Why Writing Matters to Your Leadership (and How to Become a Better Writer)

Becoming a capable writer is an excellent investment in your life and career.

Here's why:

Writing creates clarity for yourself

• When your day turns to chaos and everything feels overwhelming, write a list. You'll see what's on your mind and be able to prioritize more effectively.

• When your mind turns into mush, write down your thoughts. Whenever I'm overwhelmed, I journal. The simple act of articulating the thing that's on my mind helps me see it more clearly.

Writing creates action for your team

• When your team needs direction, write out the priorities. By defining, in writing, what you do and don't want, it provides an actionable framework for your team to make real-world decisions.

• When an idea needs a decision, write out the various factors that influence it.

How to Become a Better Writer

• Read. The best way to get better at writing is to see how others command the language. Don't worry about copying another's style. Not only will reading widely expose you to some of the best ideas in history, you'll gather by osmosis the phrases and word choices that will elevate your writing.

• Write. Like any skill, intentional practice is the pathway towards mastery. Be gracious with your early efforts. Be courageous enough to be bad at something new. Be careful with the story you tell yourself about your writing. You may not be a good writer, yet. But you're getting there, one word at a time.

Over the past 18 months so, in the process of producing this blog, I've written and published nearly 50,000 words, about the length of a book (and very dearly in need of a capable editor this entire time to revise all my many mistakes). It's been one of the best investments I've made into my career and my life.

The joy of writing and its benefits are worth the struggle. I encourage you to write more.

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At Trellis Group, we believe chaos is the enemy of the small business. It's our mission to partner with small business owners and their teams to develop the managerial practices and processes to crush chaos. If you feel overwhelmed and need a proven system to focus on the next best thing, we can help. Companies who work with us see revenues go up, anxiety go down, and work becomes a force multiplier for good in the lives of your people. Reach out to discover how the Trellis Group can help you crush chaos.