reviews

Jeff Goins, popular writing blogger, gave me some great news. He said, “You are a writer.” Truthfully, that’s the title of his new ebook, but it really is his message. If you want to be a writer, you can become one simply by writing. I wholeheartedly subscribe to his philosophy: there are no rules about giving yourself a title. Write something, then change your job title on Facebook to “Writer”. Now write more things. You are a writer. This applies to everything you do (hence the title of this post: “I do, therefore I am”), not only writing. Think about who you want to be, then become that person.

Have you ever regretted not starting something soon enough? I have and so has Jeff Goins. In You are a Writer, he shares the truth about his writing career: he waited for permission. He waited to be picked. It was only later that he realized he could have accomplished more if he had called himself a writer and started shipping instead of waiting.

I have read many blog posts and listened to podcasts and webinars that are inspiring, but vague. Jeff kicks off You are a Writer with a strong dose of inspiration, then goes on to explain, in detail, how you can begin to build your career as a writer. He says every writer needs three tools:

1. A platform

2. A brand

3. Channels of connection

Jeff is a popular blogger and does recommend blogging, but it’s just one of many platforms he explores in You are a Writer. His message to you is start something so you can build your platform, focus your brand and meet the people who will help you succeed. Once again, his lessons are written for writers, but apply to everyone.

This book is your own personal vote of confidence from Jeff Goins. It’s also an instructional manual designed to help you start your career as a writer. I highly recommend you read it as soon as possible. In the meantime, why don’t you go write something?

What have you written lately? I’d love to read it! Share a link in your comment.

Blake Mycoskie is most famously known as the founder of TOMS, the for-profit shoe company that uses a model they call “One for One”: for each pair of TOMS purchased, the company donates a pair of shoes to a child in need. In his 2011 book, Start Something that Matters, Mycoskie encourages his readers to start something that matters, whether it’s a non-profit or a company with a conscious.

Much of the book is about the creation of TOMS. Mycoskie begins by explaining where he got the idea for the company (did you know TOMS stands for Tomorrow’s Shoes?) Instead of writing about his prior successes, Mycoskie writes about launching a bootstrapped startup from his living room, bedroom and even his roomates’ bedrooms! Mycoskie provides some practical information, such as how to find and utilize great interns, but it’s mainly inspirational. By the end of the book, I wasn’t ready to start my own company, but I was eager to learn more about social entrepreneurship.

Start Something That Matters also includes brief descriptions of the history and practices of other organizations that have similar values, including charity:water, method and TerraCycle. These examples all involve seemingly regular people getting a good idea and starting a successful company or charity. Even Mycoskie himself seems pretty average until you read his Huffington Post bio and see that he has started a total of six successful businesses. Still, he tries to convince the reader that anyone with passion and determination can start their own organization.

One of the best things to come out of this book is its website. There’s a section called Share Your Story where anyone can write about their new ventures or lifestyle changes. If the blog continues to be updated, I’m sure we will see some great stories there, too. Here’s an excerpt from a comment on the Share Your Story page. This is just one of many great stories that have been posted there.

My name’s Arnold. I’m a Korean-American 16 year old living in South Korea. Prior to reading your thought-provoking and motivational novel, I always wanted to change the world. Like others, however, I did not know where to begin–there were just too many unsolved problems on a worldwide scale. Nevertheless, I knew what I wanted and needed to do. I wanted to first make a dent in the universe by establishing secondary schools in slums which would enable slum children to receive a formal education that could ignite them to transform their own communities.

Luckily enough, I stumbled across The Supply–a nonprofit organization that actually constructs secondary schools in Africa for the same vision and mission that I possess. Upon reading this book, I took the initiative and courage to send them an email. I exchanged a couple of emails with them and before I knew, I had started something that mattered.

Start Something That Matters might not be the most useful read for someone who has a solid career with a nonprofit or a ‘for good’ organization. If that’s you, you’re already doing something that matters. The book is perfect for the person who, like Arnold, knows they want to make a difference but is not quite sure how

It’s worth noting that the book,Start Something That Matters, utilizes the One For One model. For each copy sold, Random House publishing will donate a book to a child as part of the First Book program.