I’m really pleased to share that my first book Potential – Find it. Own it. Work it. has just been released. And it’s already achieved #1 Amazon Hot New Release & Bestseller status.

My journey to create and write Potential has been motivational, challenging and rewarding in equal measure. As I begin to reflect on the process, I thought I’d outline some of the valuable lessons I have learnt and continue to learn.

1. Start with the end in mind. This advice from Stephen Covey’s book “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” really resonated with me. So that’s exactly what I did. Before putting pen to paper, I drafted up a book cover. This helped create the focus and motivation to keep to deadlines and gave me an inspirational vision to work towards.
2. Success is more rewarding when it’s outside your comfort zone. Challenging yourself to do something different, something that’s outside of your comfort zone can be scary and uncomfortable. But once you’ve achieved it, the personal satisfaction you feel is far more rewarding. It also gives you the confidence and motivation to step further outside your comfort zone in the future.
3. Seek specialist advice and listen to it. Be receptive to input and ideas from specialists and act upon it. We don’t have all the answers. So seek out those who can support and coach you in the process and learn from them.
4. Don’t take feedback personally. The professional edit of the book was thorough and hard hitting. My initial reaction was one of disappointment and defiance as I was so personally attached to the content. I had to quickly accept that I was a novice author and the feedback was to help the book to be the best it could be. However, don’t shy away from challenging the feedback if you believe it compromises the essence of the message you want to achieve.
5. Having a great product is not enough. I have learnt that you don’t write a bestseller – you create a bestseller. Don’t underestimate the importance of marketing your product and getting it in front of your potential customers.
6. Bite sized chunks really do work. I wrote the book in 500-word chunks. A result of having a clear plan and structure. Invest your time in planning and creating a detailed framework, and you will find the process is more achievable than you imagine.
7. Tell yourself you can do it! I initially thought that I wouldn’t have the time or discipline to write this book. I then started to challenge my thinking and continually asked myself ‘Why not?’ I reminded myself and drew on the knowledge that I had completed an MBA and wrote a 30,000-word dissertation while carrying out a demanding and challenging job, which consumed much of my time. So what was stopping me now…?
8. Creating a habit makes it happen. By regularly taking a couple of hours in the early morning to write, I created a disciplined approach to the task. This approach quickly turned into a positive habit. It felt natural and comfortable to be at my desk typing away at the same time every morning. Positive habits can be created through a conscious intention to do something differently to make it happen.
9. It doesn’t have to be perfect. While attending to the detail is essential, I realised I was too caught up in trying to create the perfect book for everyone. I accepted that it would resonate with some people and not others. My realistic goal is for everyone to take at least one learning from the book to help themselves and others. It doesn’t have to be the perfect read.
10. Take time to reflect. Creating the space and time for myself to reflect and think things through has been rewarding and motivational. It has helped me to understand the importance of taking time away from the busy working environment to achieve some quality and calming thinking space.

Perhaps you are starting on your road to writing a book? Hopefully these lessons prove useful if you’re thinking about writing your own bestseller, whether personally or professionally.