Use these strategies to write a book - writing a book simplified with Danielle Mendoza

Writing a book can be an incredible way to connect with your audience on a deeper level, and also showcase you as the expert that you truly are. You are capable of writing a book and it’s not hard to formulate your story and share it. The benefits of writing a book The first benefit is getting to tell your story and reach more people. Second is building an emotional connection with others, especially your soulmate clients. Third, being asked to speak and being paid to speak. Fourth, being seen as an expert. The benefits of being an entrepreneur Being in business for yourself feels good. It creates so much more meaning and connection in life. Danielle shared that our businesses go beyond just this idea of making money. Being an entrepreneur is also about being who we are in the world and living as ourselves fully and impacting the lives of other people. God often calls us to something bigger, to have a deeper impact on more people. In addition, life experiences sometimes propel us to crave fulfillment and have an impact. Danielle shared her experience with cancer. Life can be short, we never know how much time we have, so it’s important to act now. Danielle mentioned that she wanted her legacy to be a story of who she is and how she’s touched other people’s lives. Robyn seconds that. That is what having an impact, following your purpose, calling, and changing lives is all about. 6-figure income doesn’t define success If you listen to the idea that you have to get to six figures long enough, you’ll start to feel like you're not successful unless you get to the six-figure mark and think that that is the bottom level of success. That simply is not true. It’s a valid goal to have but we can be happy and feel successful without reaching that goal. You can build a business model that fits your life instead of fitting your life into a very busy business model hustling to achieve 6-figures. Finding balance We hear a lot about the inability of finding a balance between family life and business. However, it is what you make it. If you desire fulfillment and want to have an impact, you can have a business and work around your family commitments. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing, all business and no family or all family and no business. That’s the beauty of entrepreneurship. You can work around your family’s schedule and needs while creating a successful business and making an impact. Both you and your family will grow through each season you walk through, with different needs, ages, activities, and different levels of focus in your business. What you need to begin writing a book - you don't have to be a writer or be creative to write a book Writing a book can be intimidating. You may experience fear and imposter syndrome so having a support system and network of people to hold you up and hold you accountable is key. It may also be hard to be disciplined to write. In addition, having a strategy in place will allow you to write with simplicity, ease, and grace. It is possible to write a book in a few months, it doesn’t have to take years. Take advantage of creative time, like in the shower, while driving, or while walking the dog. Use the notes app on your phone and record your creative thoughts and add them to your manuscript later. So I wrote a good chunk of my book. In the bathtub, in the shower, in my car, while I was driving by just opening up my notes app and doing voice-to-text, and then I would copy and paste those thoughts and those ideas into my document later when I was sitting at the computer and kind of clean it up and fit it all in. Note, that when you have a strategic framework for writing your book, it happens faster and easier. Likewise, when we allow ourselves time to be creative, thoughts flow to us. Your expertise is all that matters when you want to begin writing a book However, you don't have to consider yourself creative to be able to write, especially if you are telling your story, especially if you're writing something that is related to your business. Danielle emphasized that you also do not need to consider yourself a writer. The women she works with are experts and geniuses at what they do in their businesses, but not expert writers. They don’t need to be. Neil Gaiman, a famous author, has a great saying. He says first drafts are trash. And it's true. He's released three chapters of the first draft from one of his best-known books, and they're terrible. When you try reading them you think, oh, if this was the book, I would not want to read it. But yet he’s created an incredible life as a professional author. Use Neil as inspiration to say, I don't need to be a brilliant writer to be able to share my story. That's why we have editors and we have people who look through our book, beta readers. What you need to know to begin writing a book When you begin writing a book, think about who you are talking to, the ultimate reader. Ask yourself who is the person that I’m talking to in my book? Because as we start to write, we tend to think we're talking to everyone. And as we all know, in business, if you're talking to everyone, you're talking to no one. Very clearly define who you are talking to. When it comes to being an entrepreneur and writing a book to build your legacy and scale your business, you're talking to your best potential client. In addition, you're usually talking to the person who is early on the client journey towards getting to know you, like you, and trust you. Before you define an idea, a title, or what your book is going to be about, you need to define who your reader is. From a personal branding perspective, we talk a lot about that, how to identify your soulmate client and understand exactly what they are thinking. What it is that they need from you. Be aware of the problem that is keeping them up at night. What is the challenge that they’re thinking of when doing dishes? When you start thinking in terms of what they're thinking, the solution to their problem becomes forefront for you. What is your soulmate client thinking - address their thoughts when writing a book Sometimes it’s hard for us to see what our clients are thinking because we are the expert. We’ve usually solved the problem for ourselves and many other people. To discover what your soulmate clients are thinking so that you know what to write, ask them. Ask them what they're thinking and have some strategic questions to draw that out of them. Then you’ll have their words, the voice of your customer, along with their understanding and perspective of the problem and you will be able to write directly to them.   Read the full show notes and access all links.