When Maggie started her blog, she had exactly zero readers.
OK, maybe one. Her devoted husband.
“You can do it, babe!” he said.
“I know I can!” she said.
Modern Married – Maggie’s website about falling in love, staying in love, and creating a marriage that feels like a
true partnership – was born.
She started blogging and posting inspirational love-notes on Facebook – notes which, initially, were read by no one.
Awhile back, I asked Maggie:
“How did you find the motivation to keep writing even though nobody was paying attention?"
She told me:
“I
would pretend that I was a lighthouse beaming light and love out into the world. I would pretend that thousands of people were listening. I wrote as if thousands of people were listening. I never missed a single post because I’d be letting thousands of people down! I imagined that I was changing thousands of people’s lives by sharing my ideas every day.”
“Finally,” she continued, with a huge giddy grin, “A few people started seeing what I was doing. They started sharing it with their friends. Then a few more. And now, a few years later, I AM THAT LIGHTHOUSE!”
And so it is.
Modern Married has attracted a community of 18,000+ devoted readers and Maggie was named one of "the relationship experts to watch" by The Gottman Institute – an award-winning company that collects scientific data about marriage and divorce. She also runs a thriving practice as a life and relationship coach, where she gets paid to help couples stay in love and build even stronger, happier marriages. She is officially living her
dream.
It all happened because Maggie wrote as if the world was already listening.
Moral of the story:
If you want to be “successful,” “respected,” “sought-after,” "prolific," "masterful," insert-desirable-quality-here… Operate like the world is already listening. Perform like a musician rocking out to a packed stadium, even if (in reality) you’re playing to an audience of five
people, two people, or one person. (After all, one person is still... one human being.)
Don’t hold back. Don’t be stingy. Give it your
all.
Be the lighthouse.
Sooner or later, the people who need what you’re writing, saying, baking, making, or delivering will arrive – gathering to bask in your
light.
-Alex
PS. Lots of people have asked me, "Alex, how did you become a professional
writer?" It's a good question! Today, I posted a chronology of my entire life as a writer. Early projects. Bad decisions. Beautiful milestones. Unexpected invitations. All the key moments. You can see the whole thing here.
If you’re an aspiring writer – or someone who’s curious about how different types of creative careers come to “be” – I hope this dive into my personal history is interesting. (Also: you'll see lots of photos from my life, including me performing in a weird school play as a kid, my short-haired college look, me and Brandon together, and more. I really
loved putting this timeline together and I hope you enjoy it too!)
PPS. I was so saddened to hear about Prince's
death. Because of performances like this, he will never be forgotten. RIP.