Bankruptcy isn’t about a bank balance. It’s a mindset.

A friend I’ve written about many times lost his $100m empire more than 10 years ago. He’s still bankrupt today. He and his family live in a single motel room and rely on government assistance.

We regularly chat. His husky smoker’s voice is a clue to his future health. Surprisingly, he still has some of the best business ideas I’ve ever heard.

But he never executes.

Not because he’s lazy. But because he has no energy.

Years of smoking have stripped him of his youthful exterior and replaced his brain with one that can operate for two hours a day at best.

When I tell him to rebuild his empire the same way he did all those years ago, he gives me excuses. He made his fortune in real estate. Real estate hasn’t changed much and probably won’t.

Yet he doesn’t do it — and he loves real estate like Kim Kardashian loves telling us to work harder from the foyer of her mansion.

The reason is his mindset.

Somewhere deep down he doesn’t believe he can do it. The bankruptcy nuked his confidence and wiped out his belief he could do anything.

We must understand how to program our minds to deal with failure.

Here are a few more things an expert who worked with bankrupt people taught me about what keeps society broke.

“Treat your credit card like a debit card”

Credit cards are a trap. Suckers get them to earn worthless frequent flyer points designed as an elaborate scam.

“Just pay it on time and you’ll be fine.”

Sounds simple, except when you’ve got access to an infinite amount of credit, it’s stupidly easy to overspend. Even for a disciplined navy seal. I use a debit card that has rewards. Same benefits, but I only spend money I’ve made.

Too much debt is a tax on your future.

“Your job will eventually make you rich some day”

Jobs don’t make you rich because being ‘rich’ is about more than money.

Truly wealthy people own their time. No dumb boss tells them what to do. They don’t have HR puppet masters spreading cringe work culture and woke messages that don’t solve real problems.

The harsh fact is you can never say or do whatever you want at a job — especially online.

Your creativity is suppressed so your mind can be used for profit. You’re paid just below the market rate to ensure maximum money can be made from the time you give up.

We all start with a job. No problemo.

But a job doesn’t make most people wealthy in the true sense. The sooner you have that aha-moment the better.

“See self-education as an expense. Not an investment.”

Online courses and self-improvement attract their fair share of critics.

“Courses are a scam. Just google the info.”

These dummies forget that learning without a guide and nothing but a google search engine will drain all your free time. Time is worth more than money.

Self-education saves you time. It’s not an expense. It’s how you learn skills you can use to invest in your future and make a bucketload of cashola.

“See self-entertainment as an investment. Not an expense.”

It’s fine to unwind. But for many broke people that’s all they do.

Netflix doesn’t just cost $9.99 a month. It’s a time expense too.

You need to invest time to consume their woke tv shows. And instead of serving movies, they sway you towards useless tv shows that take back-to-back seasons and years of our lives to watch.

Balance self-entertainment with building a bright future. The 80/20 rule works well for this one. 80% building. 20% self-entertainment.

“Listen to people who are bad with money. Do not listen to people who are good with money.”

They’re all over the internet.

They act how David Letterman did when Bill Gates came on his late-night show to talk about the internet. The web seemed like a scam. Like a far-fetched, stupid idea. Now it drives everything.

The generation of broke critics say:

• “Cryptos won’t work.”
• “Metaverses won’t work.”
• “NFTs won’t work.”
• “Web3 is a scam.”

Meanwhile the biggest companies in America are throwing everything they’ve got at these new technologies.

People who are bad with money don’t understand innovation. They think that what we have now will exist forever. Spend time with people who’ve done well financially, who invested sensibly in a diversified portfolio of assets.

“I’ll do it tomorrow”

The idea we’ll have more time in the future is an illusion. If there isn’t time then it isn’t a priority. It’s a priority problem disguised as a time problem.

“Discomfort is bad. Comfort is good.”

Discomfort causes growth.

When you face your fears and stack up tiny wins you feel bloody fantastic. We live in a modern-day comfort crisis. Spend more of your time in uncomfortable situations to get an unfair advantage.

What starts as discomfort turns into comfort. That’s how your life gets exponentially better without you having to hope for luck or miracles from a god.

