You Need More Than a Dream to Become a Writer

When the idea popped into my head to become a writer, I laughed out loud and exclaimed “But I’m not a writer!”

I’m sure that you too have thought about starting something new, something bold or something exciting, but a scolding inner voice said, “that’s a silly idea, how will you ever do that?”

But your ability to chase a dream without knowing how you’ll get there is critical to living a successful life.  Read on and I’ll give you a strategy to do just that.

Me, a writer?  No way!

I never though of myself as a writer.  Sure, I wrote love letters, business presentations, and even kept a journal, but a writer?  A creative?  An artist of sorts?  Never!

Thankfully, I didn’t take the easy route – dismissing the idea, choosing to play it safe and not stretch myself.

I found myself wondering, “Why would I expose myself to failure?  Why would I open myself up to ridicule?!”

At that particular time in my life, I felt restless, ready for something new.  Eager to share my ideas with the world, the idea to write intrigued me.   Scary? Yes! But this “silly“ idea inspired me, it took root, despite the fact that I did not know what to do next.

A dream is not enough

Dan Sullivan, in the Gap And The Gain, writes about why it’s so easy for us to fall short of a dream. 

The key to avoiding failure, Dan says, is to know the difference between what your vision is, and what your goals are. 

Your vision is a big idea; I like to think about it as your dream.  It’s where you want to go, who you want to be or what you want to do.  Your vision is that state of being that represents change, fulfillment, and accomplishment.  

Your goals are those steps that you need to take to achieve your vision.  They need to be measurable and they need to be specific.  As Dan Sullivan says, 

“All we have to do and, in fact, all we can do is visualize our futures, set our goals, and measure our progress.”

And this is where most of us fall down, we confuse our vision and our goals.  As we set off in pursuit of a new dream we judge our level of success against our vision, and when we do this, we always fall short.  Dan Sullivan wisely compared a dream to the horizon, you can move towards it, but it’s sure hard to get there.

Trust the process

So, how do we avoid this pitfall?

You set achievable, measurable goals that move you towards your vision, and you do this in two to four-week increments. 

Once you accomplish the scheduled goals, look back to where you started, and take note of how far you’ve come, what you’ve accomplished, and give yourself a big pat on the back!  Then take some time to reflect on what you’ve learned, set the next round of goals and repeat the process all over again.  

This process works for three reasons: 

(1) it breaks your journey down into manageable and executable steps, 

(2) you’ll judge your success by what you’ve accomplished and not by your vision, and 

(3) you’ll be able to course-correct and adjust your goals along the way. 

My goals led me to my dream

When the dream of being a “writer” took hold of my psyche I came close to being lost in the “bigness” of the idea.  So I forced myself to step back and to assign a very concrete definition to my vision, something I could achieve, that would mean to ME, that I was a writer.

What popped into my head was having a blog.  A blog where I could publish and share my ideas with the world.  In my mind, once the blog went live, I could announce myself as a writer.

Next, I outlined the first small steps towards my future.  Since I had no idea what I was doing, every two weeks I set new goals, evaluated my progress and drew encouragement that I was moving towards my vision.

As weeks turned into months I marched steadily towards my dream.  Yes, it was WORK.  And it was tough work, but I remained  inspired by my vision and excited by the progress I made.

Those who work hard make a profit, but those who only talk will be poor.  (Proverbs 14:23, NCV)

It took me one and a half years until I finally hit “publish” on my first blog post.  What took me so long?  Well, I had a lot to learn!  Although it’s not an exhaustive list, below are some of the goals/steps I accomplished along the way.

My roadmap to writing

• Journaled about what I wanted to say on the blog
• Developed my writing voice and style
• Researched other bloggers that published in my areas of interest
• Read blogs on everything related to writing
• Listened to podcasts on writing and creativity
• Learned how to structure a blog post
• Identified key elements of a successful story headline
• Registered a web domain name
• Bought a WordPress template for the  blog site
• Set-up a free email account to communicate with subscribers
• Studied SEO strategies and the importance of keywords
• Identified writing tools to organize ideas and posts
• Read books and more books on writing
• Wrote (not always successfully) 500 words per day
• Paid for an online course on how to blog
• Attended a writer’s conference to network and learn tips of the trade
• Hired a professional web designer to touch-up the blog site
• Wrote a 24 page, free ebook to encourage readers to subscribe to my email list
• Drafted four blog posts so that I wouldn’t fall behind in publishing regularly
• And then finally, I hit publish on my very first post:  How Jail Made Me a Better Person

Did I achieve my dream?  Yes!

Am I a writer?  Yes!

Do I continue to refine and develop my vision around writing?  Yes!

Advocate for your dream in every step

What started as a small tiny voice has become a reality for me.  What started as a decision to take a chance and a risk, has rewarded me in unexpected ways.  I’ve learned that in the decisions I make, I’m either advocating for my dream, or I’m not.  So cast your dream, set a big goal, and focus on the little steps you can take every day because compounded over time, they will bring you to your dream.

Be wise and successful

1. Read The Gap and the Gain by Dan Sullivan, it’s an easy read.  It’s free too if you provide your contact information.

2. Identify a dream and make it concrete.    Fill in the blanks of this sentence:  My dream is to  <insert your dream> which means that I will <insert specific big goal that accomplishes your dream>.  For instance: “My dream is to be an entrepreneur which means that I will start an online store that caters to high-altitude mountain climbers.”  Make your  vision understandable and concrete.

3. Replicate the goals/steps I outlined in my journey to become a writer, and apply them to chasing your dream.  Be sure to break down the goals into measurable steps so you can easily track your progress.