• The (anti-chaos) Content Cohort
  • How I Can Help
  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • WordPlan: 1-1 Content Strategy Planning
  • Menu

4.23 Communication

Be well said.
  • The (anti-chaos) Content Cohort
  • How I Can Help
  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • WordPlan: 1-1 Content Strategy Planning
 
 
 
 
Privacy Policy

© 2017-26 423 Communication, LLC. All rights reserved. Site design by Blue Elephant Creative.
Never start with a blank page.

Well Said Wednesday: Try This

July 14, 2021 in Message Basics, Fear & Loathing in Mktg

The screen is blank.

Your brain is blank.

Yet you have to write some copy for your new coaching program.

So you type a few words. Delete a few words. Type a sentence. Delete a sentence. Look out the window to avoid the blinking cursor of death.

“Gahhhhhh….I hate writing,” you say.

(And I know you say this because so many of you have told me so!)

You don’t have to panic. You just have to do three things:

  1. Take a deep breath.

  2. Stop thinking you’re lousy at writing. It’s not you, it’s your process.

  3. Forget all about snappy opening paragraphs, spicy vocabulary and sounding smart.

There is only one thing to consider right now. This:

What are you trying to say?

Just answer the question. You don’t have to use full sentences, you don’t even have to write. Use the record feature on your phone or shoot a video of yourself saying whatever comes to mind.

Free associate on the question:

What are you trying to say?

Good messaging is only possible when you are clear on what you are trying to say. That has to happen first before you start writing.

You see, this thing people call “writer’s block” boils down to a lack of clarity or a lack of confidence. That’s it. And both clarity and confidence are things you can absolutely work on and improve and what draws solo entrepreneurs and small business owners to "WordLaunch” with me.

When clients come to me to get better at writing about their business, the first step to “Get Focused.” And one of the ways you get focused is to ask yourself a core question. And you already know what it is, right?

What are you trying to say?

There’s more to getting focused, of course, but when you just need to get started, this question is your ticket to busting through writer’s block.

Try it out this week, then tell me how it went.

And if you’re curious, here’s a little more about WordLaunch.


“Well Said Wednesday” is a blog by Barbara Govednik, Founder, Content Coach & Message Strategist of 4.23 Communication. It’s published every other Wednesday…ish.

Tags: Writer's Block, Core Message, Process, Business Content
Prev / Next

Well Said
Again

Some of our favorite blogs.


Recent Posts
Well Said Wednesday: What Writing My Dad's Obituary Showed Me About Writing For My Business
Well Said Wednesday: What Writing My Dad's Obituary Showed Me About Writing For My Business

The presumption is that there’s only one way to do it and that you must manipulate and tamp down your true voice – and your very message – to fit that form.

It’s not true.

Read more →
Well Said Wednesday:  ICYMI: Clean Up On Aisle Seven
Well Said Wednesday: ICYMI: Clean Up On Aisle Seven

What I had out there was a little junky, a little hodgepodge, a little chaotic. (Oh, the irony.) But also super common. So common, in fact, that I am willing to call myself out for it!

Message chaos happens three ways:

Read more →
Well Said Wednesday: When the tank runs dry...
Well Said Wednesday: When the tank runs dry...

This month, I am doing some deep work within my business. I am sussing out the ways I can bring the most help, support, structure and sanity to my fellow small business owners. I am designing ways for them to embody their message, in the simplest, yet most compelling ways.

And I’m running through Sharpies and Post It’s like it’s my job! (Well, for now it kind of is my job.)

Read more →
Well Said Wednesday:  About Those Voices In Your Head...
Well Said Wednesday: About Those Voices In Your Head...

Your inner critic will tell you plainly that you’re about to embarrass yourself or that you can’t say that. It’s a shifty, narrow-minded, unhappy entity that entices you to backspace, delete and spend your writing time listening to the entire catalog of The Police. Your inner critic will tell you plainly that you’re about to embarrass yourself or that you can’t say that. It’s a shifty, narrow-minded, unhappy entity that entices you to backspace, delete and spend your writing time listening to the entire catalog of The Police. Don’t let it.

Read more →
Well Said Wednesday, Again:  Unsubscribes For The Win!
Well Said Wednesday, Again: Unsubscribes For The Win!

I could feel myself teetering on the edge of "why bother" last Monday. (Yep, even people who do this for a living and who know that content marketing is a long game of trust building and credential establishing have weak moments.) 

Read more →