“Looking rich will make you rich so buy luxury brands”

The luxury epidemic created by instagram causes so many bankruptcies, according to the bankruptcy expert.

We chase bigger and bigger purchases to look richer.

If a new material possession doesn’t wow onlookers then we assume we need to go larger. Yet the wealthiest people don’t own flashy stuff. They live modestly so they can have free time and explore their creativity.

Chasing luxury is the same as begging for ‘likes’ on social media. Don’t do it.

“Buy a nice car before you buy a nice house”

A car is a chunk of metal with four rubber wheels. Don’t overcompensate for the importance of a car.

A house comes with land. Land goes up in value over time because it’s scarce. But a car goes down in value right after you drive it away. It’s a depreciating asset and they’re not scarce at all.

A second-hand Toyota is massively overrated. Or you can just catch a bus or ride an Uber. Better yet, you could walk or ride a bike to many places.

“Spend more than you make”

It’s a simple exercise. If more money exits your bank account each month than enters, then Houston, we have a problem!

The simplest solution is to reduce the cost of your shelter. Or learn how to make a little extra money online. Just don’t let your expenses keep rising as your income does (lifestyle creep).

Use excess money to invest in financial assets that make you more money.

“Ignore your physical health. Eat and drink whatever you want”

Building financial wealth requires energy.

What you put into your body determines your energy levels. Eat processed junk food and drink sugar water to destroy your energy. Eat more plants and drink more water to access high energy.

Businesses and careers don’t die. People just run out of energy.

“The best way to increase your income is to ask your boss for a raise”

Giving people raises is bad for business.

Most employers don’t even adjust salaries in line with inflation. They certainly don’t raise salaries because you want them to, either.

The motivation for an employer is to pay you the least money possible. Only if you’re at risk of leaving and a cheaper person can’t replace you, will they want to pay more.

If you want a raise then just change employers. Simple.

But the new employer, too, will try to pay you the least they can. They need to make a profit which means they need to pay you the lowest number they can.

Learn how to make money online and give yourself a raise.

“Do not start a business. Most of them fail and chances are so will yours.”

You are a walking, talking business. Your job is just one customer that pays you. There’s no limit on how many customers your personal business has.

Businesses fail … but they succeed too. If you live your whole life never trying to own a business, according to my grandpa, you’ll likely face enormous regrets on your eventual deathbed.

Whether a business fails or succeeds isn’t the point.

It’s what you learn in the process. A business teaches you how to think like an owner. It teaches you to take personal responsibility and stop blaming other people for your screw-ups.

The world could do with more personal responsibility and less victim mentality.

“Understand the world is fair and as long as you do the right thing, government and society will save you”

No one saves bankrupts.

My friend hasn’t got saved after all these years. The only person that can save you is yourself. Life isn’t fair. The capitalist structures that run the world don’t enable fairness. And they’re not likely to change.

Society wants to save you but we’re too busy with our own problems. Deep down the government wants to save you, too. But they can’t.

Too many people.

Too many political career goals.

Too much ego.

Too much greed.

Once you accept life is unfair (by design), you just wake up every day and make it a little fairer.

“Never ever take any risks under any circumstances”

You might argue bankruptcy is the result of taking risks. But some of the most successful people in history have gone bankrupt — Abraham Lincoln, Walt Disney, Cyndi Lauper, Elton John.

If you don’t take risks you won’t find out what works. You’ll spend your life wondering “what if?”

Bankrupts lose all their money because they push the limits. They don’t care if the risk takes away their fortune. Why?

You can always start again as many times as you want. Take regular risks to avoid feeling broke. It’ll help you come alive.

This article is for informational purposes only, it should not be considered financial, tax or legal advice. Consult a financial professional before making any major financial decisions.

Join my email list with 50K+ people for more money insights.

“Writing online isn’t a job.”

Have you ever heard that and felt misunderstood? It’s very common to think that publishing online content isn’t a real job, since “you aren’t working” right?

Working smart is underrated compared to working hard.

Last week, Elon Musk came out with the message that all Tesla employees must be in the office for at least 40 hours a week.

