In Tron: Legacy, Sam asks his father what Quorra is doing when she allows herself to be captured by Clu and his henchman. Sam’s father responds that Quorra is removing herself from the equation. She puts aside her own desires and fears so that Sam and his father can escape.
When it comes to writing for one’s business, people have to put aside their desires and their fears, too. Their desire may be to increase sales, so they focus on their sales pitch. They forget to tell a story and, in so doing, alienate their customers. Perhaps their desire is to have a pulpit from which they can tout the benefits of their product or service or merely to have a platform from which they can shout their viewpoint. Again, neither option is beneficial to the business. The first raises questions (The product has to have some disadvantages, doesn’t it?); the second offends. Then again, maybe the business owners are listening to their fears. They are so afraid of saying the wrong thing that they say nothing. They are so worried about a negative review or comment that they refuse to converse with their customers via the written word.
With my own business, I constantly have to remove myself from the equation. I can’t listen to all my desires regarding what to post on this blog; if I did, I would lose not only readers but also clients. I have to put aside fears, too. I can’t worry that someone might not like what I have to say. It’s inevitable. Somebody is not going to like what I have to say. I then have to write my posts with my own slant (I seemingly have a penchant for alluding to sci-fi films and whatever category into which 300 falls.) or voice. I do so because my readers matter more than me. My clients are more important than I am. The only way I can meet their needs is to remove myself from the equation.
No fear. It’s a piece of advice that many people could benefit from. That’s the thing about social media. In addition to removing yourself from the equation when writing as you point out, there is just no place for trepidation. It’s a naked feeling to put yourself out there and wait for the feedback because you know some people will have something sarcastic or negative to say. But, in this age of transparency it’s truly the only way you can spark authenticity.
Nice post Erin!
@John_Trader1 Thanks!
No, it’s go big or go home. I tend to think through things before I do them, but once I’ve committed to doing something, that’s it. Time to jump into the deep end!
It’s a balancing act between giving your own voice to your blog and yet, not getting too personal. Though if I had a choice, I would rather err on the side of being personal. It’s a good way to build rapport with the audience that is more emotional as opposed to sanitized.
@richescorner I hadn’t thought of the idea in those terms. I guess I was thinking more about ridding oneself of ego, especially when writing for one’s business.