When I begin writing the manuscript for what is now Courage Is A Muscle: Using Heart to Power Your Entrepreneurial Dreams, I didn’t have any specific intentions of what I wanted to do with the material once it was completed. I imagined the book would be largely about entrepreneurship but it ended up being more than that. Check out the introduction here.
Getting Started
I consider myself a writer and I write frequently, most of the time using pen and pad. I’ve always sketched, written short stories and poems along with all the creative journaling you can imagine. Since I was a child, I just enjoy the process. But, this particular project ended up being more than just another writing exercise, doodle, or creative blog. This time, the project and the process was completely different. And, the COURAGE journey is still unfolding. Needless to say, it’s been extremely insightful and far from anything I could have ever scripted in my imagination!
It started with an impulse. I just felt the nudge to write several months if not weeks leading up to me finally opening up my laptop and writing the first sentence. It’s funny because I kept getting the nudge to write and would often mention to family members and friends that I wanted to write but never truly got started. I knew I wanted to write something. For whatever reason, I stalled to get started until I begin to remember the inner conversations I had with myself, about my grandma. Within this manuscript, lies several lessons on courage, faith, and the importance of trusting yourself, and also building yourself.
In the Writing
When I started writing I looked forward to rereading all the material I wrote and thinking about why specific information came to mind. As I continued writing, I noticed how the different memories were given new life as I thought of them. I also found myself laughing aloud when I wrote a specific sentence or thought about the episodic adventures of my entrepreneurial journey.
It’s funny how it’s always later on that we realize the significance of those memorable moments in our lives, whether it be something like a birth of a child, a wedding, or a funeral – how oftentimes these moments serve as reference points for starting over (aka getting our shit together), starting something new, or at least coming to terms where you are in your life – whether you like where you are or not. Writing helped me to rethink and to revisit the different steps of my entrepreneurial journey.
As I looked back on where I started to where I am now I realize that each step was important because it gave me the time and space I needed to grow. In the same way, we grow as we reach the many milestones of life. Now, with this information, I can see my way forward. Recalibrate. Do things differently or don’t do certain things at all. This particular piece of writing is what Courage Is A Muscle ended up being for me.
What I’ve Learned
Even though I didn’t start with a clear intention – other than to share entrepreneurial nuggets with my audience – Courage Is A Muscle also ended up being a bit of a memoir. In hindsight, I realize how much I had to step outside my own comfort zone to share my experience with others. A bit more exposed and vulnerable; I ended up being okay with that. In the process, I also realized that the vulnerability of sharing much of ourselves with others isn’t as scary as our inner critics make it out to be.
Yes, people judge and criticize but I’ve learned that it’s really none of my business how another person runs their race. I may not like it or agree with it and I don’t have to – I do my best to stay in my lane. I found the more I laid it all out in my writing, the freer I became. It’s like I was able to tap into that encouragement my grandma offered years before — we can do anything we put our minds to.
To Sum It Up
At the end of the day, it takes courage. This book has allowed me to take a huge step in the right direction — outside of my own head. There’s much more I could add to this but I’ll let it here for now. I hope that you’ll enjoy Courage Is A Muscle as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Courage Is A Muscle: Using Heart To Power Your Entrepreneurial Dreams is now available in Kindle & Paperback on Amazon.
Keetria is an entrepreneur, wellness advocate, and brand strategy coach for creatives & entrepreneurs with 16 years of public relations expertise working with some of the world’s leading brands, startups, media personalities, and entertainers. If you would like to work together, don’t hesitate to reach out!
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