New Business Development – Page 55

AI And The Romance Novel Industry

I suspect
soon,
if it isn’t happening right now,
many of the Romance novels
writers outsource
to ghostwriters
will be written by AI.

At first,
human writers will do
quality checks.
But soon,
the need for those human writers
will be eliminated.

The market will, then,
become flooded
with those types of romance novels
(products).

I have been preparing
for that future.

I write in a small niche
that won’t immediately attract
the AI handlers.

I write long series of stories
in an intricate world
with interacting characters.
That is a bit more difficult
for AI to duplicate.

And I’m assuming
my business will go away soon.
I’ll ‘retire’
and do something different
with my time.

Changes are coming.
It is best to prepare
for those changes,
even if that means
you’re preparing
for a time
when your business is no longer viable.

Is This Working For You?

An online buddy told me yesterday
she had COVID three times
in the past three months,
testing all clear
between those bouts.

She insists
she doesn’t have to
wear a mask.

Maybe not
but she has to do
SOMETHING different
because what she’s doing
right now
isn’t working for her.

I suspect you have processes
or strategies
that aren’t working for you
also.

Evaluate them.
And try something different.

Development Schedules Post COVID

I’ve had one bout of COVID
and it changed my brain.

I saw that immediately
in my writing.
I’d read the previous story
and the story I’m currently writing
and it appeared like
they were written by
two different writers.

They were both great stories.
They merely had different voices,
different styles of writing.

It took me
33% percent longer
(in my case,
an additional month)
to ensure the new story
matched
the older stories.

Because readers
(customers)
would be unhappy
if it didn’t match.

If the people involved
in your product’s development
had COVID,
they don’t have the same brains
they had prior to COVID,
and if they don’t have the same brains,
your final product
is unlikely to be as expected.

Add some room
in the product development schedule
for a quality
or continuity check.

The Cost Of Speaking Up

I spoke up
recently
about a disturbing trend
in the climate change community.

It had to be said.
And I suspect changes
WILL be made
due to my comments.

But I was immediately
cast out of the community.

I know how people are.
I knew when I spoke up,
I would be kicked out
of the group.

No one likes
to hear an uncomfortable truth.
We tell people
“Don’t kill the messenger”
but the messenger is ALWAYS punished
…eventually.

I felt standing up
for what was right
was worth it.

Know that if you point out
a wrong,
you likely WILL be
punished for bringing it
to other people’s attention.

Do it anyway
but prepare for the consequences.

Monitor Essential Inputs

I need five essential things
to live
– oxygen, water, food, shelter
and
an energy source.

Without sufficient oxygen,
we all die.
I don’t really have to monitor this.
I’ll be told
if the planet is running out
of oxygen.

The other four inputs
I monitor.
I watch precipitation levels.
I read about crop yields.
I look for maintenance issues
with the home I own.
I watch for any sign
the electricity grid
is strained
or gas for vehicles
is in short supply.

I then take action
if I think any of these essentials for life
are challenged.
I obtain more in advance
and/or
I look for alternate sources
and/or
take other actions.

I do the same
with the businesses
I’m building.
I list the essential inputs.
I monitor them.
I take action
if any of them
appear to be challenged.

Monitor all essential inputs.
Ensure you always
have a solid supply
of those inputs.

Planning For Busy Times

When I am working
on the final pre-submission draft
of a story,
I can’t think about
much of anything else.

I’m holding the entire story
in my brain,
trying to figure out
all the gaps and issues.

I know this is part of my process
so I prepare for it.

I schedule blog posts,
for example.
I freeze meals
I’ll only need to heat up.
I pre-pay bills.
I see friends and family
right before
starting that final draft.
And I warn people
I’m going into the writing cave
and not resurfacing for a week.

This makes that busy time
MUCH easier.

Prepare for busy times
in your schedule.

And warn people in advance
you’re approaching a busy time.

More Than Money

I make a solid living
from writing, publishing and selling
romance novels.
The money allows me
to write full time.

But I also write romance novels
because romance novels
changed my life.

They sell love, hope
and optimism
and, at certain times in my life,
I really needed all three
of these things.

As that additional non-financial reason
was very much needed
when I was starting up
the romance writing business.

Because the money
doesn’t flow
day 1 of being a romance writer.

As with most start ups,
it took a few years
for the romance writing business
to be profitable.

I suspect I would have quit
during those lean years
if I was only writing romance novels
for the money.

Business builders
need a non-financial reason
for starting businesses.

Because there WILL
be times
when the cash isn’t flowing
or the cash is being
reinvested.

What is your non-money reason
for starting YOUR business?

Before You Defend Someone

Someone posts a warning
about how a popular person
is truly a terrible person.

Other people jump all over
the poster,
telling her she’s full of sh*t
and is merely a hater.

Then, usually within days,
that popular person
says or does something
that confirms
the warning,
that shows everyone
they ARE a terrible person.

This happens so often
it is almost a cliché.
I WAIT for the reveal.

And then
I wait for
these same defenders
to defend
the next terrible person.

Before you defend someone,
ensure you know,
you TRULY know
they’re innocent.

Because if they’re not innocent,
at best,
you’ll look like
a dumba$$
who can’t be trusted.

At worst,
people will assume
you’re also guilty
of whatever the person
you defended
has said or done.

An Entrepreneur’s Schedule

Whenever I tell people
I’m a writer
(a business builder),
they usually say something like
“It must be nice
to set your own schedule.”

I admittedly DO
have a little bit of flexibility
as to when
I’ll complete tasks that are
invisible to the reader
(customer).
But any task that the reader sees
is usually set.

Because I want to be
part of their schedules
and my readers’ schedules are set.

I also want to become
a habit
and habits usually happen
on a regular schedule also.

We get our coffee
at 7 am every day.

We start a new book
at the beginning of the week.

We wear casual clothes
to work
on Fridays.

If we want to be successful,
we have to align
our schedules
to our customers’ schedules.

For me,
that means releasing a book
every three months
on the third Tuesday
of that month.

It means sending a newsletter
around the same time
EVERY month.

It means starting the promotion
for that new release
the same number of days
before that set release day.

Most of my schedule
and most of every successful
business builder’s schedule
is set by the customer.

We don’t truly
do things whenever
we want.

That’s a myth.

Confirm And Then Re-Confirm ‘Facts’

I post my truths
about business and the world
here.

But they could be
exactly that
– MY truths.

They might not apply
to your business
or your situation.

What I do,
when faced with
someone’s truth,
is ask myself
if my experience is similar.

In my corner of the world,
for example,
COVID is out of control.
It is everywhere.

That might not be the case
in your part of the universe.
Look around you.
Are the pharmacy shelves
holding cold medicines
empty?
When you’re in a crowd,
are people coughing?
Are hospitals full?

‘Truths’ also aren’t constant.
Reality shifts.
We gain more knowledge.
People change.

So I re-confirm my truths
every so often.

Are the hospitals still full?
Are quite a few people
around me
still sick?

I do this with
ALL of the truths
I’m basing my decisions on.

Confirm it is a truth.
Re-confirm it remains
a truth.

Make better decisions.