The jig is up. I have to confess…
I’m not really a blog coach anymore.
While I’ve enjoyed the work I’ve done with Write with Meaning, it’s not exactly where my heart resides. It was close, but not quite right. And I finally found my calling, a bit to the left and straight on till morning. Therefore, rather than let my blog and business just fade away without recognition, I wanted to say farewell and let you know my new identity.
My current business is called Fog to Fire, wherein I help healthy people get unstuck. I’m a therapist and a healer now, and damn, I love it! If you’re interested in hearing more, I hope you sign up for my Fog to Fire newsletter and check out what I’ve been talking about there.
You’ve been a lovely audience and I am truly grateful that you found my posts entertaining enough to stop by. I hope I’ve helped a bit and offered a few laughs.
Thanks for reading.
Rachel Whalley
Posted in find your voice, audience | No Comments »
You’ve heard me talking about how important it is to identify your blog audience (Blogger, Know Thy Audience and You Talkin’ to Me?). 
I need to confess, though…I used to be in the camp of “whomever can afford me is my clientele,” so I know it’s hard to get used to the idea of narrowing down to a specific audience.
But consider this–when I started my biz, I called myself a writing coach. When people asked me what I did, I said “I help people write better”…and that was my whole pitch. Write what better? And which people? Not much to hang a hat on, is it?
Now when I meet people who want to know more about my job, I say I’m “a blogging coach and collaborative copywriter who helps small and indie business owners attract their ideal clients.” Unsurprisingly, my business is much more successful now. After all, whom would you rather hire: the “writing coach who helps people write better” or the “blog coach and collaborative copywriter, etc.”?
Posted in find your voice, business blogging | No Comments »
In a handy little piece of cross-site promotion, I’m referring y’all to my other blog today. I wrote there about an exercise you can use to rid yourself of your inner critic. It’s just as applicable to writing as it is to envisioning a new career (my other job is Career Transitionist at Fog to Fire).
Even your friendly neighborhood blog coach suffers from inner critic bullshit sometimes. I’m susceptible to believing my writing is boring, incorrect, repetitive, blah blah blah. My inner critic can get quite the rant on, actually. So check out what I do when I’m tired of hearing from him: How To Keep Your Inner Critic from Becoming a Bully.
Posted in writing anxiety, writer's block | No Comments »
I saw a great movie the other day: Akeelah and the Bee. It’s about a young black girl from the ghetto who ends up competing in the National Spelling Bee. One of its messages is that we each have the right to stand up and be special—recognition, talent, and accomplishment aren’t just for the rich, the white, the beautiful, or the brilliant.
If you’re one of those folks out there who doesn’t blog because you’re worried about whether or not you have anything worth saying, I have a quote for you (which I first heard from this movie). Read, imagine Lawrence Fishburne saying these words, and be liberated.
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us, it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we’re liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.
-Marianne Williamson, A Return to Love
Posted in writing anxiety, find your voice | No Comments »
It’s time once again to ask yourselves the most important question in business blogging: who are you writing for? Stop before the words, “anyone who needs my service and can afford me,” cross your lips. That is NOT a good answer. In fact, that’s probably the biggest mistake most biz bloggers make.
Ever hear the marketing adage “marketing to everyone is marketing to no one”? If not, memorize it now and make it your mantra. If you’re appealing to every single person who happens across your blog, you’ve likely got some seriously bland and unfocused posts.
The solution to the audience issue? Well, if you understand that your biz blog is part of your plan to get new customers, then figure out 1) who you LOVE to work with, 2) what appeals to them as a group about your service/industry/area of knowledge. Wouldn’t you rather spend your time and energy attracting more of the folks you love? So keep that in mind as you write.
Posted in audience, business blogging | 1 Comment »
What’s the point of a business blog?
