Why Writing Matters
Here is the golden nugget of this whole article:
Writing is the foundation for everything.
I take it for granted most of the time, but writing has changed my life in more ways than I ever imagined.
Even though I have been writing and blogging for different audiences since 2011, I never officially shared much about this amazing practice on a deeper level or what writing truly means to me.
I never thought I was a very good writer.
I still don’t think I’m amazing and there a ton of writers out there who are way more amazing than me.
But I have shown up consistently for my writing for many years.
This consistent practice has been my only secret.
So I’m going to make a big claim:
Writing is THE core skill for any creator and creative entrepreneur, as I wrote about in this article recently.
The most valuable thing you can do for your creativity and career is to build a writing habit.
Why?
Because everything you want to do starts with writing.
Writing is the fuel for all other mediums:
It is the basis for my videos, newsletter, long-form Instagram posts and podcasts – and also any course and public speech.
Do you want to author a book? Write.
Do you want to make a film or record a video? Write.
Do you want to give a talk? Write.
Do you want to run a workshop? Write.
Do you want to create a podcast? Write.
Do you want to teach an online course? Write.
Do you want to change people’s lives? Write.
Don’t underestimate the power of the written word. Ever.
So let’s go in the details of why writing matters.
It enables clarity of thinking
Writing is the process of thinking.
Wait, actually: Writing IS thinking.
The physical manifestation of writing is essential to the thinking process. As I am typing these words and let my ideas flow onto the page, I am thinking out loud in a structured manner. It’s awesome.
With so many thoughts running wild in our minds (roughly around 50k-70k per day), it is impossible to organize them properly in our brains.
Writing is a tool for thought and idea organization. In this process, we gain clarity of thinking and make space for new ideas to come through as we enter a state of reception and flow.
And since ideas change the world, your ability to make a real impact increases.
It heightens your awareness and makes you more curious
Writing forces you to be present and pay attention.
As a writer and creative, everything I see and experience is interesting and potential material. Every conversation, every book, every insight can hold inspiration for a piece of writing.
You become an explorer and an observer of the world around you – you soak it up with passionate intensity.
Your curiosity is amplified and being a curious human is one of the best ways to live life.
It accelerates learning
On the one hand, the more you write, the quicker you learn to write better, the better you become at writing. Quantity leads to quality.
On the other hand, the more you write about topics that interest you and about your creative work, the more you learn about these areas. As we teach, so we learn.
Apart from that, sharing your writing online will probably prompt you to learn about publishing platforms (eg. WordPress, Squarespace, Medium..) and consequently about getting more people to read your writing (ie. content marketing).
There is so much to learn out there and writing is an amazing and very practical tool to embrace the learner in you.
It raises your vibration
When we express ourselves creatively, we use our second energy center and the mere act of activating it through writing is a highly fulfilling process.
When I get my creative writing juices flowing, I always feel more connected to myself and the present moment. Creating and writing every day makes me an overall happier human being.
Your expression becomes more clear
Putting your thoughts and ideas down helps develop a well-organized, efficient mind.
The more you write, the more you learn how to articulate yourself. This is something I keep noticing about myself as well. When I have a regular writing practice, I find it easier to express my thoughts, ideas, and feelings to other people.
When you write, you are forced to distill your millions of thoughts down into something that is precise and digestible. In the process and as you write more, your writing – but especially also your speaking – will become more clear and succinct.
The ability to communicate more clearly is huge because others will listen more and understand us better.
It fosters critical thinking
Especially when writing an essay or a more profound piece of writing around a certain topic, you as a writer are called in to make an argument for your reader.
As part of this creative process, you will need to reflect on and evaluate existing information and opinions out there.
The end result is that you will strengthen your critical thinking muscle as you are invited to challenge and question conventional ways of looking at things.
It is a tool for self-discovery and healing
A consistent writing practice can be used in many different ways, but these are the two main ones:
You write for yourself (eg. journaling or morning pages)
You write for others (eg. blogging, on social media..)
Both ways hold massive potential for self-discovery. I have gotten to know myself intensively through both.
On the one hand, journaling or doing morning pages is a direct highway to your inner self and your shadows. There is no hiding on the page (and why would you?).
