You know you need to do it. You’ve had it on your to-do list for years. Your own coach has told you time and again that this is the year you must get your book in print.
And yet…nothing.
It’s not that you don’t recognize the benefits, or that you don’t want to have a published book on your resume. You just struggle with it, and probably for the same reasons many other coaches resist publication.
You don’t have time. Here’s a biggie. Everyone is busy. We all get that. But that’s not a good excuse when it comes to growing your business.
Rather than lamenting your lack of time, you should be prioritizing your day to accommodate the important things, like writing your book. Maybe that means getting up 30 minutes earlier for a focused (if short) writing stint every morning, or turning off the television after dinner so you can write, or even setting aside several hours each Sunday morning until your book is done.
The point is, you must make this a priority. Block out the time in your calendar, and treat that time as sacred. Pretend it’s an appointment with your most important client, and do not allow anything to get in the way of keeping it.
You can’t write. Many, many people claim they cannot write; yet when you look at their blogs, there are hundreds of posts. What it really means when someone says they can’t write is that they don’t like to.
Luckily, you have plenty of options for overcoming this particular hurdle. Hire a ghostwriter. Start with PLR. Repurpose your blog posts into a book (Darren Rowse of Problogger.net did this with great success).
And if all else fails, speak. Use software such as Dragon Naturally Speaking, or simply record using your favorite MP3 app and then have it transcribed.
You can’t organize a long project like a book. Ok, so you’re great with blog posts, and you don’t mind writing them, but the thought of writing an entire book makes you stare at your blank screen like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car.
First, if you can write a blog post, you can write an entire series of books. The process is all the same, after all. It’s just putting words into sentences, sentences into paragraphs, and so on.
But if you really feel you can’t manage a long project, then an outline is going to be your best friend. Start with a broad overview of your project, and then break it down by sections, then chapters. Make notes about what you’ll cover in each, and then it’s just a matter of filling in the blanks.
There are dozens of reasons to write a book. It’s important for establishing your expertise, for growing your audience, and for solidifying your message. But none of that will happen if you don’t actually write it. So it’s time to get beyond your hurdles and get your book done.