As my good friend (and marketing coach) Dominic Canterbury tells me, a business blog gives your potential client a step between hearing about you and meeting you. Once your client has read your blog, the easiest next step for them is a way to meet you in a low pressure environment. After all, most people want to hire someone that they like…but they have to meet you before they can like you.
The biz blog is like the tubs of ice cream in the glass display, and the low-pressure meeting is the sample on the pink spoon. The reason I’m posting about the next step today is because I’m handing out pink sample spoons on June 9th. If you come to BizJam, you’ll see me moderating a panel on marketing, manning a table on my businesses, and possibly even giving a five-minute talk in the evening. Click on the image to the right for more info on BizJam. I hope to meet you there!
Posted in classes | No Comments »
Yeah, like I’m one to talk about frequency of posting. For those who are keeping track (that’d be, roughly, none of you), I am not the most reliable of blog posters. My potential hypocrisy aside, let me address the often-asked question: how often should I post?
- Post as often as you have something valuable to say to your readers.
Nothing will drive your readers away more than fluff and drivel. Only write something if it’s worth writing and reading.
- Try to have something valuable to say around once a week, or at least twice a month.
Blogging is kind of like settling a claim. If you don’t show up fairly often, readers assume the land is vacant and wander away to greener pastures where the other biz bloggers will be posting the fascinating things that you would’ve said. (Not trying to scare you here, but it’s worth noting that search engines and live readers alike will be looking for the most recent, actively updated content.)
If you have stretches of time that will render you too busy to post, such as when a thesis paper is due (a completely hypothetical example having nothing to do with my life whatsoever), consider drafting several posts ahead of time. Then all you need to do is remember to post them at spaced out intervals.
Posted in making time to write, business blogging | 2 Comments »
A couple weeks ago, I was blissfully typing away on a blog post. I got about three paragraphs in when *blip*…I lost my internet connection and all my work. “ARG!” would be the polite version of the noise I made.
Writing text online is always risky business–there are more factors that can impact your work (unstable browsers, shaky internet connection, lack of auto-save features, etc). So how do you avoid the “ARG!”? Draft your blog posts in software, such as Microsoft Word, that autosaves frequently and that isn’t dependent on the finicky web browser. Then you can also make use of the spell check feature (but don’t rely on it too much), as well as save a copy of your posts on your hard drive. Once you’re done, just copy and paste into your blog post software and publish it.
This may seem like a trivial and unnecessary step, but when you think about looking at it from the other side of a lost hour’s worth of work, it seems more like a small price to pay for insurance.
Posted in business blogging | No Comments »
You want the short answer? ‘Cause I’m like a diagnostician for writing. Like an Xray machine, or even better, like a doctor who orders the Xray test. You could consult the medical encyclopedia or WebMD, or you could visit a specialist who can tell you in ten minutes why your ankle hurts when you turn it like that.
Ergo, if your writing seems a bit limp (pun intended), you could spend five hours on the internet trying to figure out why, or you could call me and I can tell you in ten minutes. And in another ten or twenty, I can show you how to fix it.
In case you’re wondering, under this metaphor, a copywriter would be like a stunt double. And a writing coach would be a physical therapist. I prefer the writing coach (natch) because my philosophy is it’s your ankle, baby. You’d be better off learning how to use it well.
Posted in discussion, business blogging | No Comments »
I know you’ve been looking for it all along–the magic potion that will make your writing sparkle and pull clients from their couches. After months of study on this subject, I have the answer for you. Are you ready?
The secret to writing posts that grab clients is just this: love what you do.
I don’t mean “like it a lot,” or “be pretty good at it.” I mean LOVE it. When you are passionate about your work, all the little grammar issues and style technicalities will pale in comparision. People are drawn to those who are passionate about their work and ideas.
If you’re having a lot of trouble getting your posting or web copy off the ground, consider whether you’re really tapping into that place inside yourself where your abilities and your passions intersect. After all, why should your customers fall in love with your service if you don’t love it yourself?
Posted in writer's block, find your voice | 1 Comment »
