Over the last five years, I've practiced various forms of writing:

And I can confidently tell writing can change your life in ways you might've never expected. Here are some of them:

Writing = Communicating with yourself.

When I encourage aspiring writers to finally start publishing their work, they often feel intimidated because they believe they "don't have anything interesting to say."

When I tell them they can just write in a personal journal, they say, "my life is boring. I don't even experience enough stuff to write it down."

But writing isn't about "having something to say."

It's about finding out what you want to say.

By writing, you gain clarity about your thinking, which allows you to dive deeper and find more topics to talk and write about.

Writing helps you create space to connect with your mind and thoughts. The more you write, the more you think.

If you choose to write in a private journal, all you need to ask yourself is what you think and feel.

Tim Ferriss says writing is like freezing your thinking on paper.

If you write for an audience, you can ask yourself which messages you'd like to share with the world.

What does the world need more of?

What's a message you wish you had discovered earlier?

How could you possibly help people through your words?

You don't learn by reading, but you do by writing.

Writing helps you make sense of what you read and listen to.

In the 21st century, we're all being bombarded with information, news, and new insights all the time.

Even though ebook readers, podcasts, and audiobooks make it easy to learn on the go, we barely remember anything we read or hear if we don't use it.

Writing is a great solution if you're not just reading for fun but actually want to remember more of what you read.

The Butterfly Effect

According to the Butterfly Effect, tiny changes in our lives can lead to enormous differences in the future.

To illustrate, it's being said that the fluttering of a butterfly's wings in Brazil could lead to a tornado in Texas.

You never know how your writing could shape your life.

Writing in your journal daily might help you become more relaxed and mindful.

This might help you become more efficient at your work, get a promotion, have more time for your loved ones, or meet the love of your life because you finally have time to go out more often.

Publishing your writing online, however, might open up completely different doors in your career: You might get invited to speak on stages, your work might get featured in major publications, and you might eventually be able to turn your words into a thriving digital business.

By writing online, I've built a multi 6-figure online business in less than two years. I got featured in major publications and have even been on national tv. I didn't start with those intentions, but they ended up being a huge bonus.

Writing helps you *think* more clearly.

Communicating effectively has become one of my priorities since writing consistently. Thanks to my writing, I'm now more clear when I talk.

In writing, clarity is crucial.

Most of my writing is for an audience, so my priority is not to confuse anyone.

Writing consistently will help you learn how to better express yourself and break complex ideas down so you can communicate with more ease and structure.

As a bonus, being a writer might also help you become better at persuasion.

When in doubt, writing might help you find answers.

Your negative thoughts sound less scary on paper than in your head.

When we feel stuck, we often end up in analysis paralysis: We're so afraid of making wrong choices that we become paralyzed and don't decide at all.

Writing helps reduce or eliminate confusion because it stimulates (creative) thinking.

You get to make better (and faster) decisions because you clear up your thoughts, organize your thinking, and rationalize unreasoned negative emotions.

You'll have memories for life.

I've been journaling since 2017. At least once per year, I take a few hours to leaf through old journals. I usually do that around my birthday or New Year's Eve.

This helps me stay grounded, be grateful for how things turned out, feel proud of how far I've come, and stay connected to my past self. I often end up being surprised by what I wished for years ago or tiny occurrences that bothered me.

I've been enjoying these reviews of my old journals so much that I started using a One Line A Day Journal in 2021. It's a tiny book that allows you to summarize every single day of your life for five consecutive years.

As essayist Anaïs Nin once said:

"We write to taste life twice, in the moment and in retrospect."

You might even make new friends.

By publishing my writing online, I connected with wonderful, like-minded people from all corners of the globe.

I've grown a community with almost 10k writers and have met wonderful people in person while traveling.

What's funny about connecting with writers is that you get to connect on a different level because you can literally take a peek at how they think by reading their work. By doing so, you know you'll get along well before you even meet them.

Even though I never thought about this aspect before, my writing has enabled me to expand my network and create a global community of thousands of like-minded people.

And if you're doing it for the money, that's fine too.

I went from not even knowing that writing could be a career option to making a living by typing words within just a few short years.

Ultimately, writing has enabled me to build the lifestyle I truly desired: I make more money at 25 years old than I would be able to make in any corporate job.

I work less than 25 hours per week.

I travel for several months per year.

I work from my comfy, beautiful home with a stunning view over the city, wake up each morning and decide how I want to spend the day.

I didn't know writing on the internet was a serious career option, but now that I do, I give my best to share this opportunity with as many people as possible.

How to start writing

If you feel ready to start writing consistently, set a small goal to keep yourself accountable. Even just 5–10 minutes per day are great. Just make sure you can write without distractions.

The One Line A Day Journal requires even less than that.

Create a daily recurring event in your calendar, so you're always reminded of your good intention to write.

Next, pick your preferred medium or "tool": If you want to write for yourself, prepare a lovely journal you enjoy looking at.

If you want to write for an audience, pick the platform you'll use. I write on Medium.

It's a great option for beginners because you can start for free and publish your first post within just a few minutes. Plus, the layout is clean, and you could eventually even join the Partner Program and monetize your work.

However, you can also write on platforms like Substack or Linkedin.

Being able to share our thoughts, ideas, and knowledge with the world is a privilege. Let's make use of it!

💻R Gab your *free* Beginner's Guide on how to start writing on Medium.

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