On the other hand, writing in public and sharing it with the world, is a very vulnerable act especially in the beginning, because we have to overcome our inner resistance and fears.
Also, sharing my more personal writing with others and making myself vulnerable in my public writing is an incredibly healing process, as it helps me to connect with others and de-shame certain parts of myself.
It can almost be a form of therapy in itself and many writers will attest to that.
In general, writing is a way to explore ourselves in ways that we normally don’t do.
It helps us illuminate our thinking, our opinions, our fears, our inner conflicts, our doubts, shadows and ultimately: our truth.
It helps you expand your consciousness
To be more conscious is to be more aware. Through writing and the exploration of yourself and the world, you increase your awareness on all levels.
In combination with meditation, it is the perfect practice for self-inquiry and to get to know yourself, which are precursors on the journey to higher consciousness as a creator.
Also: When you write for others, you are essentially teaching – teaching is learning and learning is helping you become more conscious.
You can make a name for yourself and build a community
Writing makes you visible.
Through writing online, you can share what you know, your experiences, your learnings, your ideas. This builds authority and creates trust with people.
Having a platform on which you share your writing is the best way to let people know that you exist, attract an audience and get clients – the right clients!
Blogging and writing on social media have allowed me to grow wonderful audiences and communities of people who are interested in the same things as me.
Beyond that, I have created some of the most amazing friendships and connections with other creators, writers, and entrepreneurs through sharing myself online. This in itself has been so rewarding and fulfilling and I wouldn’t ever want to give this up.
It opens up unexpected career and business opportunities
Writing has been my serendipity vehicle for many years now. By this, I mean that by sharing myself online and having a platform, I have attracted many unexpected and surprising offerings from other companies or people.
They came to me, I didn’t have to seek them out or pitch anyone.
I have been invited to speak at big events and conferences.
Several publishers have approached me for book projects.
Other creators and entrepreneurs have reached out to propose collaborations and work together.
Businesses contact me for cooperations and sponsorships.
I often open my email inbox and find something awesome in there – all because I share my writing (and videos and podcasts) with the world.
It trains your creative muscle
This is a big one and one that I believe many creative people, whose primary craft is not writing (eg. YouTubers, photographers..) underestimate:
Writing regularly is good for your creative brain.
It makes you more creative by forcing you to come up with new ideas all the time.
Beyond that, as you are testing the limits of your creative ideas, you improve their quality.
As you share your writing with others and open up the feedback loop, you are rewarded with instant feedback to learn from and improve your creative craft.
The more you exercise your creativity muscle, the more creative you will become.
Also, the more you exercise your creative muscle in one area, the more creative you will be in another. For example, writing has made me a more creative YouTuber and photographer.
It enables the feeling of flow
Sitting down to write is one of the best ways to experience the flow state.
Once I get into it and dedicate myself to it, I am fully in the present moment, fully connected to the craft, to my fingers moving across the keyboard or the pen across the page.
Ideas are flowing as I lock up my inner critic and let my mind uncover insights and connections I hadn’t seen before.
It’s a wonderful feeling and one that keeps me coming back to the page every single day.
It helps you find your voice and become more confident
You really only find your voice by using it and writing is a wonderful way to to that.
As you explore yourself, your mind, your curiosities, your ideas and as you find more clarity in your thinking, your unique voice forms – and through this, your creative self-confidence flourishes.
It will then be much easier to take your voice from writing to video or podcasting because you already feel more confident with how you express yourself and sharing your ideas.
Resumé:
Writing will change your life
Let’s be real – writing totally changed my life. This is probably still an understatement.
It helped me explore my curiosities, build a business and connect to hundreds of thousands of people. My thinking is sharper, so is my speaking and serendipity knocks on my door regularly.
If you take away one thing from reading this article, take this:
Start writing daily.
It doesn’t have to be much, even 200 words or 20 minutes a day will have a huge impact on you, your thinking, your work, your creativity, your business and your life.
If you want to take writing more seriously, write publicly.
Expand your comfort zone, put yourself out there and experience massive growth as a result.
Being a writer is being a creator – and being a creator is the most rewarding way to use and share your energies.
If you need support on your writing journey, send me an email or a DM on Instagram. I am opening up my new one-month program “The Mindful Creator” for a small group of people soon.
Write your heart out.
With love
Conni.