It's how every professional
stays on top,
and how YOU can get there!
Hire a coach...
FROM: Lee
Pound, The Write Coach
TO: Future
successful business owners
Yes, that's right, even writers need a coach!
If you're like most professionals, you've considered writing a book
to help take your business to the next level and to position
yourself as an expert in your market.
And even though you knew
it would make a huge difference in your business, somehow, that
book just never got written. Other priorities came up, other
problems arose, and somehow that day you were planning to start
writing your book never seemed to arrive.
In fact, I know how it can
happen. You see, for over 20 years, while I was a successful
newspaper editor and reporter, I had in the back of my mind that I
wanted to write a book. Just like you, that book never happened. It
was a few notes on a sheet of paper, a couple of ideas that popped
up every so often. Even though I was a professional writer, it never
happened.
So I understand the
frustrations you've felt. I've felt them too. I understand how that
book that could make such a difference in your business just never
gets top priority. It seems like so much work, so many hours, so
many months that the prospect of that much work stops us even before
we start.
Then one day almost 20 years
ago, I sat down at my new computer and started writing. I wrote
three hours a night, after a full day at work. I typed and typed and
in about two months completed the first draft of a 600-page novel.
So what
made the difference?
I always had a desire to
write fiction. I read a lot of it but never actually wrote any. The
key for me was that instead of trying to be perfect and waiting for
the right words (which, by the way, never came) I just sat down and
let the words flow, uncensored, onto the page. I gave myself
permission to be a terrible writer.
Then, when the first draft
was finished, I submitted to a very rudimentary coaching session. I
showed the draft to a fellow reporter at the newspaper and asked her
to read it and comment. Which she did.
I'll never forget her words.
She asked, "Do you really
want to write fiction?"
"Yes," I said.
She handed the manuscript
back. "Then I suggest that you take a few classes in writing
fiction."
I took her coaching to heart
and did just that. I went to conferences, found teachers, and
eventually joined a writer's group, which is a close equivalent to
today's group coaching. It had accountability, comment, questions,
all the items we expect of a coach these days. And it made an
incredible difference.
But did I hire a
real coach?
Yes, I did. And not just any coach. About
a year after I write that book, UC Irvine, invited Sol Stein, former
owner of Stein & Day publishers and one of the most influential
publishers of the 20th century to come to California and present a
10-week course on how to write dialogue. I signed up and finally saw
what learning from a true expert was like.
When it ended, none of us wanted it to
stop. Sol graciously agreed to come back to California the next
winter and form a small group. I applied to get in and was accepted.
Over the next four years I learned about writing and publishing from
the master. He edited parts of my next two novels, featured me and
others in his video, Stein on Writing, and became a friend as
well as a mentor and coach.
He changed my life. His coaching made
everything that followed possible. I formed my own publishing
company, published my novels and books, published books for others,
formed a seminar company with a wonderful business partner, and
became an acknowledged expert in writing and publishing.
Then when I started my own business, I
hired a marketing coach, Lisa Cherney. She helped me design the
business and the marketing strategies. Her coaching is a major
reason for my ongoing success and even today she is still my coach.
What about
your problem getting started on your book?
You see, I wrote a draft of that book but
without coaching I would never have gone further. This is the power
of coaching and the reason that every great athlete has a coach,
that most business owners and executives have coaches, that Fortune
500 companies get their top leaders coaches. They excel because they
have a coach who encourages them, draws their best ideas out of
them, keeps them accountable, and acts as trusted advisor.
A coach will help you get started, be
there when you falter, encourage you to continue, ask questions to
keep you focused, and keep you writing.
A good writing coach will also show you
how to organize your book, how to keep the reader reading, how to
get it edited, design it and get it published.
Read a few
comments below about my editing and coaching from those who have
experienced it.
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"...took my book to a whole new level of
professionalism."
I want to acknowledge and thank
you for the enormous contribution you made to my new book,
Unshackled Leadership. While the previous edition had also been
professionally edited and I sent the new manuscript to you for
what I thought would be some "fine tuning," what you did was so
much more. As a result of your editing, the book know reads in a
way I can be truly proud of. I have also implemented all of the
suggestions you made which took the book up to a whole new level
of professionalism. You clearly know your stuff and I happily
recommend your services to anyone wanting first class editing.
