3 Lessons You'll Learn by Writing a Book About Your Business Describing your entrepreneurial mindset to others will help you discover truths about your company and yourself.
By Vernon Lindsay Edited by Dan Bova
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
I had difficulty sleeping the night before my first book published. A project that began as a creative idea had evolved into a product that could support my business services. The book had taken nearly three years to write and get ready for printing. Now that its release was on the horizon, I was anxious.
The process, though, taught me a great deal about entrepreneurialism, from consistency to marketing. Choosing to write a book can serve as a classroom for potential business owners. Sure, you could expedite things by hiring a ghostwriter or speaking into a voice recorder and recruiting a transcriber. But I wholeheartedly recommend the classic step-by-step journey that requires you to take the responsibility of crafting and typing each word.
Even if you've convinced yourself you're not a writer, you should consider creating the content for a book. Committing to writing a manuscript holds an incredible amount of value because its lessons translate to entrepreneurship as a whole. The outcome doesn't have to be perfect. Whether you write every day or once a year, you'll need to hire an editor. A good editor will help identify grammatical errors and provide critical feedback.
Many well-known business owners have taken the time to write a book. Famous authors within the entrepreneurial community include Grant Cardone, Arianna Huffington, Daymond John and Lisa Nichols. The nature of the relationship between ghostwriters and their clients mandates anonymity, so it's difficult to be certain who actually wrote their own books. Nonetheless, we can suggest they believed a book was a worthy experience and a viable product to add to their companies' assets.
It's important to be transparent about a key point: Books are not financially lucrative for every business owner. They typically are a lower-priced item that comes with a limited return, stacked against the time investment. The larger publishing houses often will evaluate a proposal based on minimum requirements. A social-media following of 100,000, a set number of subscribers via GDPR-compliant mailing lists or other indicators can influence whether the book will be profitable. Such conditions aren't a challenge for celebrity entrepreneurs or well-known businesspeople who often receive sizable book advances, but these guidelines can pose significant obstacles for aspiring authors without recognizable names in an industry.
Related: 10 Steps to Self-Publish Your Book Like a Bestseller
Self-publishing has become a viable option for business owners who don't meet the requirements for larger publication contracts. Through self-publishing, an entrepreneur can control every aspect of the publication process. This empowers creative freedom to dictate the content, design the book's cover, select the title and establish the market price. Self-publishing doesn't come with the distribution assistance that larger publishing houses can provide, but it can serve as a resource to create a product that customers will value.
I learned three important concepts while writing my first book, and all apply to business success in general.
1. Writing a book can teach you discipline.
Discipline is a must-have skill for longevity in business ownership. Potential entrepreneurs must understand the importance of dedicating consistent time and other resources to creating products or services that customers are willing to purchase. Writing a book requires that you spend time every day to transfer your ideas to the computer screen. Without discipline or a deep passion for writing, you can't be successful in this endeavor. It's imperative to embrace discipline, or you'll never finish what you've started.
Related: 5 Acts of Mental Discipline to Maintain the Positive Mindset Success Requires
2. Writing a book can teach you about marketing.
Once you've completed a book, it's crucial to discover ways to promote your product to readership. Whether you choose to proceed with a publishing house or a self-publishing option, you are responsible for spreading the word to your consumer base. You must either learn about marketing strategies or hire a professional to make certain the book serves as a tool to create more business opportunities. When Gary Vaynerchuk releases a book, he embeds it in his social-media campaigns to create influence and income.
Related: 5 Tips for Practicing Self-Promotion Without Being Totally Annoying
3. Writing a book can teach you positive self-awareness.
Becoming an author forces you to wrestle with your inner values as you spend time alone with your thoughts. For example, if your book analyzes the experiences that informed your business practices, you'll need to meditate on how these thoughts align with your actions. This reflection demands that an entrepreneurial writer explore the awareness of self. How does the person who shows up in the boardroom or dedicated decision-making space compare with your internal image of who you believe yourself to be?
Related: 7 Amazing Things That Happen When You Spend Time Alone
Today is a good day to start working on your book idea and discover how it can benefit you, your colleagues and consumers.
