7 SIGNS IT'S TIME TO WRITE YOUR BOOK
You’ve seen others in your circle who wrote and published their books.
You’ve been kicking around the idea.
You wonder if the time is right for you to well … write!
Here are seven signs that it’s time to put pen to paper—or fingertips to keyboard. If any one resonates with you, then it’s time to write your book. If more than one resonates, then it was time to write your book ... yesterday.
1. People already love everything you say and do.
Your social media posts are blowing up! Your email inbox is blowing up! Your DMs are blowing up! You could—not that you would—post a picture of a head of lettuce, and everyone would eat it up. (No pun intended.) Your posts and responses are filled with content that’s fresh, challenging, funny, or no-nonsense truths that others won’t dare utter. You keep it real, give encouragement, and share innovative thinking. You have exciting plans, a powerful personal perspective, and motivation that screams “Get up. Get out. Get to it. You can do it!”—you name it! Your posts consistently garner all kinds of attention, reactions, and responses from your followers, and all the better if you are able to effortlessly crank out material, not having to think twice about what you’re writing. And it's gorgeous! Your content flows from your heart, and others find it to be down-right irresistible.
2. Others have written on your topic, but you see gaps or are simply unimpressed.
You know that your solution is just as good if not better than what’s already in the marketplace. You find yourself regularly referencing your methodology or your process in conversations. You read, watch, or listen to others who are in the same space and say to yourself “I can do that. Hell. I can do better than that!” You give your opinion on a matter, backing it up with what you have experienced, learned, or created as well as what you have tested and that you know works. You wish for that one source you can direct people to that you know will unequivocally give the advice and answers that are superior to the content that's already out there.
3. You’re tired of seeing people make mistakes.
It is so hard to watch people make missteps that you know are 100% avoidable if they simply put in place what you’ve been practicing, teaching, (even preaching at times!), and coaching others on. You want to give them a proven plan or take them under your wing to show them what’s possible and how it’s done. You know if they had your system or your method—if they knew what you know—then they could be a success. You just know it.
4. Your ideas are too big for the current platforms you’re using to get them out.
Blogging is not enough. A LinkedIn post is not enough. A Facebook reel is not enough. A selfie on the ‘Gram is not enough. Moreover, not everyone who needs your expertise is on your mail list, subscribed to your blog, or sees your content on social media. Plus, there’s only so much you can put in any of those posts, and you have a new idea that comes to you what seems like every few seconds. Your brilliance is outgrowing the current space you're using to publish it. It's a big bubble that's just getting bigger and bigger and is about to burst! It needs a new home where all of it is beautifully organized and in one place for easy consumption by all.
5. You’re damn good at what you do.
You’re always being asked to solve a specific problem. You are called upon for a certain skillset, and the best part is you consistently crush it! Simply put, you’re phenomenal at what you do, and what you do helps people. Your business makes good money at helping people with a specific challenge, and you have become regarded as a thought leader in a niche with industry peers even looking to you as an authority. The bottom line is you’re exceptional at what you do. You know it, and others know it.
6. You’re looking for the next big thing.
You are ready to dominate and stand out from your competition because you already know you are different from others who do the same thing, but you need something that will make it crystal clear that you’re not more of the same. Plus, there's a “been there, done that” résumé that you're working with; it’s time to go where you’ve never gone before. Yes, a book is scary and opens you up to scrutiny and judgment; but you’re tough, and you’re ready for it. Only the best are willing to put themselves out there—to take risks. And weren’t you told that to be a success, you must do what scares you? You’ve checked off everything else and mastered them all. This is your next big thing. Feel the fear and ... you know the rest of the statement ... do it anyway.
7. You are getting signs from everywhere else that writing your book just makes sense.
You attend events, see others with their own books, and you think to yourself “That could be me.” Or you are constantly told you by family, friends, colleagues, and clients that you should write a book. You give great advice. Friends reach out with questions. You’ve heard the phrase “pick your brain” more times than you care to count. And if only you had a dollar for every time you’ve heard someone ask you if you have a book. The signs are all around you. All that's left to do is to do what makes sense.
For me, the signs came ...
... from people asking me how to give great presentations. During my time in Corporate America, I was constantly called upon to give presentation skills trainings, webinars, workshops, and advice. Peers, managers, and even company VPs would ask, and I would oblige. After exiting Corporate America and launching my own speaking business, I effortlessly blogged on the topic of presentation skills (and still do), finding inspiration in almost any mundanity.
By pulling content from my blog and organizing it into four categories, I created REAL TALK: What Other Experts Won’t Tell You About How to Make Presentations That Sizzle, which won a Best Indie Book Award and is now in its second edition.
A few weeks after the book published, I delivered a presentation at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC at a conference where more something like 14,000 were in attendance and where Oprah was also one of the speakers.
Once I finished my presentation, several people raced out of the room while several others lined up to chat with me. Then, a few minutes later, several of those attendees who had made dashes for the door returned to the room and said, “Your book’s not in the store.”
“Oh! No-no! That cannot be!” I proclaimed with outrage. “I got off a plane yesterday and went STRAIGHT to the bookstore to ensure it was on the shelf. It’s there! That. Book. Is. THERE!”
They let me get out me spiel, then they told me “No, Bridgett. The book was there. It’s sold out.” And they were wondering if I’d packed a few extras that I could sell to them.
*jaw drop*
That was May of 2019. I still submit proposals to present at that conference and am fortunate to get accepted and met with packed rooms of enthusiastic conference-goers. And because of the success of my sessions and the success of my book’s debut, the conference regularly sells my books at a number of its events and hosts sold-out book signings for me.
Now, when someone asks me how to start a speaking business, how to be dynamic on the stage, or simply how to stand out, I don’t have to search for a great source to point people to. I invite them to get a copy of my Own the Microphone, Real Talk, or Show Up and Show Out. (Or if I happen to have a copy on me, I autograph it and give it to them.)
Your takeaway? Get to writing. Your readers are waiting for your book. What are you waiting for?
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Content credit: B. McGowen-Hawkins
Image credit: Alexas_Fotos