7 Simple Reasons Why Writers Fail and How You Can Avoid Them
Lessons I learned from my 9–5 that stop me from failing in writing on the Internet
Ever sat down to write and felt like your brain was a scrambled mess?
Been there. Done that…
Writing online can feel like walking through a minefield — one wrong step, and ka-boom, you’re back at square one.
Over the past one and a half years, I’ve seen many writers stumble over the same hurdles (me including), some of them stopped writing, some became inconsistent. Most of the times I had to remind myself what I already know from my 9–5 to keep going.
Here we go!
Ditch the distractions
When I first started writing, distractions were my enemy. They still are…
I’d tell myself, “Just one episode of this show, then I’ll write.” Next thing I knew, I’d binge-watched an entire season. The truth is, distractions are everywhere — laundry, phone calls, social media, Netflix. They sneak up on you and steal your precious writing time. Kill them!
Wake-up: You create most of these distractions. It’s easier to avoid the hard work of writing by convincing yourself that cleaning your desk is suddenly the number one priority (when it’s not).
What do I do: Create a dedicated writing space free from distractions. Turn off notifications, set specific writing times, and stick to them. I don’t use tools like Focus@Will or the Pomodoro Technique (whatever that means) to keep my mind on track. I simply sit down and write. You either do it or not, there is no try!
Edit once
Perfectionism was my biggest hurdle. Still is. In my 9–5 and in writing…I’d spend hours switching out adjectives, debating whether “amazing” or “awesome” was the right choice. Spoiler alert — it doesn’t f*cking matter.
Wake-up: Over-editing slows you down. It paralyzes your progress. You get so caught up in making every sentence perfect that you never actually finish your work.
What do I do: Accept that your first draft will be rough — face it. I don’t set a timer for 30 minutes, or any of that sort. Just simply write the thing down without stopping, and worry about editing later. Remember, you can always polish your work later, but you can’t edit a blank page.
Forget perfection, focus on progress
Ah, the classic “It’s not ready yet” excuse.
I have it in my blood. I used to stop me from succeeding in my career in my 9–5. OMG, that is so similar to writing!
Back then when I started writing, I used to think everything I published needed to be flawless. After all, I was speaking publicly. Wrong! I was speaking 1 on 1. Your reader is just one person. And he needs something to relate to. No polished bullshit. Reality check: nothing ever is. And nothing ever will be!
The truth: Striving for perfection slows you down, making you miss out on opportunities. Other writers, who aren’t aiming for perfect, end up outpacing you. I couldn’t write every day with that mindset! Take Tim Denning for example. Read a story of his, critically. What do you think? You could edit here and there, right?! That’s what I’m talking about.
What do I do: Shift your mindset from perfect to progress. “Perfect” is a fixed mindset. “Progress” is a growth mindset. Aim for quality as best as you can and hit publish. The feedback you receive will be invaluable, you will improve with subsequent drafts.
Create urgency
“I’ll start writing tomorrow” became my mantra at one point. But here’s the deal: tomorrow never comes! Procrastination is a sneaky little snake like the one from the Garden of Eden, that convinces you there’s always more time — there isn’t.
Reality check: The more you delay, the harder it becomes to start. And before you know it, weeks, months, even years have passed without you putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard). A full disclosure: I knew I wanted to start writing online 5 years ago! The idea of writing every day created a limiting belief I can’t do it with the amount of workload I had. Guess what: now I have more! And I do it! Think about it: if I had started back then, I’d catch the golden times and could have made a fortune already!
What do I do: Two things to deal with — the everyday thing and urgency. How to write every day: don’t! Start with writing once a week, then twice a week, then every other day. Then move to every day. Or not! It’s still consistent. The point is to show up. Build a writing habit. Write something — anything —consistently. It doesn’t have to be a masterpiece. The goal is consistency, not perfection. If you miss a day, don’t beat yourself up. Just get back to it the next day.
How to create urgency: One thing I learned from coaching is you start doing when there’s an emergency. So create some emergency! Find that reason why you want to start anyway. Then amplify it. Remind yourself what will happen in one year if you don’t. Every day.
Monetize your mistakes
I remember staring at my first published piece, convinced it was terrible. Why would anyone read this? That’s imposter syndrome whispering sweet nothings in my ear.
Reality check: Self-doubt stops many writers in their tracks. The fear of not being good enough prevents you from even starting. It’s the biggest bullshit of them all!
What do I do: You know what I realized? You don’t need to be an expert to start writing online. Even better if you’re not! Because people don’t trust experts who talk about how things should be done.
They trust other people who make mistakes and learn from them (like most humans do).
The only way to build confidence is to write. All you need is to share your learning journey. The more you write, the better you get. Accept that you won’t be great right out of the gate — no one is. But with each piece you publish, your confidence will grow.
Your mistakes are invaluable asset! Share them in public. It will make you a better person, as it did with me.
Steal ideas
Ever worried someone would steal your ideas? I used to keep mine like they were gold, afraid to share them. Not for free at least! Big mistake! You have to give away everything. For free! You’ll monetize later.
Ok, but then comes problem #2: I don’t have ideas, can I “borrow” (i.e. steal) some? Yes! Even better!
If you get a proven idea from someone else, infuse it with your personal experience and watch the magic happen. It’s allowed ! I do that, I know Tim Denning does that. Everyone does that! Why? Because your experience is unique. No one else can tell it the way you can.
That’s also why even if someone steals your idea, it’s still ok because they can’t steal your experience! That’s a rule in business too — if you can’t launch something first, launch in second, but do it better. Google and Facebook are a great example of being the better second.
The real problem: If you’re afraid of sharing your ideas, it’s likely because you don’t know how to generate more. Here comes the stealing part.
What do I do: Develop an idea generation system. I don’t use tools like mind maps or brainstorming. I just make sure I think about writing while experiencing life. Ideas come from living a life! Simple workflow: Look around. Talk to people (online or offline). Hear their problems. Think about how you can solve them. Write about it.
And if you ever get stuck — read. Read a lot! Then go steal some ideas and make them better.
Imposter syndrome is real if you say so
Imposter syndrome tells you you’re not good enough, not original enough, not smart enough. It’s a constant companion whispering that you’re a fraud. Especially if you steal ideas.
Reality check: It’s there because you allow it to be there. It’s a limiting belief. It’s fed by the desire to be liked by everyone. You’ll never be. But you don’t need to be! If you aim for that you’ll lose your authenticity. I learned that in my 9–5 too. I had to accept that I must stop trying to make everyone like me, even my boss!
And you know what? That’s the moment when my career started to grow.
What do I do: If competing in someone else’s category makes you feel like an imposter, create your own category where you make the rules. Add a pinch of your uniqueness. In my case — yes, I write about writing, but not many writers have the analytical mind and the technical skills I do. I only had to think how to infuse that — that’s how my passion for AI was born.
Focus on your unique voice and perspective. What do you bring to the table that no one else does? Lean into that.
A 9–5 can teach you a lot about how to succeed on your own, if you are able to take that lessons. That’s why I don’t write to quit my 9–5. And those were the top 7 of mine. What are yours?
Bottom line
Stay authentic. Find what works for you. Then stop thinking and start doing.
Oh and one more thing: f*ck haters. Haters gonna hate. Followers gonna unfollow. Subscribers gonna unsubscribe. Just keep going.