Do you want to be a productive writer?

Neera

Two years ago, when I became a full-time writer, I went full throttle on several creative projects.

• I joined multiple courses.
• I wrote prolifically to populate my website.
• I dusted a three-year-old manuscript and started working on it.
• I started writing an article a day on Medium.
• I commenced a weekly publication.
• And a weekly newsletter.

“I am not working,” I told myself. “I have no excuse to slack. My output should be double or triple as before.”

On the contrary, my productivity dropped.
And I experienced a full-scale burnout.

While working on a paid job, I never had to worry about my productivity. Even when I was working on tight deadlines.

Even though I was working over ten hours a day and still couldn’t finish the tasks I had assigned to myself.

I over-committed and became obsessed with productivity.

I was continually stressed, exhausted, and feeling non-creative.

I was finally free to pursue my dreams, and I was nose-diving into a disaster.

Looking back, I see the problem wasn’t with the amount of work; it was with my approach.

Somewhere along the way, I stopped thinking about productivity as the vehicle and made it the goal.

I’d lost sight of the purpose and meaning behind the work I was doing.

Every hour blocked off on my calendar, every task I added to my to-do list, and every project I started, tightened the grip on my heart and mind.

As I looked around myself, I found I wasn’t alone.

Every creator was going through the same.

Thankfully, I came out of this excruciating state.

I wrote my journey from a stressed and anxious for a relaxed productive writer in my new book “Become A Productive Writer. In the hope that it can help you to become relaxed and productive.

Get your copy today.

This is what your book does to you

Neera

On 21 June 2021, my life changed overnight.

I published my first book.

I became ‘somebody’ from ‘nobody.’

People around me started viewing me differently.

I was writing online for 2.5 years, but I was just another writer.

But after writing and publishing my book, I became a voice.

My audience read my story, and they could relate to it.

They felt a personal connection with me.

That’s what writing a book does to you.

It builds trust with your readers.

My 5-Step system to write LinkedIn posts

Neera

1. Take Notes

Most of my ideas come from reading. So whenever I read something that invokes an idea, I take time to jot it down. I do that whatever is handy – my phone, a notebook, or even a piece of paper.

2. Keep An Ideas Journal

There is no point in taking notes when you can’t find them when you need them. Twice a week, I transfer them to the Idea Journal in my Personal Knowledge Management System (I will share more about my PKMS later).

3. Elaborate By Hand

When the time comes to write a LinkedIn post, I pick one idea and elaborate it by hand. Writing by hand allows me to access the parts of the brain that typing can’t. I always come up with better ideas when writing on a paper rather than a screen.

4. Create An Image

I pick the main idea of the post and create an image using it as a quote. I only started doing it recently and found it really useful in highlighting the main point and branding my posts.

5. Schedule The Post

Rather than hitting published when I am done, I schedule my posts when I am going to be available to answer comments. LinkedIn now has the ability to schedule posts which I find very handy.

This story will blow your mind

Neera

At a truck suspension shop, they’d do a year-end tally to count all the different kinds of screws.

One

By

One

It would take daaaaays!

Can you imagine the time-sucking, soul-crushing agony?

A new employee joined the team.

He was assigned the task of counting the screws.

The problem was, he was too lazy. He couldn’t be bothered with counting the screws, one by one.

So he came up with an idea.

He weighed an individual screw.
Then weighed the bin full of screws.
Then divided the weight of the bin by the weight of just one screw.

BAM!

He got the total number of screws.

The job went from taking days… to be done in a couple of minutes.

The best way to do anything… is to be lazy.

Be lazy like the car mechanic.

Build a system!

What’s your favorite writing technique?

Neera

One of mine is using metaphors.

Because metaphors are fun.
They help clarify ideas.
And they make your writing stand out.

They add emotion to your idea, which makes them memorable.

In Paul Loomans’ excellent book ???? ???????, the author proposes a Zen-inspired method of time management.

He calls this method – time surfing.

Just like a surfer can’t control the waves of the ocean, we can’t control time.
Time passes by whether we like it or not. Comparing time to surfing creates a sense of movement, fluidity, and freedom.

It makes you think of excitement and lack of control at the same time.

Here is another metaphor from the same book.

Think of your To-Do list as a string of beads. Some beads may be shiny, colorful, and appealing; others may be dull and rather ugly. So are your tasks.

Some beads are big; some are tiny.
Just like your tasks.

Now your turn.
What metaphors speak to you?
How can you use them in your writing?

Do you think you don’t have enough to write a book?

Neera

Think again.

One of my students came to me with his book idea.

As we started flushing his idea, we realized
he had three books in him rather than one.

Layer by layer, we picked threads of his thoughts
and arranged them in different piles.

Now he can write them all.

One by one.

Here are 5 steps to limit the scope of your book.

1. Choose a specific theme.
2. Define your audience.
3. Set a clear objective.
4. Create an outline.
5. Revise and edit.

Leave the rest for the next book.