You might say, fine it’s his company, but the problem is much more fundamental than that.

Previous generations have always been rewarded with hard work and also live with that attitude. Nowadays, that reward is getting lower and lower and it is increasingly difficult to make ends meet if you have an average income.

So you have to work smart: accumulate as much wealth as possible by doing as little as possible.

Quit social standards

Who says you have to work hard for your money?

For the last 100 years, there has been a work ethic that states that hard work always pays, and the harder you work the more you earn.

The thing is, these days a gigantically expensive college degree doesn’t have to pay anything at all. There are plenty of very intelligent people with expensive diplomas who can’t find a job or can barely make ends meet because they have sky-high student debts.

I think, that you are successful when you can take care of yourself without being dependent on others, like a big government.

Don’t care about what other people think.

If they want to work their ass off for a pittance, let them — they’ll soon find out that it’s burning them out, or perhaps they’ll do it for the rest of their lives.

But don’t let these people get in the way of your plans and ambitions.

Don’t become an office zombie

I’ve never had a real job. I am still studying and next year I will start my first internship for a web development agency. My first “office job”.

Never thought I would end up behind a desk. I don’t want that at all, but it’s unavoidable at this point. To get my degree, it is necessary to do 90 days of internship.

That’s all fine, the company has a great atmosphere and there are fun projects being done, but still, I’d rather start for myself than work for a boss.

After all, I don’t want to become an office zombie.

In our educational system, we are trained to be zombies. We have to memorize words and other repetitive things like why the climate is changing in South America.

All very nice, but I would have liked to have been taught about philosophy, and life and maybe it would have been helpful if we were taught how to file tax returns.

Teach young people to become financially fit and free instead of pounding into their heads that they have to get their degree and work hard for the rest of their life.

Learn about economics and inflation

You must understand how the markets work and what inflation does — especially now.

The whole world is plagued by gigantic inflation. One country is worse than another. Current inflation rates for the United States are estimated at 8.5% per year.

That’s insane.

Therefore, don’t become dependent on your 9–5 job, there are so many opportunities online to accumulate wealth or at least earn a nice little extra.

After all, if you get a 5% pay raise, you might think it’s fine. But if your purchasing power is reduced by more than 8%, you still lose that 3%.

So make sure you can compensate for that difference by realizing extra income in the form of online writing, investing, trading, or other freelance work.

You can’t hide from it now. Inflation is here and we have to deal with it.

No excuses, dedication

In the digital age, there are really no more reasons not to make an income from the Internet. It is one of the best investments in yourself.

Build a portfolio, maybe it’s still a hobby or a side job now but a year from now your life could look completely different.

There are so many different ways to make money on the Internet. You can start writing on online platforms, you can generate an audience and maybe even direct income for views and reads.

If you have other interests you could sign up as a freelancer on websites like Fiverr and Upwork and offer your services.

Everything is possible.

As with many things in life, consistency is important. You can’t expect miracles to happen after a week of work. You do have to put in some effort, but this is different from the usual “working hard from 9–5”. After all, you’re really doing this for yourself.

Wrapping things up: try to live a little

At the end of the day, we work to enjoy our lives, so why not just try to combine that.

After all, I love to write when I’m on the road.

We have to remember that we are human beings and not robots that have to run a few hours a week. You live to live, you don’t live to work.

Get rid of that thought.

Try to think of your 9–5 job as a side hustle to pay your bills and fixed expenses and anything else you bring in can be used to improve your own life.

Invest in yourself.

If you like my articles, you can signup for my free e-mail-list here. But if you’re not a medium member yet, you can sign up with my referral link down below and I’ll receive a small portion of your fee.

Sources & References

• TRADING ECONOMICS. (n.d.). United States Inflation Rate — May 2022 Data — 1914–2021 Historical — June Forecast. https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/inflation-cpi

“Writing online isn’t a job.”

Have you ever heard that and felt misunderstood? It’s very common to think that publishing online content isn’t a real job, since “you aren’t working” right?

Working smart is underrated compared to working hard.

Last week, Elon Musk came out with the message that all Tesla employees must be in the office for at least 40 hours a week.

