There’s something that happens when I sit down with my best friend, well it’s more of some things that don’t happen, actually. I think these might be familiar to you… My shoulders don’t tense up, my heart doesn’t race, and I don’t try to put my best foot forward, aka being fake. I can simply be me and not worry about whether or not this person will hate me- because they already love me (they’re stuck with me). I can be as weird as I love to be. Ain’t nothing but the feels of happiness and excitement going through me. And that is exactly how you should feel when you’re writing.

There’s a freedom in that kind of relationship – I’m sure you’ve experienced it yourself. My closest friends know me as “the girl who doesn’t know how to whisper” and I’m damn proud of it. I don’t have to worry about the repercussions of my being insanely loud when I’m with them – especially when it comes to my laugh. That’s why we have best friends in the first place. Because they get us, they help us unwind, and they love us for who we are.

What if your business – your clients and customers – was made up of best friends?

They’d root for you, they’d buy from you, and they’d spread the word about you faster than it’d take you to do it on your own. Plus, it’d be a pleasure to talk to them, work for them, and create for them. It’s the perfect environment for creating your best work too.

It’s the playground where everyone wins.

Yet, so many people struggle with writing. They try to put their “best foot forward” with a fake voice that isn’t their own – seriously, people don’t actually talk that academically. And that’s when writing becomes torture. Because when you try to be something you’re not, you can only be awful at it.

You know when someone’s scared to share their true voice because it’s so blatantly obvious in their writing – it’s like a smack of boredom in the face. They don’t pick a side. They don’t take a stand. They don’t give an opinion on what they’re sharing and treat their writing like a textbook – and I personally never enjoyed textbooks. That lack of emotion breeds more lack of emotion. If they don’t care, how am I supposed to?

It’s time to stop worrying about the repercussions of what you say. It’s time to get stubborn. That’s why you should always write to your best friend. Write exactly how you would say it to them.

Just like when it comes making best friends, you won’t please everybody, but the ones you do will be there for you through everything. And that is as invaluable as a real-life best friend.

When you write your blog posts, don’t just make it written content. They can be part of your story. They’re a conversation you’re having with people. In fact, let’s think about the actual interaction people have with your blog post: Is it being read by a group behind a single screen? No. It’s being read by just one person. That means your blog post is really a single conversation you’re having with one person.

So, write like it.

How can you write bravely about the things you actually want to say?

It’s simple. First, share you’re experience. Any experience can be translated into a lesson to your audience. We don’t care about knowledge. We need it sure, but we don’t always care for it in its raw form. It’s over-flooding the internet. Don’t write something that a quick Google search can solve. Instead, make it personal and teach us something through the story you tell.

Make a connection between why that optimistic chick from Panera is proof of the importance of customer service (seriously, she makes my bad days good, God bless her).

Or why it’s so important to do what you want with your business to make it stand out, like how you felt fully connected to Beyoncé when she launched a whole friggin’ album to the world with no warning.

Or why the real victory in your fight against depression was when you started living holistically.

The possibilities are endless.

When you make it personal,
You become passionate,
Which makes me care.

We’re ready for you.
Time to kill the white space.

December 2013 Issue