I’m standing in a monastery in Thyangboche, high up in the mountains in Nepal. I’ve been trekking all day, up and down steep dirt paths, over shaky suspension bridges, across turquoise rivers. The sun is setting, and a light snowfall litters the ground. Previously loud and chatty, our group has fallen silent as we stand in the monastery, watching our sherpas pray to Buddha. I cry freely, struck by the stark beauty of this place, the mountains and the monastery and the wonderful, wonderful people.
When it’s over, we walk back out to the path, to the trek ahead and the promise of a hot meal at the end of the day. Soon the monastery is far behind us—but the memory remains, a unique vignette of serenity and beauty.
When I think of peace, I think of that monastery. I can close my eyes and be back there, standing barefoot, covered in dirt from the trail, exhausted and emotional. The tears come when I remember the simple, authentic beauty of the prayers, and the welcoming smiles of the monks. Everything about the monastery is burned into my brain…
Hitting The Trail
Great stories are a must if you want to write anything with emotional impact. We’ve discussed this before and we’ll discuss it again—because I want to impress upon you how important they are. Humans are hard-wired to respond to stories, and if you’re leaving them out you run the risk of leaving your reader cold.
But where do these stories come from? You can invent them, if you want, but a made-up story will never have the same impact as something that really happened to you. To give yourself a great catalogue of memories to draw from, you need to get out of your house and hit The Trail.
The Trail can be anything you want it to be—you don’t have to travel to Nepal and trek to Everest if you don’t want to! The Trail means completely different things to different people. Maybe your Trail is snorkelling around the Galapagos Islands. Maybe it’s standing underneath the Pyramids of Giza at sunset. Maybe it’s skydiving, or paintball, or running an adventure race. Maybe it’s just trying a new food, or getting out and exploring the city you live in, visiting spots you’ve never been.
What’s Your Point of Difference?
To be a great writer, you need to have something to write about. If you never experience anything out of the ordinary, you’ll find your well of inspiration will dry up pretty quickly—and if it doesn’t, your readers’ attention will. People are drawn to hearing about things that are outside of their own experience. Think about it—would you rather watch a movie about a person who gets up in the morning, watches some TV, buys dinner, watches some more TV and goes to bed… OR… would you rather watch a movie about an astronaut struggling to contain a fire on the International Space Station?
Even if your writing is about everyday matters (parenting, cooking, gardening, and so on) this doesn’t mean you can get lazy. YOU might be interested in reading about your life, but unless you have something different and unique to say, most other people WON’T BE. Harsh, but true.
The easiest way to fix that particular problem is to do interesting things. Have a parenting blog? Take the kids out on a series of adventures, and write about each one. Food website? Go on a gastronomical tour of France. (Or, if that’s out of reach, a tour of the French restaurants in your city!)
The Internet is a full, chatty place. There are millions of websites, and millions of people trying to be heard. It’s competitive and it’s often cut-throat. If you want to stand out, you need to commit to doing things that MAKE you stand out.
Your Mission
You guessed it—your mission is to choose your own adventure! This weekend choose something you’ve never done before that ties in with what you write about.
HINT: adventurous physical activities tie in perfectly with many topics, especially business, because they’re all about mindset. Working up the courage to jump out of a plane or tackle a high-ropes course can teach you so much about yourself that will filter over into other parts of your life, including your business. I know making it to Everest Base Camp changed my life and taught me about my own strength and my ability to push through mountains (bad pun) of pain and self doubt.
If you really can’t handle anything physical, there’s plenty of ways to get out of your comfort zone. How about open mic night at your local comedy club? Or getting dressed up in costume and heading to a sci-fi convention to cosplay? Or joining your local drama club and nabbing a part in a play?
If you’ve never done anything remotely adventurous before, just start small. Choose something fun, and something you’re at least mildly scared of. As soon as you get home, sit down and write about your experience.
What did you see, hear and smell? What emotions did you feel? What did it feel like when you completed what you set out to do?
I recommend making a folder on your computer and filing all the pieces you write about the many new experiences you’re bound to have (adventure is totally addictive!) so you can access them whenever you want.
Good luck, and happy adventuring!
