You are an idea machine. The question is are you well-oiled?
Diliana Popova ??
B2B Content Partner | Content Strategy | Content Writing | Content Ops |
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I had a wonderful kick-off call this week with a new client- a passionate coach who needed help harnessing her ideas and transmuting them into a consistent weekly newsletter and social posts.
In short, she needed help extracting and distilling the though- leadership that is constantly bubbling in her mind.
A lot of smart people struggle with this, but oftentimes they phrase it as "I don't know what to write".
On the surface the overwhelm might look like a shortage of ideas, but I have never found that to be the case. Usually it's the exact opposite.
It's the curse of knowledge.
It is a cognitive bias that occurs when people assume everyone has either heard what they have to say or knows what they know.
Thought leadership is not about original ideas, or unique frameworks it's more about having an opinion and going first.
How to harness your creativity
If you are looking to establish your thought leadership online, whether that's for business or professional reasons you have to have a system.
You have to understand how your brain work and reign in that energy. Some of my clients are natural writers, some of them are verbally oriented and writing is difficult for them.
Know thyself.
In the case of the client I mentioned above, she was 100% verbal. In the short span of an hour, I managed to tease out of her (without much effort) enough ideas to last us several months.
All I had to do after the brainstorm was pull a transcript and organize her thoughts.
You have to come up with a way to record your thinking in a way that works for you and your brain.
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This is the first step.
The more you get into the habit of recording it, the more ideas will come to you.
I collect mine on paper. I have tried a few digital tools, but the reality is that ideas come to me away from the laptop- when I am walking, washing dishes, gardening.
Some people use voice notes. Heck book a meeting with yourself, talk it out and run a transcript. Do what works.
Reminds me of the book Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert? She talks about this creative phenomenon like this:
“I believe that our planet is inhabited not only by animals and plants and bacteria and viruses, but also by ideas. Ideas are a disembodied, energetic life-form. They are completely separate from us, but capable of interacting with us—albeit strangely. Ideas have no material body, but they do have consciousness, and they most certainly have will. Ideas are driven by a single impulse: to be made manifest. And the only way an idea can be made manifest in our world is through collaboration with a human partner. It is only through a human’s efforts that an idea can be escorted out of the ether and into the realm of the actual.”
I have experienced this.
I never run out of ideas, they are always visiting me. Day and night.
So, honor them by recording them and they will flock to you.
Happy ideating
??D??
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Hi! Diliana here. I'm a B2B content writer, entrepreneur and mother to both human and fur babies. I write a weekly micro- essay on content marketing, business and being human in a world obsessed with AI. Glad you could join me!
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5 个月It's also (IMHO) the reason to hire someone like you - it's such a luxury to have someone who can "translate your brain" and get it right. You do that ridiculously well. Most thought leaders aren't writers, but having their ideas and expertise is important. It's such a light lift when you collaborate, which really struck me in this issue.
Copywriting and Squarespace website design for coaches and creatives who want a beautifully-designed website that feels authentic to them and speaks to their ideal client.
5 个月I really like how you reframe this... it's not that someone doesn't know what to write, it's what you call the curse of knowledge. I feel like your perspective takes away any sort of feelings of imposter syndrome, overwhelm, or confusion that are keeping people from writing in the first place.
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5 个月Thank you ??Diliana Popova ?? for your beautiful thoughts and senses for snail mail which make me feel slow low like the leopard slug squatting in deep darkness under heavy stone and rainy leafs in my voluptuous garden full of shivering creatures and blossoming beauties. Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert “I believe that our planet is inhabited not only by animals and plants and bacteria and viruses, but also by ideas. Ideas are a disembodied, energetic life-form. They are completely separate from us, but capable of interacting with us—albeit strangely. Ideas have no material body, but they do have consciousness, and they most certainly have will. Ideas are driven by a single impulse: to be made manifest. And the only way an idea can be made manifest in our world is through collaboration with a human partner. It is only through a human’s efforts that an idea can be escorted out of the ether and into the realm of the actual.” Laila how do you feel when reading these lines in beautiful permaculture and Wunderland at KULTURGUTLEBEN? Anders Diliana's & Elizabeth's words make me recollect impressions I felt while enjoying luscious images you created ?? Jens Schütte Kay Helena Wahdan leopard slug that's the Tigerschnegel ?? ?? ??