In my Time to Write Workshop and Write Mindset Coaching business, I continuously encourage my teacher-writers to share their writing beyond the boundaries of their own notebooks.
Sharing our words with others makes many of us nervous. Releasing our words out into the care of others is definitely an act of bravery because we can never be 100% sure how they will be received.
But pushing 'publish' also has some pretty amazing benefits too!
Five Reasons You Need to Push 'Publish':
#1: It shows your writing fears who is in charge.
When you push 'publish' or 'share,' you are showing your writing fears that you are the boss of your writing life, not them. Often, fears such as comparison, perfectionism, imposter syndrome, and procrastination gang up on us to try to keep control. Our writing fears are like a bully in our brain that tries to convince us that we are not writers. Pushing publish shows them that you are.
#2: It gives you a ticket out of your comfort zone.
Our comfort zones are nice, but we shouldn't spend too much time there if we want to become better writers. When we are comfortable, everything stays the same. We don't grow. Putting your words out there allows us to experiment with our writing in a way that we can't if we keep our words to ourselves.
#3: Your words have value because they are yours.
Many of us hesitate to share our writing because we feel like we don't have anything of value to add to the conversation. "Who would want to read what I write?" you may ask. I'm here to remind you that no one has lived your life or had your experiences except you. That makes you an authority in what you have to say and a right to write about it. If someone doesn't want to read them, they can turn the page.
#4: Someone is waiting for your very words to cross their path.
I often tell my writers, "You never know who needs to read your words."
How many times have you read something and experienced an affirmation of a thought that you thought you were the only one thinking? By pressing 'publish', you are allowing those serendipitous moments to happen and you may never know how important your words are to someone who reads them.
#5: It builds your brave muscle.
Pushing publish for the first few times you start sharing your writing can be incredibly nerve-wracking, but it does get easier. Our brain thinks that one of its main jobs is to keep us safe from harm. Your brain will stop freaking out once it learns that sharing your writing is not a life-or-death situation and it can relax. Creating a pattern of publishing builds your brave muscle and gives your brain a rest.
Understanding why it is so important for us teacher-writers to share our writing can help us help our students overcome many of the anxieties that hold them back as writers too.
Practice pushing publish and sharing your words. You'll be amazed at what can happen.
Jen Laffin is the founder of Teach Write LLC and Write Mindset Coaching. She loves to help teachers grow as writers because when they do, their students do too! Jen invites you to be a part of the Teach Write Community by joining one of the workshops for teacher-writers inside the Teach Write Academy.