For a period of three years I blogged daily. I missed a day here or there when I was sick or traveling, but it was more about the habit and pleasure I felt as I shared insights and reviews of products and services in the WordPress ecosystem.
But that was a few years ago and when I took a full time job with a WordPress agency, I stopped. For the last 11 days I’ve enjoyed getting back into the habit. I don’t pre-write and schedule posts. For me it’s about sitting down and enjoying the act of writing.
Share everything you know
When talking with folks about blogging, and about sharing strategies that may have taken years to develop, I’m often challenged.
Why not put the content behind a paywall? What if someone takes what I share and generates revenue? Shouldn’t I protect my “intellectual property?”
My answer is always the same: share everything you know. All the time. Because knowledge begs to be shared. And here are the five reasons why I believe that.
1. Knowledge is cheap. Execution is everything.
When everything is said and done, none of us are all that brilliant. My thoughts, ideas, and even experience isn’t completely unique. Others will arrive at some of my same conclusions. Others will have similar wisdom.
What counts isn’t the idea or framework. It’s what you do with it. It’s not about the idea. It’s about the execution. Which means what you do with my insights is more important than the fact that I have them.
2. Generosity creates opportunities
Over the last 7 years I’ve had more than 7 million visitors read my posts. Not every reader has written me a note about each post, but the number of messages has been incredible.
People write additional questions, sure, but they also send me thank you notes and, more importantly, send me offers to speak, coach, collaborate and interest in buying courses. Several job offers have come from readers.
3. Sometimes I write for future me
I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve figured something out and written about it. Then, a year later (or more), I need to solve a problem and discover that the blog post that helps me is one I wrote before.
You’ll never know what you’ll need to know later. By writing things down as you’re learning it, you’re making an investment for future you.
4. Clarity comes from communication
Another benefit from sharing everything is that the work to communicate your insights actually helps bring clarity to your ideas. It may feel solid in your head, but it's only when you put it down in words that you discover the gaps in your thinking.
I'll be honest, sometimes I start writing a post (especially if it's an opinion or strategy post) with one notion in my head, and by the time I press publish, it's ended in a completely different place. The work of writing gives me the opportunity to find the clarity that I want.
5. Your knowledge can change lives
I was speaking at a conference and someone approached me to give me a hug. That's not normal. But their story wasn't normal. They had lost their job. They were homeless, living in their car with their young child. And then they discovered my blog and started learning WordPress. They started building membership sites with what they learned on the site, which generated enough income to move into an apartment.
As I write this, I'm thinking I ordered the list incorrectly. Because this last reason is likely my #1 reason. Even if you're not an expert, there's a good chance that there's someone who knows less than you do. And the act of sharing that information may not mean a ton for you. But sharing everything can have an incredible impact on someone else.
Are you a coach, consultant or digital agency?
I'm wrapping this up with an offer for you. But not one that will cost you anything. My friend Jennifer Bourn and I are having a conversation later this week about how to generate better leads without any cost of acquisition. It's crazy, right? But it's a strategy that I've used for years now, and I'm sharing it with her audience – for free.
It's another form of sharing everything I know, but in a webinar interview instead of a blog post. And if I communicate everything correctly, it might change your life – or at least significantly help your business.