Why We Still Need to Write, Even When We’re Scared

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Writing is scary.

Sometimes when we publish something, it makes us feel like our insides are hanging out, for all the world to see. We feel vulnerable. We feel naked. We feel … terrified.

But here’s the thing — we have to keep writing, in spite of the fear. If we let fear stop us, our content will have no spark, no life. And everything we write will be completely unremarkable.

Right now, I’m working on a blog post (on a different topic) that scares the living heck out of me. I am afraid of the strong opinions and passion that are rising from some long-buried place inside me. I’m worried that I won’t write well enough to clearly communicate what I need to say. I’m worried about what people will say when I publish this piece.

Bottom line — I’m scared.

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How to Create Consistently Great Content for the Long Haul

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Want to know a powerful secret weapon you can use in your quest for better creative output? Think of it as an industrial-strength antidote to resistance, creative blocks, and stale ideas.

This amazing secret weapon is called a habit.

Developing better creative habits is one of the most valuable things you can do as a content creator.

Legendary Choreographer Twyla Tharp’s practical book The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life, is a ground-breaking guide to becoming a calmer, better balanced, more productive creative professional.

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Beware the Ideas of March

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The year is marching on, isn’t it?

All those New Year’s Day vibes have worn off completely. We’ve returned to the everyday slog of our businesses.

How are your resolutions? What’s happening with your goals? Are they buried under your day-to-day tasks, forgotten?

It’s a sad state. But it doesn’t have to stay that way. You can re-boot your business anytime you want. And what better day than the Ides of March?

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How to Protect Your Creative Fire in a Sea of Mediocrity

Hugh MacLeod comic

Two of my favo­rite artist heroes are Brian Eno and Frank Zappa, two musi­cians who first hit the big time about forty years ago. I was first tur­ned onto them in my late teens.

Both became tra­di­tio­nal rock stars around the same time, Eno pla­ying with Roxy Music, Zappa with The Mothers Of Invention.

They could have done what most rock stars do: Make a cou­ple of records, get a cou­ple of hits on the radio, spend the next X decades tou­ring, living on a tour bus, pla­ying the same songs night after night to ado­ring fans in towns in Cle­ve­land, Chi­cago, Des Moi­nes, Little Rock …

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7 Tips for Falling in Love with Your Blog All Over Again

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You’re trying hard not to show it,
But baby, baby I know it …
You’ve lost that loving feeling …

~The Righteous Brothers

Ever get to a point with your blog and your internet marketing strategy where you’re just … worn out?

The writing that used to thrill you now feels like a chore. Your readers are getting on your nerves. The tedious little tasks are getting to you.

You don’t want to quit … but you do want to get some of that old magic back, the way it was in the early days.

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Here’s How Brian Clark Writes

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7 years ago, Brian Clark glimpsed the future.

With $1,000, no audience, and no connections, he started a simple blog and slowly, steadily built a vast resource for empowering online writers.

Now, he’s the CEO of a multi-million dollar software company built around the credo of helping writers and online publishers grow their brands and businesses — the right way.

By writing and delivering valuable content, Brian has earned a vast audience, and some impressive accolades over the years.

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