Writing with Passion and Being Real
The other day I was reading a mom blog. Being a parent is the hardest job there is: taking care of a little person, body, mind and spirit... and hopefully investing in them a love of life, a love of learning, gratitude and kindness. Sometimes, blogs seem to just be showcases of what is good in other people's lives, and they rarely show the real life, the mess, the times you feel like you're getting it all wrong.
But this blog I was reading? It was all about realness. This mom decided, 4 years ago, that she was going to share all of life. From amazingly good to heartbreakingly bad... and some things have truly been heartbreakingly bad. In the midst of it, the common thread through all her writing is about affirming moms. Yesterday morning, I sat there reading with tears running down my face, because I felt deeply understood.
And I'm not the only one. This mom has a huge following, is doing a book tour for her first book, and has inspired a group of women who support each other virtually and in real life.
I started to think about how this mom writes and communicates. Wouldn’t we all love to inspire our site’s visitors to be our fans, to comment and engage, to be better people for reading what we write?
It's all about being real and being passionate.
What about if your subject isn't something that stirs up passion in your soul? What if you're writing about cell phones or garden hoses or whatever your niche may be? You might even like what you're writing about, but how do you translate real passion into your content?
In my last blog, I wrote about Kyle's writing technique that totally transformed content writing for me and freed me up from writing boring, formal content (and taking hours to do it). Here's how I add another level to that and bring in being real and being passionate.
With my eyes closed, writing, I imagine one of my very good friends sitting across the table from me. We are having one of those great conversations, laughing hard, enjoying each others' company. What if it were MY friend asking the question that prompted the keyword I'm writing about? What if she were asking me about scrapbooking in her busy life? Or telling me she always wanted to learn to play piano but pretty much thought it was too late? (Those are two of my niches.)
What if your site visitor was really a good friend sitting across the table asking you a question? You might not be able to drum up much emotion about the latest cell phone but you would totally want to give your friend the very best advice you could, you'd want to help out in any way you could, right?
The passion can come as you think about the fact that your goal with your website is truly to help people. Yes, we do all want to have successful business and we are working toward financial freedom. But I believe the very best way to do that is by giving first: great information, and a little of yourself -- your personality, your opinions, your real voice.
Fix in your mind the goal of helping people, and build your website with content fueled by that passion.
And, don’t forget to write with your eyes closed. :-)
Recent Comments
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For so long I have been money orientated that I have forgotten that maybe there are others who just might need help. It has been a light bulb moment in my life just reading all these comments. It is much harder to unlearn bad habits than it is to learn good ones. This WA community makes me realize that at last I am in the right place. I know that all these comments are not aimed solely at me but at times I feel they are. All I can say thanks and keep them coming.
I feel the same way! I just know that WA is finally the right place and I've had SO many light bulb moments, either with the training or reading comments. This is an amazing community. And I hear you about being money oriented and having to "unlearn" -- I have a lot of that to do as well. Take care!!
I want to share one of the quotes that helped to frame my financial and business perspective:
“You can only become truly accomplished at something you love. Don’t make money your goal. Instead, pursue the things you love doing, and then do them so well that people can’t take their eyes off you.”—Maya Angelou
Live with passion, WillowKim :):)
Excellent post, WillowKim. Starting an online business purely for the sake of making money is hollow.Lasting profitability is fueled by passion and a love for people. One of the intangible rewards that comes with business ownership is the satisfaction of knowing that something you said or did made a real difference in the lives of others.
I too find that my writing is more real as I picture an audience filled with people I love and genuinely want to help.
Thanks for your post.
Thanks, Rebecca -- very high praise indeed coming from you! :-) I'm so grateful for all I'm learning and I've only been at WA for two weeks. It's already changing my life and has me excited to get up in the morning.
I tried closing my eyes once while driving because I thought I was about to have an accident. I didn't see any way to avoid it. A few seconds later I had passed the obstacle in the way without incident. I don't usually drive without the benefit of vision, but this is one time I think I had an angel in my vehicle.
I will try this technique when writing my next article. Thanks for the insight.
Kali
Hi Kali, how are you today? Thanks for reading and sharing your thoughts. I agree you had an angel in your car with you that day! I had a schoolteacher tell me once about how our brains are wired to learn and communicate: whenever we are emotional (scared, angry, sad, frustrated) we are out of the "zone." Learning/communication happens when we are relaxed, have energy, and are focused. Writing blind shuts out the white page and the periphery which makes me more relaxed, and increases focus. Thinking of a friend also puts me in a happy frame of mind... this is a good place to write from!
What works for one person is not always best for all. Once I have my topic I try not to over think and just write whatever comes out. Usually have to make minor changes and polish before publishing. And sometimes junk not fit to publish is the result but most of the time it turns out ok.
Absolutely, nothing is one-size-fits-all. Since I struggled with 1) not taking hours and hours to write a single article and 2) writing conversationally and not like I was writing a term paper, the combination of Kyle's blind technique (which is just writing as I think and not editing as I go -- similar to what you mentioned above) and imagining a friend, which takes away my tendency to be too formal, works for me. I wrote about this because I have struggled for a long time in IM to find a way to keep my content fresh, alive, and engaging.
So many great blogs on getting out there and writing that is what this biz is all about right. You are right, now the thread I am hearing is write good stuff. I like what you said imagine that the person is on the other side of the table I will try that.
Thanks again
Kymee
Hi Kymee! Hope you're having a good start to your Saturday. I used to write for the web like I was back in college doing a research paper, so imagining a friend really helps me! Yep, it really is all about writing.
Did you read Kyle's technique article on "blind strategy for writing content" that I talked about in my previous blog? If you can't touch type it might be really hard, but you could do the same thing by talking into a recorder and then transcribing it, or talking into a dictation program. I think it helps get over "blank page on the screen" syndrome. :-)
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Another really good post Willow Kim.
Honest-to-goodness kindred spirits closely matching one another in thoughts, feelings, and attitudes, with our eyes closed - a powerful connection.
Thanks, Caylynn! I hope you are doing well!