You might say, fine it’s his company, but the problem is much more fundamental than that.

Previous generations have always been rewarded with hard work and also live with that attitude. Nowadays, that reward is getting lower and lower and it is increasingly difficult to make ends meet if you have an average income.

So you have to work smart: accumulate as much wealth as possible by doing as little as possible.

Quit social standards

Who says you have to work hard for your money?

For the last 100 years, there has been a work ethic that states that hard work always pays, and the harder you work the more you earn.

The thing is, these days a gigantically expensive college degree doesn’t have to pay anything at all. There are plenty of very intelligent people with expensive diplomas who can’t find a job or can barely make ends meet because they have sky-high student debts.

I think, that you are successful when you can take care of yourself without being dependent on others, like a big government.

Don’t care about what other people think.

If they want to work their ass off for a pittance, let them — they’ll soon find out that it’s burning them out, or perhaps they’ll do it for the rest of their lives.

But don’t let these people get in the way of your plans and ambitions.

Don’t become an office zombie

I’ve never had a real job. I am still studying and next year I will start my first internship for a web development agency. My first “office job”.

Never thought I would end up behind a desk. I don’t want that at all, but it’s unavoidable at this point. To get my degree, it is necessary to do 90 days of internship.

That’s all fine, the company has a great atmosphere and there are fun projects being done, but still, I’d rather start for myself than work for a boss.

After all, I don’t want to become an office zombie.

In our educational system, we are trained to be zombies. We have to memorize words and other repetitive things like why the climate is changing in South America.

All very nice, but I would have liked to have been taught about philosophy, and life and maybe it would have been helpful if we were taught how to file tax returns.

Teach young people to become financially fit and free instead of pounding into their heads that they have to get their degree and work hard for the rest of their life.

Learn about economics and inflation

You must understand how the markets work and what inflation does — especially now.

The whole world is plagued by gigantic inflation. One country is worse than another. Current inflation rates for the United States are estimated at 8.5% per year.

That’s insane.

Therefore, don’t become dependent on your 9–5 job, there are so many opportunities online to accumulate wealth or at least earn a nice little extra.

After all, if you get a 5% pay raise, you might think it’s fine. But if your purchasing power is reduced by more than 8%, you still lose that 3%.

So make sure you can compensate for that difference by realizing extra income in the form of online writing, investing, trading, or other freelance work.

You can’t hide from it now. Inflation is here and we have to deal with it.

No excuses, dedication

In the digital age, there are really no more reasons not to make an income from the Internet. It is one of the best investments in yourself.

Build a portfolio, maybe it’s still a hobby or a side job now but a year from now your life could look completely different.

There are so many different ways to make money on the Internet. You can start writing on online platforms, you can generate an audience and maybe even direct income for views and reads.

If you have other interests you could sign up as a freelancer on websites like Fiverr and Upwork and offer your services.

Everything is possible.

As with many things in life, consistency is important. You can’t expect miracles to happen after a week of work. You do have to put in some effort, but this is different from the usual “working hard from 9–5”. After all, you’re really doing this for yourself.

Wrapping things up: try to live a little

At the end of the day, we work to enjoy our lives, so why not just try to combine that.

After all, I love to write when I’m on the road.

We have to remember that we are human beings and not robots that have to run a few hours a week. You live to live, you don’t live to work.

Get rid of that thought.

Try to think of your 9–5 job as a side hustle to pay your bills and fixed expenses and anything else you bring in can be used to improve your own life.

Invest in yourself.

If you like my articles, you can signup for my free e-mail-list here. But if you’re not a medium member yet, you can sign up with my referral link down below and I’ll receive a small portion of your fee.

Sources & References

• TRADING ECONOMICS. (n.d.). United States Inflation Rate — May 2022 Data — 1914–2021 Historical — June Forecast. https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/inflation-cpi

Don’t worry; we are all in the same boat.

Max Phillips

Apr 16 · 6 min read

One year into my content creation journey, and I’m still facing fears.

It’s scary knowing your work is out there for the world to see. It’s yours, and you’re responsible for its quality.

