4.23 Communication

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Well Said Wednesday: Stupid F'ing Blank Page!

[insert clever opening here]

[insert compelling, actionable content here]

[Insert swear word of choice here because of that stupid f’ing blank page.]

Ever had one of those days when the content just wouldn't come? When you had no idea what to say? When you wondered why does your business require so...many...words?

We all do. The unspoken truth of being a business owner is that content creation is a frequent, probably daily, task.

There is a sales page to update, the blog entry to crank out, the emails to answer (so many emails to answer!), the clever social media post to craft.

So tell me, what stumps you most when it comes to writing for your business? Seriously, go over to the 423 Communication Facebook page and fill in the blank: Writing for my business is the worst when...

Go ahead and vent. It might just make you feel better and you'll be helping me help you.

Decades spent developing corporate communication strategies means I've got quite a few tricks and tips up my sleeve for getting good content done quickly.

Like this one:

Never start with a blank page.

Good content required a Plan, a Process and Practice.

When you have a Plan, you always know what you’re writing about and why (which is why I offer Build Your Content Plan Workshops every single quarter.)

When you have a Process, you bring the what and why of your content to life in a systematic way that makes writing easier. (As opposed to tapping out your blog post on your phone while sitting on the toilet. True story.)

Your process can be as detailed or as simple as you need it to be. One of the easiest things to do is start every writing session with this question:

What am I trying to say?

It grounds you and gets you focused the purpose of what you’re working on. Try it next time you need to write content (you know it’s coming up soon!)

And, if you want more about Process watch for a very special — and free — event coming up on February 29.

It’ll be like process on steroids!