Week 8: The Power of Writing Things Down

The empowerment behind putting pen to paper

My first Substack post this year was about setting goals. Before I wrote that post, I had written down my 2024 goals for Inspirele, broken down by the specific things I wanted to achieve. 1.5 months in, I looked back at my notebook yesterday and felt a sense of self-empowerment. I had taken significant steps towards each one of my goals, and could see how far I had come for having the courage of writing them down and believing that they were possible.

Where Writing Things Down Matters Most

1. Need to make a difficult decision: Write down the implications of your different options. Having the different layers of trade-offs and considerations in front of you can help you make a more informed choice

2. Accountability: Goals are a great example! A written record serves as a visible commitment to yourself and your business. Make sure it can be seen - a notebook page you refer to regularly or a whiteboard (Nareen’s tip: I’m personally a big advocate for whiteboards - they’re really good for reminders, to-do lists, and goals)

3. Working through a difficult problem: Writing helps make problems seem less scary. The more you start breaking them down and listing what specifically you need to do, the less intimidating it gets and the faster you can get to actioning the problem instead of dwelling on it

4. Feeling down: Write down 10 things that you have accomplished in life and your business. Remind yourself of why you deserve to be where you are today!

Expert Guide: Daily Habits to Unleash the Power of Writing

1. Daily priorities: Write down your daily priorities, breaking them down into actionable steps. For example, if your priority is to initiate a feedback survey and it is your first time doing this, break it down into steps like draft the questions, decide on the target audience, launch and market the survey.

2. Reflection and learning: After significant events or milestones, immediately reflect on the experience. Write down lessons learned, challenges faced, and strategies for improvement.

3. Idea generation: Keep an idea journal for spontaneous thoughts, creative sparks, or solutions to challenges. It's a goldmine for innovation. Next to each idea, write down the next step you’re taking to either validate or action on it.

4. Mind mapping for creativity: Use mind maps to visually organize ideas, plan projects, or outline strategies. This fosters creativity and helps in seeing the bigger picture.

5. Networking and relationship building: In entrepreneurship, you meet new people every day. Have a section in your writing tool to jot down key contacts, memorable conversations, and potential collaboration ideas. It’s a great reminder/resource to send out personalised emails after, referencing specific discussions or shared interests noted.

6. Health and wellness: Life as an entrepreneur can be stressful and unpredictable at times. Keep a wellness journal to track habits, nutrition, and exercise routines. A healthy lifestyle is your key to maintaining your resilience and clarity to move ahead in your business.

Prompt to action

This week, embrace the power of your physical / virtual pen in even more aspects of your entrepreneurial journey.

• Bring a notebook or note-taking tool to all meetings and capture key insights

• Dedicate a page each day to reflect and express gratitude for the day (on both professional and personal aspects)

• Use mind maps to brainstorm new ideas or visualise complex concepts.
  Note: If you prefer typing or taking notes on your computer, check out online mind-mapping tools e.g. Miro. It’s a delight for brainstorming!

To the power of writing,

-Nareen