But that’s the life you and I signed up for — to live, breathe, and face our fears on a near-daily basis. Here are some that spring to mind:

• Never feeling good enough
• Negative comments (‘haters’)
• Confidence crisis
• Fear of unoriginality
• Fear of what people close to you will think

Left unchecked, these fears can derail your entire creative process. That costs valuable time and potential money.

I’ve faced all of them at some point in the past year, and I’m sure some will reappear. But I’m not trying to teach you how to make them disappear completely. That’s naive.

There are ways to overcome a content creator's fears, even if it’s for a short while. You just need to know where to look.

Never feel good enough? Chase inadequacy.

I’m in a Slack group with a bunch of incredibly talented writers. All of us have thousands of followers and articles in major publications, but each of us admitted to feeling like a fish out of water.

It was surprising to find that many other writers felt the same as I often do. But, as we reassured one another, that’s a good thing.

If you feel like your work isn’t good enough, then you’re always going to push toward a higher level.

One day you might write the best article you’ve ever written, but there will be another that smashes it out of the park.

The complete piece of content doesn’t exist. All that’s left is for you to keep pushing your abilities.

So, while some people may tell you to cut the self-doubting out, I say listen to it. Chase it. Beat it to a pulp. You’re in a battle against yourself, and there’s only one way you’re going to win.

Inadequacy may not feel good, but it’ll make you a more polished content creator.

Got your first haters? That means you’ve made it.

I don’t remember what my first hater said word for word, but he basically called my article garbage.

I was both disappointed, amused, and very close to replying. After much consideration, I decided to very sarcastically clap his response and hope he got the message.

Here’s the thing — while I was disappointed this random bloke hated my work, I soon realized the upside.

To have a stranger take the time out of their day to read, react, and passionately comment on your work shows they care. You’ve extracted emotion from your reader, which, even if it’s negative, is a sign you’re improving.

Top-quality content should make the reader feel something. It would be worse if your words bored them into amnesia as soon as they finish reading.

While it may be tempting to defend your work vehemently, do your best to laugh it off. Remember, they’ve still consumed your content.

You win.

Having a confidence crisis? Don’t worry. You’re not alone.

When I first started publishing my articles on Medium, I had no clue how vast the community is.

In my mind, writing was a lonely game — just me tapping away at my keyboard with no colleagues to confer with. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

There are hundreds of publications, thousands of writers, and even more readers.

Your fellow content creators aren’t your competition, they are part of your community, and at some stage, they’ve had a crisis in confidence too.

I’m not saying your feelings are inadequate because everyone else has felt the same way at some point. Far from it. Instead, realizing that there are other creators out there you can reconcile with lifts a significant burden from your shoulders.

Sure, you can go to your family for reassurance. My nan will always praise my articles, but fellow creators can give a more accurate portrayal of my strengths and weaknesses. They can genuinely help.

Don’t be afraid to lean on the community.

Worried your work is unoriginal? Originality is overrated.

You might have read an article similar to this one before, and you might read another in the future. But you’ve never read one written by me.

Originality is rare, and while it’s refreshing to see a brand new take on something, it isn’t vital to your success. If you focus on it too much, then it may switch consumers off your work.

You see, when you chase originality, you try too hard to be clever. While it may feel good, content consumers just want something simple but helpful.

There’s a quote from Mark Twain which springs to mind:

“There is no such thing as a new idea. It is impossible. We simply take a lot of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope. We give them a turn and they make new and curious combinations. We keep on turning and making new combinations indefinitely; but they are the same old pieces of colored glass that have been in use through all the ages.”

There is no such thing as a new idea. Accepting that is liberating, as even if you’ve had the same idea before; you can put a new spin on it and see where your mind takes you.

Worried about what your friends and family might think? It’s easy to find out.

After I graduated from university, I noticed nearly all of my friends dived into well-paid graduate schemes and full-time jobs. I was envious. My career was going nowhere; stuck in a retail job.

When I realized content creation was the path I wanted to go down, it frightened me. I didn’t know anyone on a similar path, so I thought what I was doing was wrong.

It made me nervous to tell people. I don’t usually care what others think, but this mattered. It was a big step in my life.

