5 Mindset Shifts that set you apart from other Writers
There are more writers now. It could be because of how easy it is to start or the increasing demand, but writers are more now. You separate yourself from others by the quality of your work and the authority you command.
It’s why I believe so much in personal branding. It gives you a face and makes you remembered in this crowded profession.
Every profession is crowded, no doubt, but I’m focused on writing because I’m a writer.
Everything starts from your mindset because, with the right mindset, you can become whatever you choose. There are hundreds of articles on the internet that talk about mindset shifts, but I’m only going to list out what has worked for me.
Believe You’re the Best
Call it whatever you want, but when you have the belief that you’re the best, you will write like the best. It puts pressure on you to work harder than everyone else to improve your skills.
Cristiano Ronaldo believes he’s the best footballer in the world and he works harder than everyone else for it. Mohammed Ali always said he was the greatest, and he reaped the fruits.
When I get bad reviews from clients, I feel terrible, and I take it hard on myself because I know the amount of effort I put into the project. The need not to feel like that anymore makes me put more effort into the next job I do, to make it come out better — and it does.
I feel bad because I have set standards for myself based on the quality of work I deliver, and if the client doesn't get satisfied, I get hurt which makes me work harder.
It starts with your belief.
Find Comfort in Telling Your Story
I struggled with this a lot at first. I didn’t want to tell my stories in my articles because I feared what people might think. When I did it the first time, I kept checking the stats to see how the article did — it brought more feedbacks and I kept revealing.
What distinguishes us, humans, from each other, is our stories. We’ve all had different experiences and done different things. When we communicate these unique experiences with people, they now become who we are to other people.
There’s genuinely no new content on the internet, everything was gotten from somewhere and was tweaked to show the writer’s unique views. If your article doesn’t have life in it, anyone that reads it would simply scroll through after reading it.
They might get the information needed, but they wouldn’t connect with the writer. Once you can connect with your readers, you stay in their minds.
Discipline
I had to force myself to start submitting one article to a publication here every day. I started with LinkedIn; I used to write (still do) a post every day just to become familiar to the readers.
Although some posts I submit to publications get rejected, I still try to create new content every day under my name.
Your dedication is what puts you ahead. Everybody is distracted by the same thing these days — social media, movies, video games, etc. The people that succeed are the ones that can stick to a process and follow it religiously.
Writing on LinkedIn has helped my career a lot. Most times, I don’t have to pitch clients. They come to me on their own after engaging with my posts a couple of times. It wouldn’t have happened if I didn’t commit to creating content every day.
Be okay with Dreaming
All successful people, men and women are big dreamers. They imagine what their future could be, ideal in every respect, and then they work every day toward their distant vision, that goal or purpose.
-Brian Tracy
When you picture your desired future, don’t spoil it with a “but” It’s common to set goals for yourself and give excuses for how it wouldn’t be possible. But the ones crazy enough to work towards the future they have planned for themselves somehow achieve it. The keyword here is work
Don’t entirely focus on the dream, identify the little progress you make on the way, and celebrate it. It gives you the drive to keep going.
Find People who are where You Dream of being and Learn from them
You might call it having a mentor or whatever, but I’ve said it in the easiest way possible. You might think getting a mentor means reaching out to people who are ahead of you and asking them to mentor you. But I think that’s too much work.
Put yourself in their shoes. What if a complete stranger sends you a message asking you different questions about your journey and then asks you to become his mentor. How would you feel? It might be cute at first, but it would get tiring later for you when you have other things to do.
The aim of getting a mentor is to have someone guide you, right? Today, you can pick anyone’s brains by their content on the internet. You don’t have to meet or text them directly. Find their podcasts, blogs, webinars, email lists, books, social media accounts, anything.
From these materials, you can start to learn a thing or two about their journey. Everyone who has excelled at something leaves stories around. Use those stories as a guide. You will waste valuable time trying to get them to answer questions in person.
