I’ve noticed a trend in every one of my ghostwriting prospect calls recently. Entirely naturally, comfortably, and smoothly, executives will tell me:
- their story — from starting point, to founding/joining their business, to today
- what they’ve done so far and what they’re planning for the future
- explain their role in driving the business forward
And I think: this a goldmine!
I can’t write notes fast enough when we’re talking — the stories to be told, the insights to share are boundless. A 15 minute introduction sets out every content pillar and concept we could share for a year…
And they don’t see it. At all.
Their issue is not a lack of ideas to share, but being too close to the source to see them.
This specific mindset isn’t for everyone
This is a huge part of what I do at CEO Ghostwriter — taking the ideas that exist and are clear from my outsider perspective and bring them to life.
My job has never been to come up with things to say for my clients, but to bring the things they’re sitting on to life.
And don’t for a minute think that this is some failure on their part. Their work is intense and hugely demanding of their energy and focus. A lot of these big ideas and realisations pass them by because they have no other choice but to let them. They move too fast, to too many places, to sit and reflect on their experiences.
Therein lies the value of a ghostwriter: my sole purpose is to listen, reflect, and write out the results. It’s the difference between having a CEO’s mindset and a writer’s mindset.
Effective ghostwriting doesn’t take long
I stress to every client that my job is to make their life easier, not to add another task to do their to-do list — but that doesn’t mean I’m left to my own devices. Ghostwriting is a collaborative effort. Sure, I could come up with a bunch of ideas to share and just churn them out. You’d get average results and feel distant from them.
The wonderful thing about the collaborative element of ghostwriting is that it’s quick. A 15 minute call with a few targeted questions can bring out a treasure trove of content ideas — the things that you’re sitting on and have to share, but would never see as worth sharing.
It’s a lot of fun, this job.
Is there value to be found between ghostwriting and pure DIY?
I’ve written about the value (and drawbacks) of DIY-ing your own personal PR before, but I’m now wondering if there’s a valuable space between an entirely DIY approach and a full-time ghostwriter.
No promises, but I’m thinking about fleshing out a content coaching service. A regular call, with prompts and questions to dig out interesting ideas, that can then be put together in a DIY content plan for the month ahead.
Let me know if you think that could be of use.