Publishing a book is a big deal.
But if you’re an entrepreneur, coach, speaker, consultant, or expert, the book itself probably isn’t the real goal.
The better question is: What do you want your book to do for you?
Do you want it to bring in clients? Get you on stages? Open doors to podcasts and media opportunities? Build your credibility? Become the foundation for a course, coaching program, or the next phase of your business?
Because simply publishing a book doesn’t automatically make any of those things happen.
Your book needs to be part of a bigger strategy.
Start With the Door You Want to Open
Before you decide what to write, think about where you want the book to take you.
If you want speaking opportunities, your book needs to contain a strong, memorable idea that event organizers can immediately envision on a stage.
If you want to attract clients, your book should connect naturally to the work you already do, or the work you want to be doing.
And if you want to become known as a thought leader, your book needs to say something.
It needs your perspective, your experience, and your point of view. Not simply information people could find in a hundred other books, articles, or online courses.
Your expertise is what makes the book valuable.
You Probably Have Too Much to Write About
If you’ve been doing your work for years, you probably don’t have a shortage of material.
You have the opposite problem.
You could probably write three books.
Maybe five.
You’ve collected stories, lessons, frameworks, experiences, mistakes, successes, and insights throughout your career. You have more ideas than you know what to do with.
So the challenge isn’t necessarily finding something to write about.
It’s deciding which book you should write now.
And that decision shouldn’t be based solely on what you have the most material for.
It should be based on where you want to go next.
Your Book Can Open the Door
A well-positioned book can become much more than something with your name on the cover.
It can become a platform for your ideas.
It can introduce you to new audiences, establish your expertise, create speaking opportunities, support your marketing, attract the right clients, and give you a foundation for the next stage of your business.
But that only happens when the book has a purpose beyond simply being published.
Your book can be the thing that opens the door.
But first, you have to know which door you want it to open.
If you’re working on a book, or you already have one and aren’t quite sure how to turn it into something bigger, that’s exactly the kind of strategy work I do with authors.
Because writing the book is only one part of the journey.
The bigger question is what happens after you write it.
