost guaranteed that I’ll stop it all together over the next couple of weeks. Sometimes months.
That’s why I keep writing, even though I sometimes feel like it doesn’t get me anywhere, that I don’t really improve that much and that I’m wasting my time.
Because if I stopped, I don’t even know what else I’d have that keeps me sane in a world that’s seemingly getting more and more insane every single day...
# EXPERIMENTS
Every single thing I write is a micro experiment. To see what works and what doesn't. To challenge myself. Every single day. To see whether or not I can still pull it off. To wrestle with my demons that want me to do what’s safe. That want to keep me small. And hidden under the blanket of anonymity where no one can see me…
# COMPLEXITY
The world we live in seems to be getting more and more complex every single day. Technology gets more and more complex. Life gets more and more complex. People get more and more complex. Situations get more and more complex.
But at the end of the day it’s all simple. Most of the things in life are simple. But because of the millions of layers of complexity and B.S. presented to us every single day it seems to be getting more and more complex. When the truth is that it’s not…
Writing helps me to cut through all the B.S. To get to the core of things. It helps me to take away all the complexity from things that aren’t really that complex after all. Writing helps me to better understand the way the world works, to come up with theories that make my life easier instead of more complicated.
Whether these theories are valid doesn't really matter. At least not to me. What matters to me is to make my life easier and to take away all of the complexity so I can spend more time on the things that give me and hopefully also other people some joy, hope and maybe even happiness...
# HABIT
I’m not a big habit guy. As a matter of fact I’m really bad with habits. And I don’t believe in all of this get up before 6am in the morning to become more successful stuff. I think this is all B.S. What works for one person doesn’t necessarily work for another.
What works for me doesn't necessarily work for you. As a matter of fact many of the things I do might even harm you instead of helping you. Just like my habit of only taking a shower after I went for a run might not be a good idea for anybody else except me. And yes, I don’t go for a run every single day. Now go figure...
# STUPID
It’s a fine line between stupidity and genius. They are essentially the same thing. The only difference is that most of the time it’s too early for an idea to be considered good.
So it’ll be considered stupid. Because most people still believe in the old way. But stupid paves the road to good. Sometimes even to genius...
Not getting it right is part of the process of getting it right.
Now what does that have to do with writing?
Nothing.
And everything...
# IDENTITY
Whenever we meet someone new we usually introduce ourselves by telling people what our business cards say. We tell people what we do. Most of the time our job is our identity. Even though our jobs never really say what we really do, what we really stand for or who we really are. They’re just masks hiding our true identity. Who we really are deep down inside.
Whenever I meet someone new, I don't really understand what they're doing. Because what does an account manager really do? What does a project manager really do? What does a risk manager really do? What does a community manager really do? How does a day of someone like that even look like?
Do you just call people all day long to check in or what do you REALLY do? Do you go to meetings all day coordinating things or what do you do? I don’t get it. But that’s ok. Maybe I’m just stupid. Or curious. Or both…
I don't have a job. I didn't have a job for almost five years now. So I can't really tell people what my job is. Because I have none…
So every time I meet new people it gets weird. because I do so many different things. And sometimes I even tell people that I just don't have a job.
But deep down I feel like I’m a writer. Whatever a writer really is. Or does. Even though I sometimes feel like it doesn't get me anywhere…
# LEARNING
Writing helps me to learn a lot. Mostly about myself. It helps me to uncover the hidden truth that’s hidden deep down inside of me. The truth we all carry deep down inside of us.
That truth that’s so hard to uncover. That truth that's hidden under hundreds of masks.
And sometimes, but only sometimes when I write I feel like I can touch that truth that’s hidden deep down inside of me. Even if it's just for a tiny moment. Because that moment is what this is all about.
You know, that rare moment when you hear someone sing a song with all of their heart, with all of their pain, all of their joy and all of their emotions that are usually hidden deep down inside of them.
Those are the moments that truly make me feel alive...
# HONESTY
Writing helps me to be more honest. First and foremost with myself. And being honest with myself helps me to also be honest with other people. I think. I hope. But I don’t really know. I’m just trying to be honest here...
# REALITY
It’s easy to ignore reality. To ignore the things that are going on around us. It’s easy to just turn on your phone, scroll your brains out and keep yourself busy doing useless things that don’t add any value to anything. Things that help you to ignore the truth. The truth that’s out there. The truth about the way things are going. And the way things are going to be. And how you can do your part to make this world just a tiny little bit better...
# CREATION
One of the things that I always felt was missing in my life was to create something tangible. I didn't learn any craft or craftsmanship and I never really learned how to produce anything tangible.
So everything I ever did was totally intangible. I could never really see what I was creating. That's why I always felt like something was missing in my life. I wanted to create stuff. Something that lasts. Even if it's just for a few seconds. Maybe a smile. Maybe a tear. Maybe a few nice words.
And writing seems to fill that void. It satisfies my desire to create something tangible. Something that might be useful. Something that people might be able to use. Something that changes people’s lives. No matter how big or small.
I can see it. Feel it. Touch it. Smell it. Breathe it. Live it...
# PURPOSE
Writing gives my life purpose. Even if no one reads my stuff I’ll still feel good about myself because I created something. Something that might or might not make this world a better place. And just the thought that something that I’ve created could spark a thought, an idea, a change, a smile or whatever is just phenomenal and something that I don’t want to miss in my life ever again….
# BREAK
Writing is like meditation for me. It helps me to sit still and take a few moments in a busy or hectic day. It’s a break from all the noise out there. So I can grab that moment, hold it tight and turn it into a signal. For whom? Mostly for myself… and everybody else who needs a signal… or just a break from a hectic day...
# JOY
Writing makes me happy. It’s something I look forward to every single day. But it’s also painful. Very, very painful…
# PAIN
The more I procrastinate, the less I look forward to writing.
Just like everything in life. Just like life itself…
The more you deprive yourself of the things that make you happy, the more miserable you’ll feel deep down inside….
[Related: 121 Unusual Tips To Being A Better Writer]