Scott Hunter, Speaker, Coach, Consultant |
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"...was the guiding force..."
Lee
helped me publish my first book, Precision Selling: 21 Winning
Strategies to Achieve Peak Performance. Not only did he give me
some terrific advice, he did my editing, proofreading,
publishing, and was the guiding force behind the entire process.
I've hired him to edit and publish my second book. If you want
to publish a book, this is the guy to hire!
Patrick McClure, Connexia Group |
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"...a
considerably better book..."
Lee did a wonderful job strengthening my voice throughout the
manuscript. 'You are the Show' is a considerably better book due
to Lee's touch.
David Eldon Gustafson
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"... helped
bring my presentation to life..."
"I recently asked Lee
Pound to help me with a speech I was giving for our company
convention. An associate of mine had recommended him because
of his expertise in storytelling. I not only received help
presenting my stories, but Mr. Pound recommended ways of
improving my entire speech from start to finish. He helped
bring my presentation to life with the addition of voice
inflection, gestures and the knack for knowing just when to
pause and just when to punch. He found words that could be
eliminated, honing my message sharply. And he presented ideas
for adding more descriptive phrases that brought my word
images to life. Lee gave me the
confidence to deliver my speech before an enthusiastic
audience, with great success. Because of him, I was able to
truly connect with my listeners."
Julie Wells,
President,
Spectrum Financial Group
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Wow! How
can I get coaching like this?
I considered whether I
wanted to offer this
option for a long time before deciding that you as a writer and
business owner will benefit enormously from one on one coaching. In
fact, a lot of experts who have coached individuals in the past have
stopped doing it, making it even more difficult to get coaching from
a true professional.
I decided to continue to
offer individual coaching because I've seen the results in my own
career and want you to have those same results in yours.
The goal of this
individual coaching program is to help you write and publish your
book and to teach you basic persuasive writing tools that will get
your message across to your readers. This program is oriented to a
specific outcome for you: the publication of your book.
Here's how it works...
This is a truly personal
relationship. You and I will work closely together to make sure your
book becomes reality. When we are on the phone together, my
attention will be on your project and nothing else. You can ask
questions, get guidance, send work for review, and get immediate
feedback. You get accountability, set your own goals and work toward
them at your own pace but always with a schedule in mind. It goes
like this:
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Every week we meet by
phone for half an hour during which we work on your project.
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The first calls will take
you through the scheduling and outlining process where you will get
clarity on exactly what you need to do and how long it will take to make your book a reality.
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You will send each
completed chapter to me and we will discuss it on the phone.
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I will coach you through
problems you may have such as writers block.
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You will learn how to grab
the attention of your reader immediately and keep your reader
reading through the entire book.
Since this coaching
program is designed to help you complete your book, I expect you to
do the following:
-
Make a commitment to do
the work you promise to do.
-
Set specific goals to
finish your book and follow them.
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Be open to suggested
changes in your work and writing.
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Be open about any issues
which might keep you from finishing your book.
That's it. We work
together to make your dream happen. Take a moment now to imagine
your new future now that your book is finished.
Imagine Your Future... |
- Your professional
organization asks you to present to them.
- Radio and television shows
invite you to be a guest expert.
- People buy your book at the
back of the room.
- Potential clients clamor to
work with you.
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I shudder to think of
where I would be today if I had not signed up for that dialogue
class so many years ago and if I had not applied to be in Sol
Stein's coaching group.
If you've read this far,
you are facing this same choice.
Do you keep doing what you
are doing now, keep hoping you might start that book next month or
next year, knowing that you are likely to never do so?
Or do you act now to get
the powerful coaching you need to get that book written and become
the acknowledged expert in your market?
It's easy to say no, to
say you could write except for a few problems. It's too easy to just
put off the decision.
Make your decision now.
Decide to take your business and career to the next level. Decide to
be extraordinary, not just one hidden in a faceless crowd.
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