Some of you may know this, but all the blog writing I’ve done over the years, as well as the marketing I’ve done for my own small business, has led to a “second” career as a writer, of sorts.
Largely sales copy writing, email marketing…that type of thing.
I really enjoy writing.
It keeps my mind focused and learning all the time—something I place a lot of value on.
And the cool part of writing is that I can do it for years to come and generate income doing something I truly enjoy.
A pleasant prospect…
(Bear with me here. I’ll get back to your health stuff in a minute!)
Anyway, I was reading a writing-based article the other day and couldn’t help see how it related directly to my “primary” job as a health and wellness professional.
It went like this…
The article revolved around “story-based” marketing (which happens to be all the rage these days).
In short, this means telling your ideal clients your “back story” so they can get to know you better.
Because once someone knows you and what you stand for, they’re much more likely to want to buy your product or service.
Just human nature…
Not every business understands that and hence they have what’s called a “narrative void” in their story…Their story is incomplete and as a result, not very compelling to read.
A latched onto that term. Narrative Void.
And then I made a connection…
I had a wellness coaching client recently tell me they really didn’t have a powerful reason “WHY” they wanted to lose weight and get back in shape.
I knew right away, this was going to be a problem…
Without a deeply emotional “why” behind what you do, enthusiasm and self-discipline fade and old (bad) habits come back.
My client had a “narrative void”.
They weren’t the star in their own story.
In fact, this person couldn’t really put together a good story about themselves at all.
I’ll admit this right now…that scares me.
Here’s what I mean by that…
[Backstory]My father died at age 53 way back in 1990. It does seem odd to me that I’m already 5 years past that…
It looks like I’ll be in my 60’s before either of my children get married. So, I’m guessing at least another year or so after that before I see my first grandchild.
I am highly motivated to be “that grandfather”.
The one there to babysit when needed.
Impart wisdom when needed.
I want to be there to provide that sense of family.
And there’s more to it…
Sadly, both my children’s grandfathers passed before they were born and I can’t really say I had a “grandfatherly” experience myself. Both of my grandfathers were alive when I was very young, but there was little to no quality interaction.
That’s two generations without that role being properly filled.
Until now.
I intend to make CERTAIN, my grandchildren have the experience of a caring grandfather in their lives. And in order to do that, I need to be healthy and active.
Is that a powerful enough “narrative” for me?
Absolutely.
Having this narrative in place creates an awareness about my daily decisions.
The gym.
My food choices.
Portion sizes.
Mindset training.
The whole show…
In summary, I guess I want to ask:
“What’s your narrative? Are you writing your own meaningful story and if so, how does this impact your daily decisions?”
After all, we’re making decisions today that will determine our quality of life 20 years from now.
Keep an eye out for my next email. In it, I’m going to dive into some of the “tweaks” I’m making each year to remain in control of my narrative.
Stay Strong. Make things happen.
Art