What does author mindset sound like?
I give up. This is pointless. I’m wasting my time. I don’t know what I’m doing. I don’t have time for this.
Or maybe
I’ve got this. I’m going to sell 10 books this week. I’m going to get 50 reviews by the end of the year. I’ll spend one hour a week learning how to market myself.
These are all examples of mindset.
What is mindset?
Your mindset is a set of beliefs that shape how you make sense of the world and yourself. It influences how you think, feel, and behave in any given situation. (source). According to Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck, your beliefs play a pivotal role in what you want and whether you achieve it. That means, a negative mindset will stop you from reaching your goals while a positive mindset helps you reach them.
The good news is, if you feel as though a negative mindset is holding you back, and it probably is, you can change it. Remember when you decided to write your book? You probably had that idea bouncing around your brain for years. Your idea turned into a manuscript. That manuscript developed into a book. Then that book, your baby was finally published. Don’t diminish what it took to get to where you are today. While many people talk about writing a book, few ever write one let alone publish it. Write that down, tape it to your forehead, stick it on a note you hang on the wall in front of your computer. You did it. You wrote a book! Don’t give up now.
Subtle shifts can mean big moves
I’m sure you’ve reached a point where you’ve given up your marketing efforts. It happens to the best of authors. If you’re there now, you can make some small changes that will help you to reverse this downward trend. Let’s take a look at a few ideas.
- Get help. It’s no secret I’m a coach and consultant. Everyone needs help from time to time. Even I have a coach or two. Watching YouTube videos and reading marketing books will only get you so far. Sometimes, you need some help. Remember, different goals require different coaching. My coach five years ago helped me make big changes in developing my own coaching program. My next coach helped me with next level issues to grow my business. And I’ll hire another coach in a year or two when I need to make another shift. Be sure the help you get is a good fit.
- Commit the time. If you have time to watch TV, you have time to learn something new. I know someone who won’t go to sleep without learning something new. Every day. I admire that. And I try to model it. I cut back where I might have been wasting time to commit to learn something new each day. I don’t want to be dramatic, but it’s been impactful for me.
- Hold your tongue. If you find yourself getting down about the lack of progress, stop. Turn it around and instead of focusing on what you haven’t accomplished yet, look at what you have accomplished. Write it down. Repeat it. Eat a cookie and celebrate it! Even if it feels like you’ve taken steps back, chances are great that you’re still ahead of where you were when you first started.
- Set goals. These will be unique to you, so don’t compare yourself to other authors. If you want to sell 50 books in a month, you’ve got some work ahead of you, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do it. You’ll need to create a plan to make that happen.
- Create a plan. I’m all about marketing plans. I know. I know. But they work and they keep you honest. Not only will a plan help you to organize tactics and strategies to reach your goals, but it’s also a great place to return to when you’re feeling down, to correct mindset that will enable you to reach your goals.
Still don’t think mindset matters?
Take a look at the business book categories on Amazon for book after book on mindset. Napoleon Hill wrote an entire book on shifting mindset in 1937 called “Think and Grow Rich” that still bounces up and down on best seller lists today and a must read for most entrepreneurs like you. I know creating a positive mindset might just seem like a topic that’s in style right now, but it’s actually been a concept that’s been around a very long time. Your attitude and your thinking or mindset really matters.
I hope you’re feeling good about where you are right now. If not, I hope this helped. If you have questions, feel free to leave them in the comment box below. If you’re feeling stuck, and want to talk more about getting unstuck, click here to set up a time to talk with me. I’ll provide as much value as I can in 30 minutes and let you know if I have a program that might be a good fit to help you along your author marketing journey.
Amen and amen. Mindset and the words you speak do matter. I have trained myself to speak BLESSINGS not CURSES over my life and those around me, As we know from the book of Wisdom (Proverbs), words have the power to create and sustain life or destroy and lead to death and destruction.