subject: Are Your Words Just Going Out Into The Ether? [print this page] Someone emailed me Someone emailed me
Im just starting out, and Im ready to start writing a blog, newsletters, twitter, etc., etc. But Im stuck. I know who Im writing for in generic terms, but I cant feel them as individuals. Im trying to write for a whole group of people when Im naturally someone who works best on a one-to-one basis. How on earth do I write in a way that will resonate with people rather than feeling that Im writing and my words are just being sent into the ether
Yes! I so totally get this. I cant write to nobody, either. Thats why I asked someone to email me a question to answer.
In fact, thats one of the Big Secrets to Great Writingjust write to one person. Even if youre hoping that hundreds of thousands of people will read what you write, they probably arent all clustered around the same 17 laptop screen. And even if they were elbowing each other out of the way, each pair of eyeballs is still taking in your words of wisdom individually.
So, there you go. Write.
Ahem, you say?
Still sitting there in front of a blank screen, wondering how to jump from the generic to the individual? Ill show you what I do with my heart.
But first, let me explain something about how help is delivered.
Help Is Drawn Towards Need
Stand up, with no prior preparation on a moments notice, in front of thirty-odd people and deliver a healing talk to them. Thats what we made our students do when I taught teachers.
Quite often the results were astounding. What would come forth from speakers would sometimes just send my heart flying, whoosh!
How did this work? There were a few principles involved:
First, everyone is needy. Our hearts are thirsting for love and Oneness in every moment. Always. Always. We can drink oceans dry and still not have our fill. As the Sufis say, The aim isnt to quench your thirst, the aim is to develop the perfect thirst so that you never stop drinking.
This means that everyone in those classroom audiences was thirsting. This applies to you and your audience as well. No matter how big a kahuna anyone is, or how small and insignificant you feel, you can still be a conduit of love for them. And they still need the love.
Second, you are the conduit, not the Source. This means that when facing needy people, you dont have to fill them up. However, you have an opportunity to be the bucket at the well, or the aqueduct, or whatever metaphor you choose.
Third, the Divine never fails to respond to true need. Call it trust, faith, or craziness, its just what happens. Even the Rolling Stones had it right on this one, You dont always get what you want
However, sometimes theres a pause while were hooking up our conduit and letting it flow through. Theres no delay on the part of the Divine, but there can be a time-lag as we get in position to help.
It took some getting used to, but Ive learned to love allowing dead air when I teach. Sometimes Ill take what feels like an uncomfortably long time in silence to get connected, and then it flows through.
People sitting in front of you waiting expectantly, and youre actually going to take an ENTIRE SIXTY SECONDS of silence to connect? OhmyGodohmyGodohmyGod
And when you spend the sixty seconds ohmyGod-ing, then it does become an uncomfortably long silence. But its not the silence, its the lack of connection.
And guess what? When youre writing, theres no one sitting in front of you, which is part of the problem. But it also means you can take as long an uncomfortable silence as you want.
Time to Connect
Try an experiment with me. First, think of a client or a friend, or someone else you know. Take a few moments to connect with your own heart.
Now ask to connect with the heart of this other person. Dont imagine. Dont vision. Dont make up pictures or stories. Just ask, with a willingness to be surprised. And take some time to notice what you notice, in your heart, in your mind, in your body.
Theres a connection. Its there. Its real. Trust it.
Use the Force, Luke
We started out with with the problem ofknowing the kind of person youre trying to reach, but not actually having any of them in front of you. Youre starting out at zero, brand new. No blog readers. No twitter followers. No current clients. Standing in the middle of a field, the breeze blowing through your hair, alone, you are.
Let go of everything you think you know. Connect with your heart. And ask to connect with the heart of someone your business is meant to serve. No name. No face. No personal knowledge. Just a heart connection. Ask for it. Be willing to be surprised.
Take some time with this. It may take a few minutes for you to connect, and for you to trust the connection.
Now ask to be made aware of their neediness, especially any neediness your heart can speak to. Be willing to be surprised.
Trust what comes in. Trust how your heart feels. Trust.
And then write. Write from that space of love and connection. Of compassion and humility. Of answering true need.
Okay, Let the Brain Back In
Once you have that connection, access the knowledge you have within your business. Answer some basic question people you help need answered. Continue to connect in with that neediness. Because you are writing to that one heart you were shown, you are giving to that one heart.
