The Value of Writing

This is the first in a series of 16 posts this month, written as a celebration my 16th business anniversary. Each post will share a lesson I have learned and hopefully successfully translate it into a lesson you can apply to your professional and personal success.

My Story

When I started my business I thought about many things I'd need to be good at. I wanted to be the best trainer I could be, I wanted to be excellent at instructional design, I wanted to be a successful marketer and builder of Client relationships. I worked to build all of those skills (and still do today).

Looking back over 16 years in business, the skill that has arguably been the most important to my growth and success isn't on this list, and wasn't on my radar at that time time - the skill of writing.

16 years ago I knew I could write if I had to, but it wasn't something I thought too much about. A couple of years later I wanted to communicate with Clients about what I was learning in my work with other Clients. That marketing idea became a faxed newsletter called Vantagepoints. After a few issues, it morphed into a story about learning from any life situation and moved from fax delivery to email and changed from just going to Clients to going to whomever wanted to read it. Eventually over 6000 people read it and the best stories became my first book - Vantagepoints on Learning and Life.

Over five years ago I began writing this blog (now with over 830 posts). I write another blog specifically on leadership, have written over 250 articles (and a new one each week),and produce three weekly email newsletters.

Along the way, I have also written another book of my own (Remarkable Leadership), am finishing two more this year, and planning at least one for next year, and have been a contributing author to over 20 other books.

I also write monthly as a part of our Remarkable Leadership Learning System and as a part of Client projects.

Clearly there is a marketing and promotional value to all of this writing. But there is a much larger lesson here and it applies to all of us - whether we want or need to promote ourselves or our products or services. Let's talk about them now.

Our Lessons


1. Writing helps us learn. A key component of the learning process is reflecting on what has happened to us to determine what to repeat, and what to change next time. Writing about our experiences can really help us in this reflection in powerful ways. I can honestly say that all of the writing I do, would really be worth it, just for what I learn from the process.

2. Writing clarifies our thinking. Ideas can swirl in our mind and we can think about something, but when we put the pen to paper or our fingers on a keyboard and put our thinking into words, we become much clearer and our thoughts become more real and more actionable.

3. Writing makes us smarter. As a published author I often find that people now assume I'm smart because I wrote a book! While I don't know that my name on the cover of a book proves that, if you take the first two lessons - writing helps us learn and clarifies our thinking; the fact that writing makes us smarter is obvious. As we write we discover new things and new ideas. The process of writing allows for learning and the words we write provide more learning too.

4. Writing is about the process, not about the reader. As a author, this isn't completely true - as I write this I am thinking about you as my reader, and trying to write as clearly and persuasively as I can. AND, I know that one reason many people don't write is that they don't want others to read it, or don't think anyone else would want to read it. So to sell you on the decision to write, please know that all of the benefits listed so far are about you and not about the reader. If you write in a journal or a on a secret hidden document on your computer, you will get the benefits regardless of your grammar, style or spelling. If your goal is to have others read what you write, great! But don't think writing has to be about others - the personal benefits are huge!

5. We all have something to write about. We all have 24 hours of day experiences each day. We all have a lifetime of memories, thoughts and ideas. Sorting, compiling, referencing and using them is plenty of fodder for the type of writing that most of us can and need to do.

6. Writing is a habit. Most people I talk to about starting a blog say - I don't know what to write (see #5) or, I don't have time to write. If you believe in the benefits, you will find time to write. Admittedly, I have commitments to writing that keep me on track, and I don't always want to write. But I know, for all of the reasons I've listed (and a whole lot more), writing is important. And like anything important in our lives, we can make it a habit.

And lastly, this article isn't just about writing. The last lesson is to figure out the skills that really matter most. Often the skills we think are most important or valuable, really aren't. I see it in all of my work. People want to get better at their work and make assumptions as to the best ways to do that. Look beyond the technical aspects of your work (in my case, being a better trainer, for you perhaps being more expert, learning your products better, getting an advanced degree) - look deeper. Ask yourself what are the underlying skills that help me really achieve my goals? Another way to figure this out is to ask smart people who have been where you want to do - find a mentor and ask them.

If your goal is to write your memoir, Great American Novel, or to become a professional writer, hopefully this post was helpful and inspiring. But I really wrote this post for the rest of us (myself included).

One of the things I've learned in 16 years of business is that writing makes me a better business person and a better human being.

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To help us celebrate or 16 years in business, you can save 16% on 6 of our selected products or get a fr.ee 16 minute mini-phone consultation with me to help you tackle your biggest leadership and training challenges - but only during October!