Write For Yourself First

What would the world be like if everyone wrote for themselves first?

Imagine a world where people didn't have to worry about what other people thought of them. Imagine a world where your success was measured by your own standards, not by the standards of others. Imagine that when you wrote, you could just write for yourself.

What would that feel like? What would it look like?

I think it would feel liberating. I think it would look like taking care of yourself and your own needs first before worrying about anyone else's. It would mean spending time on yourself and being okay with being selfish sometimes—not because you're a terrible person, but because you deserve it! You deserve to take care of yourself first, and then maybe share your love with others later.

I know this sounds selfish, but it's not. It's actually one of the most selfless things you can do as a writer.

Writing is a solitary activity—you're in the room with your computer, or you're in the car with your laptop and a book on tape. You might be at a coffee shop, or you might be at home with the kids running around.

It's easy to get caught up in the idea that you need to write for others—and you do—but taking the time to write for yourself first will help you keep your eyes on the prize.

Writing for yourself first means putting down whatever's in your head and getting it out onto the page. It means not worrying about whether anyone else will read it or like it or understand it. It means just writing for yourself.

When you write for yourself, you're not worried about how many people will read it, or how many people will like it. You just want to get your thoughts and feelings out there—you want to satisfy your own need to express yourself on paper or in words. And that's exactly what you should be doing!

It doesn't matter if nobody ever reads what you've written. It doesn't matter if other people hate it or are offended by it. All that matters is that you're writing something truly authentic, something that comes from your heart and is true to who you are as a person.

Once you've done that, then you can worry about how to make it readable for others—but only after you've gotten all of those words out of your head and onto the page.

Well, here's the thing: if you write for yourself first, you'll be able to better understand your audience—and that understanding will help you craft a piece of content that is meaningful to them.

Let me explain. When you write with your own needs in mind, you will naturally start to think about what kind of information they might want or need. And once you start doing that, it becomes easier to figure out what they aren't getting from other sources and how your content could fill those gaps.

Plus, once you start thinking about what they need/want/desire (did I mention desire?), you'll find yourself more motivated to create something helpful and useful for them.

In Conclusion

You're writing for yourself first. That's the most important thing.

You're writing because you want to, because it's something that makes you happy, and you don't care what other people think. If anyone else likes your writing, then that's great! But if they don't, well… that's okay too.

Writing is not a popularity contest. It's not a way to get people to like you or respect you or think that you're smart. It's just a way for YOU to express yourself. And when it comes down to it, that's all that matters.

So take a deep breath. Write for yourself first. And then let go of that fear and write something that YOU love sharing with people who might be interested in reading it too.