The Importance of Timing

Partly thanks to the new year, I thought I knew what I wanted to (and could) get done in 2019. Yet almost any time I tell you all what I'm planning, the road takes a sharp turn ... and the plans change. I think timing is so important when it comes to writing, but I also think it's not entirely in our hands.

As a writer, timing really is everything. It's both a good and a bad thing that the timing really isn't up to the writer. Though it might sound odd to a non-writer ... there's only so much we can do! If you've ever written an essay, I'm sure you know the feeling. Sometimes writing works. And sometimes it doesn't. Timing is everything.

Case in point: I wanted the sequel to Martin Hospitality published in spring of 2018. As in ... 9 or 10 months ago. As it turned out, I didn't even finish the first draft until December 31, 2018. You see where I'm going here?

The timing was not right when I began the first draft. So I took a break and restarted. Even though that was frustrating (as I really did want the series finished), I've had a lot of insights and breakthroughs that wouldn't have been possible if I'd written the first draft sooner than I did.

God knew what timing I needed.

It's important to note that the sooner I learned to be all right with that, the happier I was. Contentment is always a tricky balancing act, and letting go of a vision and plan can be hard. Especially when that plan is your career's timeline. :)

So I really encourage you all to be willing to figure out what works for you. There are times to press on and times to step back. What that looks like for you will depend. But trusting that God is handling the timing is a huge step.

Your readers will understand, truly. At least mine (that would be you) have really blessed me by being patient and still encouraging. Let's be honest ... having people anticipate your next work is both a tremendous blessing and an odd pressure.

And yet, what's meant to happen will happen ... when it's supposed to happen. I'm not saying you shouldn't make deadlines or goals. But remain flexible and open to what God has for your writing. I think we all know that His plans are infinitely better. It's a little harder to realize that He might be behind a case of writer's block.

Write with all of this in mind, and I hope you'll find a little bit of peace and joy in writing again like I have!

Do you work well under pressure? Have you ever had something work out but on a completely different timetable than you planned?

Why I Hate Marketing

I truly hate marketing. With a passion. It's an unfortunate reality of my existence that I've been contemplating for a while now. I'm sure I'm not the only one who struggles with this, and I think I've finally pinpointed some reasons it's hard for me!

I think the biggest deal for me (and probably all people who hate marketing) is that it's not natural. It seems pretty normal to dislike things that you have to struggle to do well, whether that's spelling, running, or ... marketing.

Actually, I can't think of many people who love marketing. Yet those who do are often really good at it. So maybe there's a cause and effect there. Maybe those who like it enough to put the time into it get really good at it ... not the other way around. Maybe marketing is something that's always learned.

This is good, because it means there's hope for all of us! Some of us might have to work harder than others, but that's the way of the world. Learning is the easy part for me. Executing is the hard part, which brings me to my second reason I hate marketing.

It's strategic. That is not a negative thing! But the newer the strategies are to me, the more they feel like strategies. So, again, it comes down to how natural it feels. When marketing feels unnatural, I feel fake. I hear that at least for face-to-face marketing, how much you believe in what you're selling is a big factor in how likely someone is to go along with your spiel.

Another reason I tend to dislike marketing is somewhat selfish ... I don't want to be that person. When people flat-out, cold-lead market to me, I am instantly turned off. I'm talking about the person you barely know talking to you for the first time probably through social media and telling you how great something for sale is.

I never, ever want to the be the person annoying people with the "buy my stuff!" message. Because that totally overrides the greater point that people often really do have your best interest in mind. A product worked for them or they're a really great writer ... and they want you to know! That's not a bad thing.

I think the "bad" thing is when they lose all potential interest due to their approach. It's highly unfortunate.

The good news is that means it really comes down to how you market. I am never going to be  comfortable messaging every friend I have on Facebook and telling them about something I'm selling. That's just not me. That's fine.

Nor am I going to be comfortable bringing that I'm a self-published author with books for sale on Amazon the first time I talk to a stranger. That's just not me. And that's fine.

But eventually, I think all of us have to ask ourselves, how much of my hesitancy is driven by fear? Because while I want to be wise about my approach (which means I'll never be super bold), I don't want to hold back because I'm scared.

I mean ... if I won't bring up what I wrote when talking to a stranger at a writing conference where that's expected??? That's actually me being scared, not me trying to be considerate of others.

People will form conclusions and have preferences no matter how comfortable I try to make myself.

So I think another reason I hate marketing is because it's personal. For me, that means it's going to take me out of my comfort zone. In doing so, marketing will grow me.

I'm always going to have preferences, like not over-sharing and mainly marketing through social media. You have preferences too.

So what am I doing about this whole introvert-must-market situation? I'm marketing. I'm studying strategies, starting new accounts, posting about my books and health products more. And the more I do, the more I realize that I've wanted to all along. I've mostly been holding myself back. Time to work on that a little as I get better about marketing in general.

That was long, but a good look at my thought process, I hope. Do you enjoy marketing? What's your comfortable way of doing it?