If there’s one thing that has held true over the years, it’s that the more I write, the more success I have.
When people ask what I do, I rarely know what to tell them.
Blogger? Entrepreneur? Marketer? Golfer?
They all fit, but the one that often feels the most accurate is writer.
Whether it’s writing content for Location Rebel Academy, emails for our newsletter subscribers, or blog posts — if I don’t write, I don’t make money.
Simple as that.
Yet, lately, my writing has been stagnant.
I’ve put it off, made excuses, or found other people to do it for me.
One of the effects of that is feeling lost.
Years ago, this crazy thing happened.
Remember the guy from the old “Make 7 Up Yours” commercials? His name was Orlando Jones, and this one time, I ended up randomly hanging out with him at a mansion in LA.
But he told me one of the most valuable pieces of advice I’ve ever received.
He said, “Master the craft, not the form.”
So in my case, my craft is writing.
It doesn’t matter if I write blog posts, journal entries, screenplays, emails — whatever.
Once you master the craft, it can take any form it wants.
When I write, I’m able to get my thoughts out. I’m able to work through problems. And perhaps most importantly, I’m able to take the feedback and responses I get and use them to steer the direction I’m going.
When I neglect the craft, it can lead to a loss of direction.
And when I feel that, I do one thing: write daily.
I think this is the best way to find focus and direction.
So if you’re feeling stuck, I’m going to challenge you: get something out there every day.
Rather, not just write every day, but publish every day.
That’s writing on a blog, publishing on social media, posting on Medium, and getting my YouTube outlines set.
The idea of a daily writing habit has always seemed daunting and terrifying, but right now, it feels necessary.
It’s a way to help reconnect with the craft that has afforded me so many wonderful opportunities over the last decade, and even better, by doing it publicly, it offers more chances to connect with the readers (you!) who make our community as special as it is.
The Origins of Location Rebel
One thing you may or may not know about Location Rebel was the reason it began as an accountability tool.
Making a public declaration of your goals and intentions is one of the very best ways to follow through with them.
So, at the suggestion of Chris Guillebeau, I started the blog and published my bucket list as a way to hold myself accountable for the things I wanted to accomplish in my life.
Since doing that, I’ve done dozens of things I’d never have done without hitting publish. Cigars in Cuba, living on a tropical island, climbing a mountain, building a successful online business — the list goes on.
But it was committing to the accountability that allowed me to follow through with it.
So if you’re feeling stuck, commit to doing the same.
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How to Start Writing Every Day
Alright, let’s actually set some action steps to get you to start writing daily.
1) Write for yourself first
Ok, first, start writing for yourself. Make it a journal, a Word doc, inside Grammarly. Make it small, even if it’s just a few sentences.
Don’t worry about publishing at first — we’ll worry about that later. The goal here is to get yourself out of your head.
And if you get stuck?
Then check out some of these writing prompts.
You can also try outlining the topic, or if you’re writing for a client, ignore the intro and work on a section that’s easier to get started. You never have to write “in order.”
2) Set a goal
Next, set a goal.
Maybe it’s 200 words or 500 words. The actual number doesn’t matter. But what does matter is making it a number that you can comfortably hit daily.
Way too many people start with an outsized goal and then struggle to meet it.
If you’re trying to learn how to write every day, don’t start with 1,000 words — that’s really hard. Instead, start with something you feel confident you’ll hit 95% of the time.
There are a bunch of writing tools that can help you set up your daily writing goals.
Why does that 95% matter?
3) Build a streak
Because we want to get a streak going.
Gamification, baby.
I love gamifying things. I try to close the rings on my Apple watch every day and get outside for exercise. Because I have the watch, it motivates me to get up and walk around when I know I need to close that last ring.
We’re doing the same thing with your daily writing goals.
Once you start building that streak, it becomes more ingrained as a daily habit and harder to break.
4) Make it a routine
A big part of any successful new habit is making it a routine.
There’s a reason why we all get up and brush our teeth every morning, right? It’s been ingrained in us since we were kids.
Now, it’s so automatic you probably don’t even think about it, you just do it.
Take the same approach with your daily writing habit.
Challenge Yourself
So now I’m doing the same with this post.
Every day, I’m working on putting something out there.
On this site, or the golf or cocktail site, on my Twitter account, and on my YouTube channels.
Yes, it’s a lot. But I also know that amazing things can happen when you start writing and getting things out there, even if it’s just a Tweet.
