HOW I WRITE

Written By Jeffrey Gitomer
@GITOMER

KING OF SALES, The author of seventeen best-selling books including The Sales Bible, The Little Red Book of Selling, and The Little Gold Book of Yes! Attitude. His live coaching program, Sales Mastery, is available at gitomer.me.

#749 – Part 1

Help, I want to write, but I don’t know how!

Over the past fifteen years, I have become a successful writer. Many of you aspire to do the same. Or at least to be a better writer.

I get requests for help every day, like: “How do I write like you?” Or, “I’m not a very good writer.” Or, “I sit down to write and nothing comes out.”

I cannot teach you “how to write.” Or, “how to write better.”

I can share with you how I write, and you can take it from there.

Here are my facts:

I write like I think. I write like I talk. The thoughts I write are a silent extension of what I would have said if I were speaking aloud. That’s why I read aloud when I edit. I want my writing to sound like I’m talking. I will often get a letter or email that says, “I felt like you were talking to me as I was reading” or “I felt like you were standing right there.” That’s because I “write” in “speak.”

I write anywhere, anytime. I don’t need a space or a place, I just need an idea or a thought. I write when an idea strikes. If I’m not near a computer, I find any scrap of paper or napkin I can get my hands on – the object is to capture the idea or thought the moment it pops into your mind. YOU WILL NEVER REMEMBER IT LATER.

I collect ideas. I collect thoughts. I have hundreds of them. When I want to write about something, or have a deadline, I select one of my ideas and expand on it.

When I get the idea, I stretch it. Write everything that comes to mind. All of the thoughts, phrases, or words I can think of. I just brain-dump until it’s all out. I may edit a few things when I’m done, but I write in a flurry because ideas are fleeting and thoughts are even more fleeting. In fourteen years of writing, the one thing I have found to be most true is that thoughts will leave your head, IF you don’t write them down at once.

I write from my own experience. I don’t need research statistics to back up a thought or a concept. Either it happened to me or I believe it to be true, based on my personal experience. Statistics lie, I don’t.

When I write a column or a chapter, I stick to one subject, thought, or theme.

This creates an in-depth look, and forces me to look beyond the norm and create new ideas for worn out methods and conventional thinking.

I write with authority. I’m emphatic and declarative. If you read my thoughts, you have no doubt about what I’m saying, or how I feel about it. You will never read the words, “on the other hand.”

I don’t “call it” anything. If it’s common, don’t claim ownership. I’ll be reading a story or a chapter in someone else’s book, and the writer will say, “And I call that customer service.” Well, hey there Sparky, what does everyone else call it? It’s a million times more powerful and authoritative to say, “It’s called: customer service.”

I don’t care about grammar. I write so that the reader can “get it.” I care about how it sounds when it’s read, and how it looks when you read it, not what some silly rule says. I put hyphens and apostrophes where they don’t belong, so that the reader has an easy time following the flow, and understanding the thought.

I do care about structure. I do care about flow. I want one thought to flow to another – and where it doesn’t or can’t, I make (structure) a list of things. And the list flows from top to bottom.

I rely on spell-check, and keep on writing until I complete the thought. I never stop writing to “fix” something until the thought I’m writing is complete. Spelling and writing are mutually exclusive. If you stop to spell, you lose thought-flow and momentum. You can always check your spelling; you cannot always retain the thought or flow.

Others impose limits on my writing. Like this column. And it forces me to end early, and tease you until next week. The rest of this writing will appear here next week – and I’ll include recommendations for getting started.

Meanwhile, if you want more on writing, I have posted a few rules on my Web site. Go to www.gitomer.com – register if you’re a first time user – and enter the words WRITE RIGHT in the GitBit Box.

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Little Red Book of Selling and The Little Red Book of Sales Answers. President of Charlotte-based Buy Gitomer, he gives seminars, runs annual sales meetings, and conducts Internet training programs on sales and customer service at www.trainone.com. He can be reached at 704/333-1112 or e-mail to salesman@gitomer.com

#750 – Part 2

For writing to be both powerful and compelling, it’s up to you!