After explaining it to friends and family, I quickly understood who was who. Those who supported me asked lots of questions — they were genuinely interested. Those who nitpicked the viability of my plans weren’t.

I realized something: the people who pick holes in your process are likely secretly envious you’re putting yourself out there.

Content creation is scary, and most people are too frightened to take the leap. Take a minute to appreciate what you’re doing.

Want to improve in private? You can’t.

Nicholas Cole, one of the most prolific writers on the internet, often speaks about the importance of “practicing in public.” He claims you cannot hope to get better if you don’t put your work in front of a stranger’s eyes.

Thinking back, my early articles were a complete dumpster fire. It took me weeks to get curated on Medium, and there are only about two articles I’m proud of from my first few months.

I wouldn't have realized what works and what doesn’t if I wasn’t practicing in public.

Put differently: your mum will always love your work, but strangers on the internet will respond more honestly. Chase their opinion.

Obsessed with performance? Don’t look at your stats.

When I first started writing, I checked my stats multiple times a day. I’d see an article get a few dozen views, but when it slowed down, I began questioning whether it was all worth it.

That all changed when I stopped checking them as often. Now, I do it about twice a month, although most of the time, it’s a singular check at the month’s end.

It revolutionized the way I approach content creation.

Stats should be used as indicators of what’s going well, not a basis to judge your worth. If you rely on them, it can cripple your confidence, particularly in the early stages.

Zone in on the quality of your work, not how well an article is performing. Write, edit, publish, move on. Repeat.

Content creation is often daunting, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s given me something to be proud of and many targets to work toward.

Wherever you’re at on your journey, there will be plenty of fears to overcome—some from this list, and perhaps not. The sooner you can identify them, the better.

But remember: it isn’t straightforward. In reality, your journey will be all over the place — that’s what makes it worthwhile.

As a content creator, productivity fears are real

Claim my free Productivity Enhancement Guide to overcome them.

Don’t worry; we are all in the same boat.

Max Phillips

Apr 16 · 6 min read

One year into my content creation journey, and I’m still facing fears.

It’s scary knowing your work is out there for the world to see. It’s yours, and you’re responsible for its quality.

But that’s the life you and I signed up for — to live, breathe, and face our fears on a near-daily basis. Here are some that spring to mind:

• Never feeling good enough
• Negative comments (‘haters’)
• Confidence crisis
• Fear of unoriginality
• Fear of what people close to you will think

Left unchecked, these fears can derail your entire creative process. That costs valuable time and potential money.

I’ve faced all of them at some point in the past year, and I’m sure some will reappear. But I’m not trying to teach you how to make them disappear completely. That’s naive.

There are ways to overcome a content creator's fears, even if it’s for a short while. You just need to know where to look.

Never feel good enough? Chase inadequacy.

I’m in a Slack group with a bunch of incredibly talented writers. All of us have thousands of followers and articles in major publications, but each of us admitted to feeling like a fish out of water.

It was surprising to find that many other writers felt the same as I often do. But, as we reassured one another, that’s a good thing.

If you feel like your work isn’t good enough, then you’re always going to push toward a higher level.

One day you might write the best article you’ve ever written, but there will be another that smashes it out of the park.

The complete piece of content doesn’t exist. All that’s left is for you to keep pushing your abilities.

So, while some people may tell you to cut the self-doubting out, I say listen to it. Chase it. Beat it to a pulp. You’re in a battle against yourself, and there’s only one way you’re going to win.

Inadequacy may not feel good, but it’ll make you a more polished content creator.

Got your first haters? That means you’ve made it.

I don’t remember what my first hater said word for word, but he basically called my article garbage.

I was both disappointed, amused, and very close to replying. After much consideration, I decided to very sarcastically clap his response and hope he got the message.

Here’s the thing — while I was disappointed this random bloke hated my work, I soon realized the upside.

To have a stranger take the time out of their day to read, react, and passionately comment on your work shows they care. You’ve extracted emotion from your reader, which, even if it’s negative, is a sign you’re improving.

Top-quality content should make the reader feel something. It would be worse if your words bored them into amnesia as soon as they finish reading.