And in the process, I’ll be working to write 1,000 words a day as a personal goal for myself.
I can’t wait to see where this goes.
Interested in joining me for a 30-day challenge of your own?
This post has been updated for accuracy as of March 2023.
Sean Ogle
Sean Ogle is the Founder of Location Rebel where he has spent the last 12+ years teaching people how to build online businesses that give them the freedom to do more of the things they like to do in life. When he's not in the coffee shops of Portland, or the beaches of Bali, he's probably sneaking into some other high-class establishment where he most certainly doesn't belong.Join over 40,000 people who have taken our 6 part freelance writing course. Sign up below and let’s do this together.
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Glad to have YOU back. Will be here daily
Thank you! Excited to be back, and to see you more often 🙂
This is inspiring and I’m really looking forward to it!
I personally have been struggling to write more consistently, and just the thought of writing and publishing every day made me nervous. Way to take the plunge!
I feel newly inspired to write once a week now. Thanks for being real.
Good luck, Jon! Figure out what time each day you want to write, and make it a habit. I’ve been writing first thing in the morning, and it’s working well.
LOVED the daily VLOG! I always felt more connected with those. And as they progressed they just got better and better. Excited to see the daily posts. Hope you sprinkle in an occasional new vid as well.
Definitely will! Hopefully sooner rather than later.
I will make sure to read it everyday!
I can really relate to the daunting part! I’m always scared to do something everyday, especially write. Can I keep it up? Will I have enough ideas? How can a write “well” EVERYDAY. But these are all details. Success is in the doing.
Congrats Sean! Can’t wait to see more.
Thanks Michael! I feel you there 🙂 Best way to find out, is just to start.
Glad to have you back Sean. I recently launched a blog, and I’m stumped about what to publish.
Do I just pick a topic, and just randomly write my experiences about and around said topic?
I’d start by writing about whatever comes to mind. A trap I fell into with this site is putting myself in a box and saying “I have to write about THIS.”
Now this month, I’m just writing about whatever is on my mind. My guess is that the direction of the site will be even clearer after the experiment.
Posting every day is definitely daunting. I did this last December but felt very discouraged afterwards. Your post today has encouraged me to try it again. Thank you Sean. I’m looking forward to reading your posts this next month. Blessings!
Let me know how it goes if you jump into it, Angie! It’s been daunting for me to think about as well, but honestly, so far it’s been SO good for my creativity and inspiration. Looking forward to seeing how it evolves myself 🙂
Nice post, Sean! I struggle to write/edit daily as well, even though I need to, and I’ve tried and failed the daily blog challenge in the past. Look forward to seeing how it goes. I recently put myself up to a 7 day challenge, only the have the assigned goals take me 10 days. The great thing about being a writer as you describe it, is that I can take the lessons learned and put them on the page, even if I didn’t succeed in the manner I wanted to. I’m sure however it goes, it’ll be informative and entertaining!
Totally agree, Peter! The lessons aren’t necessarily in the final success of the goals, but rather in the process. Finishing in 10 days is certainly better than not finishing at all!
I’m kinda new here, but wanted to say: Yay!… I’m happy you’re planning to write more 😁. I’m looking forward to receiving your posts in my email. 🙏🏻 TY.
I will read you again every day, Sean! I have an incredible challenge myself for the next 8 months and the stakes are higher than they’ve ever been in my life so far. I’ll share them in the area where we can.
Meanwhile, looking forward to reading you. I find the blog posts at least as stimulating as the vlogging so that’s ok too. Or maybe it’s secretly that I know I can’t vlog myself so I’m encouraging the platform I know I can do myself. 🙂
I love the 30-day challenge!
Great to hear from you, Ana! And excited to hear about your own challenge when the time is right 🙂
This is fantastic!! I’ve been hoping you’d get back to these kinds of posts again, they’ve always been my favorite to read. And of course, you pushing yourself back into inspires me to do the same! Gonna go finish writing about another bad date tonight! Looking forward to following along. Cheers!
I hate the fact you have to write about bad dates, but you do it SO well 🙂
“Every day” should be two words the way you are using it.
Good luck.
I’m totally into watching this, even if I’m starting a bit behind!
Normally I wouldn’t suggest what another writer should write about. But if you’re taking requests…? If you have further philosophical musings on “Craft vs Form” I’d love to hear them and the comments!
ps don’t bother looking at my website yet. I took your advice on getting bought and hosted, but there’s nothing there… Yet!!