The Value of Writing
Posted at 4:34 AM on Thursday, October 01, 2009
 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 StoryWhen 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 Lessons1. 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. ...... Labels: habit, learning, learning habits, writing PermaLink - 2 comments
What Habit Will I Alter or Eliminate?
Posted at 8:31 AM on Tuesday, January 15, 2008
 This is the tenth post in a continuing series designed to help you create a great 2008 - using questions to reflect on last year, and project into the future. All of the questions and additional information can be found in this tool, available for you to download now.
The tenth question is:
What habit will I alter or eliminate?
This is a close cousin to question #9, and your answer may be even more powerful.
I have several habits I'd like to alter. Here are three examples: - I'd like to refrain from turning the television on without knowing what I am going to watch.
- I'd like to discipline myself spend the last half hour of every day reading something uplifting and educational.
- I'd like eliminate language or comments that could be seen as hurtful or mean to others - even if they are truly meant in jest.
While I am going to work on all of them, the first one - only turning the TV on when I know what I am going to watch is going to be my focus. Studies show American adults watch an average of four hours of TV per day (see here), and while I enjoy some television I don't nearly approach that on average (though some football Saturdays, Sundays and college basketball tournament time days head that direction!), I do find times when I seem to binge, or don't turn the set off.
For me the culprit is the times I just turn it on and surf. In these cases I'm not choosing to sit and watch with part of my family, and I don't have a particular program that I want to see. The reality of these situations is that when I turn the set on in these times I am procrastinating, and therefore actively (by turning on the set) moving away from my goals.
I do enjoy TV and don't want to banish from my house (I'd even like a new one on my wall), but I don want to manage it more effectively. Altering this habit will, for me make me happier, healthier and feel better about my results every day.
What more could we ask from a habit?
Think about this question, answer it, and take action. It is one more way to make your 2008 great!
Also posted in Leadership, Learning and Training. Labels: habit, questions PermaLink - 0 comments
What New Habit Will I Create?
Posted at 3:49 PM on Sunday, January 13, 2008
 This is the ninth post in a continuing series designed to help you create a great 2008 - using questions to reflect on last year, and project into the future. All of the questions and additional information can be found in this tool, available for you to download now. The ninth question is: What new habit will I create?I plan to strengthen habits related to building and deepening relationships. Included in this area are: - sending more (and more timely) thank you notes. - intentionally connecting more often - with colleagues, clients and other cool people. - making time for friends, creating meaningful memories and conversations. The key to making these happen is to take action. I have been and will be taking these actions, and along with making for more enjoyable conversations, it will also support me in reaching my other goals for the year. Pretty good returns for some new habits. What habits will create those kinds of returns for you? What new habit will you create? I hope you will choose to share your answers in the comments to this post. Also posted in Leadership, Learning and Training. Labels: habit, questions PermaLink - 0 comments
500 Posts
Posted at 5:49 PM on Thursday, July 05, 2007
 Bartholomew Cubbins had 500 hats, and now I have written 500 posts on this blog. 500 posts in exactly 1200 days (which makes for easy math: 1 post every 2.4 days). Many people write more frequently than me, and if you are a long term reader you know that my posting goes in spurts - from nearly daily to longer breaks - due to my travel schedule and other things. The main reason for the variability though is what I'll call a micro habit. Posting every 2.4 days over the course of time, probably means that I am in the habit of blogging (though people who posts 2.4 times per day - or more - would likely scoff at that comment). The variability is what I'll call the micro habit. When I am posting more regularly I get into a flow and generally write better posts more quickly, easily and efficiently. When more time has passed between it takes longer and more effort. I believe this idea of a micro habit affects many areas of our lives. Here are a few examples. Physically. Many of us get into a micro habit of dieting or exercise, when it is going well, we are motivated and we stay with it. Then somethng changes and we lose momentum. Professionally. We give more feedbacxk and coaching, provide greater support or listen better, for awhile. Then something happens and momentum is lost. Developmentally. We read regularly for a week or two or three. Then we are on a buisness trip, or our scheudle otherwise gets changed or we turn the TV back on, and the micro habit is lost. In Realtionships. We keep up with friends, call and email more often and even send thank you cards, for a bit. Then our micro habit falls by the wayside. Any of these ring a bell for you? While there is nothing wrong with these positive micro habits, the key for us is to keep the momentum up to turn these micro habits into full fledged habits. Here are two keys to making that transition: Lower your bar. Maybe you can't get from reading 30 minutes a day everyday when now you don't read at all. Maybe you can't get to excerise, two calls to friends or 1800 calories a day right away. Yes, you'll tell me you've done it for a few days in a row - but that is the micro habit. Lower the bar to start, and move the bar once your first goal is truly a habit. Know why you are starting down any path. Know your goals. then, keep those goals in mind and you will do a better job of transitioning from micro habit to habit. Thanks for letting me sharing some thoughts in this my 500th post. I'm pretty confident it is better than my first one. Labels: habit, micro habit PermaLink - 6 comments
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