This is part two of “how I write.” It is NOT part two of “how TO write.”

Everyone needs to (learn to) write in a more compelling manner. Clear, concise, compelling writing is a rarity in our world. E-mail and text messaging has helped with clear and concise, but it has taken “compelling” out of the formula.

I started last week by elaborating on the following major points:

I write like I think. I write like I talk.

I write anywhere, anytime.

I collect ideas. I collect thoughts.

When I get the idea, I stretch it.

I write from my own experience.

When I write a column or a chapter, I stick to one subject, thought, or theme.

I write with authority.

I don’t “call it” anything.

I don’t care about grammar.

I do care about structure. I do care about flow.

I rely on spell-check, and keep on writing until I complete the thought.

I’m sharing my personal writing habits and methods because I believe they will help you understand writing, and become a better writer. And yes, I’ll tell you how you can get both parts at the end of this column.

Here are the rest of my personal writing philosophies:

My writing voice is not PC. If I waste time with “his or her,” I lose my thought. I don’t mean to be insulting, I’m just writing in my voice. It’s how I grew up. It’s the same voice as all the early books I read, and continue to read. NOTE WELL: It’s a MESSAGE and a THOUGHT. It’s an IDEA or a STRATEGY. Not a GENDER.

I write in the male gender because I’m a male. I never mean to offend anyone. I’m trying to make points, generate new thinking, and help people succeed. That advice knows no gender. Read between the pronouns, don’t get hung up on them.

I do not include myself with the reader. I separate myself from the reader with pronouns. I say “you” “your” “they” “he” “she” “it” or “the,” NEVER “we” or “our.” I talk to the reader, but never include myself in the thought. NOT, “We all know.” rather, “You know.” NOT, “Our thoughts tell us.” rather, “Your thoughts tell you.”

I break the rules of traditional writing, grammar, and punctuation. Teachers of grammar would not give me a passing grade. I could care less. I’ve sold a million books. How many have they sold?

I edit when I finish, but I edit better a day later. Editing is revealing. It tells you what you were thinking at the moment you wrote it. Editing a day later reveals, “What was I thinking when I wrote this?” EDITING SECRET: I read aloud when I edit. And I ask others to edit when I think I’m finished. Both of these secrets make my writing twice as powerful.

I end my lists with .5 rather than a whole number, for 2.5 basic reasons:

1. The .5 statement at the end of each list I make is the glue that binds the rest of the list.

2. Ending this way makes me think deeper about the subject. Think of a higher level. Here’s where I can add philosophy, humor, challenge, and or a final call-to-action.

2.5 It makes my lists different from all other lists. It brands me, and sets me apart from all other list makers (except for the few that copy me).

I love to write. This may be the biggest secret of writing with passion and clarity. I believe loving it makes the thoughts flow deeper and more consistently. I believe loving it makes me consider “long term legacy” as well as “short term impact.” I believe my love of writing makes me a more complete writer. Content becomes more relevant, and pride of authorship shows through in every sentence.

I just counted personal pronouns. The word “I” appears in this two part column more than 90 times. A record. I use first person singular sparingly. If you’re a regular reader, you know I avoid first person plural (we, our) like the plague. It sucks the power out of my writing. And it drains the impact by lowering the value of the writer. When you write, you’re the authority. The reader is probably not, don’t include yourself with them.

Less about me, and more about you:

Here are 5.5 things you can do to improve your skills today:

1. Just sit down and write something. Every day.

2. Save your best thoughts and ideas the second they occur. Not on a pad of paper or a diary. ON A COMPUTER, where you can re-read it, expand it, and edit it.

3. Write it like you would say it.

4. Make sure your thoughts are simple, easy to understand, and complete.

5. Edit early and often.

5.5 You’re writing for the reader AND yourself.

Want both parts of this article? Go to www.gitomer.com – register if you’re a first time user and enter the words HOW I WRITE in the GitBit Box.