While it may be tempting to defend your work vehemently, do your best to laugh it off. Remember, they’ve still consumed your content.

You win.

Having a confidence crisis? Don’t worry. You’re not alone.

When I first started publishing my articles on Medium, I had no clue how vast the community is.

In my mind, writing was a lonely game — just me tapping away at my keyboard with no colleagues to confer with. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

There are hundreds of publications, thousands of writers, and even more readers.

Your fellow content creators aren’t your competition, they are part of your community, and at some stage, they’ve had a crisis in confidence too.

I’m not saying your feelings are inadequate because everyone else has felt the same way at some point. Far from it. Instead, realizing that there are other creators out there you can reconcile with lifts a significant burden from your shoulders.

Sure, you can go to your family for reassurance. My nan will always praise my articles, but fellow creators can give a more accurate portrayal of my strengths and weaknesses. They can genuinely help.

Don’t be afraid to lean on the community.

Worried your work is unoriginal? Originality is overrated.

You might have read an article similar to this one before, and you might read another in the future. But you’ve never read one written by me.

Originality is rare, and while it’s refreshing to see a brand new take on something, it isn’t vital to your success. If you focus on it too much, then it may switch consumers off your work.

You see, when you chase originality, you try too hard to be clever. While it may feel good, content consumers just want something simple but helpful.

There’s a quote from Mark Twain which springs to mind:

“There is no such thing as a new idea. It is impossible. We simply take a lot of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope. We give them a turn and they make new and curious combinations. We keep on turning and making new combinations indefinitely; but they are the same old pieces of colored glass that have been in use through all the ages.”

There is no such thing as a new idea. Accepting that is liberating, as even if you’ve had the same idea before; you can put a new spin on it and see where your mind takes you.

Worried about what your friends and family might think? It’s easy to find out.

After I graduated from university, I noticed nearly all of my friends dived into well-paid graduate schemes and full-time jobs. I was envious. My career was going nowhere; stuck in a retail job.

When I realized content creation was the path I wanted to go down, it frightened me. I didn’t know anyone on a similar path, so I thought what I was doing was wrong.

It made me nervous to tell people. I don’t usually care what others think, but this mattered. It was a big step in my life.

After explaining it to friends and family, I quickly understood who was who. Those who supported me asked lots of questions — they were genuinely interested. Those who nitpicked the viability of my plans weren’t.

I realized something: the people who pick holes in your process are likely secretly envious you’re putting yourself out there.

Content creation is scary, and most people are too frightened to take the leap. Take a minute to appreciate what you’re doing.

Want to improve in private? You can’t.

Nicholas Cole, one of the most prolific writers on the internet, often speaks about the importance of “practicing in public.” He claims you cannot hope to get better if you don’t put your work in front of a stranger’s eyes.

Thinking back, my early articles were a complete dumpster fire. It took me weeks to get curated on Medium, and there are only about two articles I’m proud of from my first few months.

I wouldn't have realized what works and what doesn’t if I wasn’t practicing in public.

Put differently: your mum will always love your work, but strangers on the internet will respond more honestly. Chase their opinion.

Obsessed with performance? Don’t look at your stats.

When I first started writing, I checked my stats multiple times a day. I’d see an article get a few dozen views, but when it slowed down, I began questioning whether it was all worth it.

That all changed when I stopped checking them as often. Now, I do it about twice a month, although most of the time, it’s a singular check at the month’s end.

It revolutionized the way I approach content creation.

Stats should be used as indicators of what’s going well, not a basis to judge your worth. If you rely on them, it can cripple your confidence, particularly in the early stages.

Zone in on the quality of your work, not how well an article is performing. Write, edit, publish, move on. Repeat.

Content creation is often daunting, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s given me something to be proud of and many targets to work toward.

Wherever you’re at on your journey, there will be plenty of fears to overcome—some from this list, and perhaps not. The sooner you can identify them, the better.

But remember: it isn’t straightforward. In reality, your journey will be all over the place — that’s what makes it worthwhile.

As a content creator, productivity fears are real

Claim my free Productivity Enhancement Guide to overcome them.