Shining the Light on Content Creation

August 31, 2020

FREELANCING | WRITING

A professional writer examines her personal drivers for career success

In doing an exercise to uncover the driving forces behind my writing business, I realized that enlightenment is one of them. It’s central to my own life, where I constantly seek to learn new things and apply them. I’m a knowledge collector, interested in knowledge for its own sake as well as in information I can use in a practical way and share with others.

I’ll give you an example. One of my friends calls me Tech Sharon, but it’s not always because I know more about a particular tech issue. It’s more that I’m good at knowing where to find the information I need.

Almost everything I know now started with an effort to understand the object or medium (such as my computer or a web app), and then to figure out how it could be useful. By the end of that process, I usually learned something I could share with others when needed.

Teaching: The DNA in My Writing Career

Whether I do a personality test, an astrology chart or a career suitability exercise, teaching and writing are always at the top of my recommendations. They’re part of my DNA, which isn’t just good for me, but for the people I work with and write for.

I’m not hung up on the “expert” label. Sure I know stuff, but I love a collaborative approach, where I seek to understand what clients need, meld that with my own knowledge base and deliver something at the end that helps them. That’s why I don’t give my clients a blueprint for success. Instead, I empower them to make their own, within the limits of the business relationship.

7 Principles That Underpin My Work as a Writer

Here’s what I believe drives my work with writing clients.

  1. Illumination: I aim to create content that helps clients learn and grow so their customers see them as an authority and keep returning to check out their products or services.

  2. Participation/Collaboration: Content creation is a joint effort; you can’t outsource idea generation. Together we will create something more powerful that delivers an “aha moment” to their customers.

  3. Differentiation: Each business is unique and so is every piece of content. There are no blueprints, formulas or cookie-cutter solutions so we need to work together to find the right approach.

  4. Clarity: Every piece of content I create for customers delivers substance without verbiage. There’s no such thing as the perfect content length. It’s about what’s fit for purpose, whether it takes 50 words or 5,000.

  5. Dedication: There are no quick fixes or shortcuts. It’s important to find the right words for the right situation, even if that takes a bit longer.

  6. Spirituality: Yes, you read that right. As a Reiki practitioner I am committed to honesty, integrity and diligence, among other things. This makes me a good fit for my customers.

  7. Empowerment: I am happiest when I help people succeed and leave them with more knowledge than they started with.

My old school motto was “let there be light”. I like to think I live that in working with my writing clients.

If you’re a writer or freelancer, what are the principles that underpin your writing career?

© Sharon Hurley Hall

Sharon Hurley Hall is an anti-racism writer, a professional B2B writer and blogger, and co-host of The Introvert Sisters podcast.