- The Daily Creator
- Posts
- 50 lessons from 15 years writing online
50 lessons from 15 years writing online
Let's accelerate your growth by more than a decade
Welcome to the new readers who've joined this week.
If you're not subscribed, click here or the subscribe button below and join 1,700+ others getting actionable tips on writing and audience building every weekday.
I’ve been writing online for 15+ years.
The other day, I sat down and thought of every major lesson I’ve learned along the way.
I came up with 50.
Here they are:
You’ll never feel “ready” to publish it.
Quality is completely subjective.
The only way to get become a better writer is to write.
Build a daily writing habit, even if you don’t publish.
Then build a daily publishing habit.
Don’t talk yourself out of ideas. See what your audience says.
Consistency is everything.
If your network is your net worth, writing is a skill worth millions.
You don’t need to be an expert to share your perspective.
You’re a writer the moment you hit publish.
Early on, most of your writing won’t be good. That’s okay.
If you don’t look back and cringe at old work, take more risks.
Learn to write at all times of day and in all environments.
Writer’s block is an excuse.
Identify why you write — it’ll help you through tough times.
There will be haters and trolls. That’s part of it.
The haters and trolls will move on tomorrow. Keep going.
You’ll miss on ideas and make mistakes. It's okay.
You’ll publish content with errors. Don’t beat yourself up.
Separate ideation, writing and editing. Three different skills.
If you’re emotional, write immediately. But DO NOT publish.
Come back 24 hours later, edit it and then publish.
Keep all systems super simple.
Write to be understood, not to sound smart.
The internet is free distribution. Take advantage.
You can have a niche or not. It doesn’t matter.
You don’t need to be an open book, but show your humanity.
Pay attention to what your audience likes. Write more of that.
Pay attention to what you like. Write more of that, too.
As your audience grows, turn around and help others starting out.
Nobody else gets to decide what ideas are worth publishing.
If you can write on tight deadlines, you're unstoppable.
Writing is bricklaying. Only one way the cottage gets built.
Try different styles, formats + voices. Find what fits.
There’s nothing cool about “starving artists.”
Spend zero time worrying about others' work.
Forget nearly everything high school English taught you.
Writing has a sound just like music does. Learn to hear it.
Establish a standard for your work and stay true to it.
If you don’t fall short of that standard sometimes, raise it.
Volume matters with content. Take more shots.
Building an audience is building a company. It takes years.
Review your top content often. Write new angles of those ideas.
When you see a pattern, double down.
Always leave room to experiment. Try new things.
Only take advice from people also in the trenches.
Content you like will flop, and content you don’t will crush.
Build a community.
Make time to make friends online.
Ultimately, the audience decides.
Take these lessons for what they’re worth — just my experience.
Which ones resonate the most with you?
Which lessons have you learned that you’d add?
I’d love to know.
Action Item
Pick a couple of these lessons that resonate with you the most and start implementing them this week.
Work with Teddy
Consulting: I'm looking for Startups and Founders who want to build their audiences and influence online. I will work with you 1:1 or with your team. If you're interested, please reply to this email with "consulting."
Speaking: I'm doing some speaking in 2023 on digital writing, digital media and building online audiences and communities. If you're interested in having me speak to your team or at your event, please reply to this email with "speaking."
Sponsorship: We'll soon be opening applications for presenting sponsors of The Daily Creator newsletter. If you're interested in sponsoring this newsletter, please reply to this email with "sponsor."
Thank you!
Previous Issues
If you missed them, here are a few previous issues of The Daily Creator you may enjoy:
Helpful Resources
Thanks for reading.