Introduction
This book explains how to share what you are working on and why it is important. Because there are so many people creating stuff now it is just not enough to create stuff and hope to be noticed. In order to be found you need to be findable and this is done through sharing your work. Many successful people are open about what they the currently are working on. It’s not the product that is important but the process to get there that is.
1. You Don’t Have to Be a Genius
Good work is never created by itself but is the result of many people being connected together and sharing ideas. You should look to join a community, online or in real life both works, where you can share and discuss your ideas.
Everyone starts of as an amateur when they first begin. Some of the benefits of being an amateur is that you are willing to try anything to make it work, no one is expecting anything from you so there is no pressure and it’s fine to make mistakes. Good amateurs know that it is better to contribute something than contributing nothing. You don’t need to be good to show of you work, amateurs can just teach other amateurs.
2. Think Process Not Product
Take people behind the scenes and share your journey. By sharing the process in what you are creating you form a relationship with your audience. The process can also be informative for others and there are people who are interested in the things you are creating if it is presented to them in the right way. By documenting your own work it will also feel like you are making progress when you look back. It also serves as proof that you are doing work. This can for example be writing down your thoughts, taking photos and recording videos.
3. Share Something Small Everyday
Try share something small every day or every week on what you are working on. This can also function as a resumé because it shows how you are spending you time and what things you are learning. Only share things that might be helpful and interesting to others. Don’t post things that are not ready for everyone to see. When sharing something don’t overthink it.
Get you own website with you name as the domain name (www.yourname.com). This website together with other platforms, such as social media, can be used to share your work. Today if your work isn’t online, it doesn’t exist.
Create things you love and talk about things you love and you’ll attract people who love the same things.
4. Open Up Your Cabinet of Curiosities
You should share the things you are interested in, things that you admire and things that inspires you. Being open and honest about these things can help you connect with other people. Don’t let other people make you feel guilty about these things.
5. Tell Good Stories
Work does not speak for itself. If you want to share your work more effectively and make others more interested and understand you better, you need to become a good storyteller. Storytelling is a difficult skill that takes time to learn and requires a lot of practice. The basic setup for a good story is that it has a past (the things you have done), present (what you are doing now) and a future (where you are going).
6. Teach What You Know
Try to teach others when you learn something useful. Share list the things you read and other useful materials. When you share your knowledge with others you will also learn new things in return. People will also feel grateful and closer to you because you let them in on what you know.
7. Don’t Turn Into Human Spam
If you want people to listen to you, you must first be willing to listen to others. If you want fans, you have to be a fan of someone else first. Many people expect people to follow them immediately without following other and most of the fail. Don’t try to cheat the system. You need to put in effort to succeed.
Stop caring about how many people follow you online. You should instead pay attention to the quality of people that follow you be looking for people that you can potentially collaborate with. If you want more followers then become a person worth following.
The Vampire Test: If, after spending time with someone you feel tired and depleted, that person is a vampire. If, after spending with someone you still feel full of energy, that person is not a vampire. You want to avoid vampires.
8. Learn to Take a Punch
Sharing your work will result in criticism and feedback so be prepared for it, be ready to take a punch. The more people who come across your work the more criticism and feedback you will get. Learn to take criticism and soon you will realize that they can’t hurt you. Don’t take it personally and instead look for ways to improve. Your work is something you do, not who you are. You can’t control the feedback you get but you can control how you react to it and how you interpret it.
You need to be able to filter the feedback you get. You want feedback from people who care about you and your work and then ignore the rest. There are a lot of trolls online who you should ignore since they don’t contribute with anything.
9. Sell Out
Don’t be afraid to charge money for the your work. You have bills to pay after all. But make sure that the price you set is fair.
If you have a website it’s always a good idea to start an email list. This can be done by posting free stuff on your website and the collect the emails of your readers. You can then send out newsletters or products that you are selling to them.
When you succeed, give credit and help the people who have helped you.
10. Stick Around
It’s very important not to quit prematurely. The people who succeed and get what the want are the ones who stick around long enough. Make sure to take daily, weekly or monthly breaks in order to avoid burnout.
If you feel like you have learned everything you want in one field, then maybe it’s time to look for something new.
