Snap Your Way to Your First Article

Your first article is stalking you. It's a bit scary. It makes you lose sleep at night. You see a gray hair and you realize you should do it. No matter what happens though, it's writing that first article that proves to be the most difficult when starting your career as a content developer. It's time to snap those fears away!

Shut Up

When I first moved abroad, one of my first icebreaker questions was "Did you ever want to be a writer?" The majority of the time the answer was yes and the excuses for not doing it were all the same. Mostly they revolved around not having the time after working, studying, shopping, and the daily trappings that most of these people went abroad to avoid. I then casually mentioned that they had the time to be sitting in a bar talking with me so they must have time somewhere to do it. Therefore, get rid of your excuses. All you have to do is stop talking about writing and start doing it.

Notice

For the times you're away from the computer and can't write, you need to optimize that time. There's a lot of power in noticing the world around you. If you notice when your emotions change or your ears perk up, that is a sign that you're being affected by something or that you're wanting to know more. Chances are that if you act in this way, there's other people in the world acting in the same way. If you can notice what they can't and tell them about it, you're on your way to your first article.

It may not be this easy though. If you find yourself burdened by overwhelming daily frustrations, get coffee or have a drink with someone you want to know more about. Ask them what they're interested in. But don't stop there! Dig deeper. Why are they interested in it? How did they find out about this new interest? Ask them if there's anything they can teach you about it. Enthusiasm is infectious- go catch some today.

Acquire