A Year in Review
Reflections on writing Seeking Wisdom in 2024
This past year represents the first full year since I started the Seeking Wisdom newsletter.
It’s been a journey of ups and downs.
In that time, my subscriber list grew from 327 to 1905 from 102 different countries. I published 24 posts, which were viewed just over 22k times.
But those are just numbers. The real learnings are more intangible than that.
From pushing through the initial start, to developing a proper writing habit, I’ve learned a lot. About myself but also about the mindset needed to write consistently online.
So, if you’re curious to start your own newsletter in the new year, read on as I‘ll share my biggest learnings of 2024 with you.
Find out why you write
Everyone has something to share. Inside of you are lessons that others would benefit from hearing.
This is the belief that got me started.
The problem is, it isn’t easy to figure out what that ‘thing to share’ is.
Just like an archeologist digging with a brush, it takes time and effort to figure it out.
Although I had no real idea what I was going to write about when I started, I knew I just had to start. That I’d figure it out as I went.
(Spoiler alert, I’m still figuring it out, and that’s okay).
If you’re interested, I talk more about the importance of just getting started in the post below:
Through time, I’ve slowly developed the belief that I do have things to say.
Even though my perspectives feel ‘normal’ to me (because, after all, they’ve been built through my life experiences), I’ve been learning that there is value sharing them.
The same is true for you.
Almost every time I’ve posted something, I’d get at least one message or comment from a reader telling me that what I wrote meant something to them.
What you write has the power to resonate with another person, to shift their perspective on something. (And don’t forget that their feedback has the power to change your perspective too).
That’s why — I think — I write: to connect my life with yours.
So, why do you want to write?
Even if you don’t have an answer yet, keep this question in mind and slowly you’ll circle in on an answer.
Publish regularly (try weekly)
As this past year progressed, my approach to writing and publishing varied a lot.
In the beginning, I was determined to publish once a week, every Saturday morning. And for the first few months, I managed to stick to that schedule — but only through sheer white-knuckle determination.
You see, the beginning wasn’t easy.
I was battling perfectionism and doubt. As a result, it took a huge amount of energy to overcome self-inflicted mental blocks and to actually write.
Every week invariably went like this: Monday through to Friday wondering (aka worrying) what to possibly write about, followed by a marathon writing session on Friday evening.
Then wake up tired on Saturday and religiously check metrics all through the weekend — and getting inevitably disheartened when the post didn’t ‘perform’ as well as I’d hoped.
Eventually, my motivation dwindled and I ended up not publishing at all throughout the summer months. That sucked.
But the last few months have been different.
Something changed.
I now find myself coming to writing much more easily. The weekly pattern of thinking up an idea, outlining it, drafting it, editing it and publishing it is now much more fluid.
The process has become more cyclical. There is no longer a beginning and an end — there’s only the act of writing.
And so, my fundamental point is this.
I wouldn’t be where I’m at with my writing if it wasn’t for the simple rule of publishing every week.
Yes, I faltered, but the demand to publish regularly forced me to move beyond my fears and — I know — it can do the same for you.
Avoid external validation, nurture internal motivation
The act of publishing regularly has another welcome side-effect: you start caring less about how individual posts ‘perform’.
Yes, metrics are super important.
They’re a big reason why writing online is so instructional: they show you, the writer, how your words are (or not) impacting other people.
But the problem is that, particularly when starting out, metrics push us to seek external validation.
Did people like what I wrote? Why didn’t it get more likes/shares/comments?
This can make it emotionally hard to write.
Writing is by its nature an exposing, vulnerable act.
If you tie it to such external validation, you’ll be in trouble. Your motivation to continue writing will eventually hit a brick wall.
I’ve found it more useful to realise that, just like you’re not your thoughts or your emotions, you’re also not your writing.
Your writing is an expression of yourself at a specific time and place — but it‘s not you.
The consequence of this is that, once you publish your words into the world, they’ve left the nest. They’re now independent ‘beings’ with lives of their own.
If your words are well received, poorly received or not received at all, that’s not a reflection on your value as a human being.
Of course, I’m not saying don’t learn from your mistakes.
I’m saying try to detach yourself emotionally from what you wrote as this will, in fact, help you to learn faster.
If you’re interested, I talk more about the importance of navigating emotional setbacks when creating in the post below:
What’s clear is this:
If you want to build a lasting writing habit, it’s critical that you do so from a more sustainable and inner driven place. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.
Did you publish something this week? That’s a win.
Did you have a particularly insightlful writing session? You deserve it because you showed up regularly enough for that to happen.
More importantly, writing from a place of internal motivation unlocks the real joys of writing, which is to express and to connect.
Make your first $1 as soon as possible
As contradictory as this statement may seem to what I just said above, hear me out.
A few weeks ago, I challenged myself to make my first dollar online.
I wanted to get over the psychological barrier of asking for money and I wanted to see how difficult it would be.
To my surprise, it was easier than I expected.
In the first few days after I set up a tipping option, three separate readers sent me money — and one even sent me $10! (Thanks again Philippe for your kind gesture).
However, the experience taught me a more important lesson. In the couple of weeks since getting those donations, I haven’t received any more.
I’ve hit a limit.
Making that first dollar is never about the money, it‘s about unlocking a new level.
And, just as in a video game, as soon as you beat that first boss, you‘ll be reinvigorated to unlock the next one.
And so, I now know it’s up to me to do something different, to try something new.
To grow Seeking Wisdom into what I imagine it could be.
But what’s my vision, I hear you ask?
Look out for my post next week when I’ll lay out my plans for Seeking Wisdom in 2025.
In the meantime, enjoy the last few days of 2024.
Put your feet up — you deserve it! 🎉
Ben
ps. Read my plans for 2025 now.
Did you enjoy reading this?
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