4 Secret Goldilocks Rules to Turn Your Boring Writing Into a $1000 Venture
If writing feels boring, maybe you’ve never explored the writing correctly.
No one can forget the silly bedtime story of the Goldilocks and the three bears. Little Goldilocks with golden curls went inside a cozy home, fed herself three bowls of porridge, and slept unaware of the bear’s presence. A lesson from Goldilocks is to remain vigilant and never enter an anonymous house.
But Goldilocks’ story has a deeper meaning.
According to the author and scientist James Clear, the Goldilocks rule can change your life:
“The Goldilocks Rule states that humans experience peak motivation when working on tasks right on the edge of their current abilities. Not too hard. Not too easy. Just right.”
Our motivation is driven by the tasks we do: easy and complex. However, if we do the easy task, we lose motivation. If we do the hard task, the satisfaction doesn’t kick in.
Find optimal balance.
James Clear indicates that the Goldilocks rule is the sole reason people lose motivation as writers. Because the competition is either too easy (less motivational) or too hard (less satisfying.)
However, finding a balanced zone can save us from skipping habits, taking breaks, and losing interest in our work.
Use the 4 Goldilocks rule below to turn your writing into a fun, $1000 venture.
Let’s get started.
1. Add new material
James gives a shoutout to Steve Martin, a comedian.
According to SteveMartin.com:
“At the age of 10, Martin sold guidebooks for $0.50 in 1955. In the decade that followed, he worked in Disney’s magic shop, print shop, and theater, and developed his own magic/comedy act.”
Martin had a unique habit of sticking with routines. Most people get bored with their lifestyle habits and routines— Martin cajoled an extra flavor of “creativity.”
Now and then, Martin would do something “new.”
From time to time, Martin expanded his act duration from 2 minutes to 20 minutes at a time. You can find a similar pattern in writers, painters, and athlete runners.
Once you’re comfortable with your routines, you expand and grow.
As writers, “adding new material” equals growth. Don’t be afraid if you get a call to write a blog in another niche or an invitation to join a tech company.
Allow yourself to grow. Add new material to your lifestyle by following these methods:
- Channel: as you become an expert writer on Medium, introduce your newsletter or a free summary of your e-book.
- Book a course: create a course and put down every secret you learn as a writer. Now, sell the course.
- Refinement: include something extra in your articles that shows your maturity, for example, editor bulletin, top picks, or appreciation of other writers.
Make every piece unique.
2. Take risks
If anything, writers are the luckiest people on the planet.
(I heard you ask why.)
We sit around the corner of our homes, laptops in our laps, and plan vengeance.
Meaning that, as writers, you can experiment with anything you want.
As writers, you can try out a new niche, start making friends on Medium, or drive extra views to your articles without shame or guilt.
If it makes you feel any better, writers are also:
- James Clear: (former) weightlifter and former athlete
- Timothy Ferris: (former) founder of BrainQUICKEN
- Chris Guillebeau: business and career speaker
Take risks not because you want to but because you can tick off a goal from your notebook.
This way, you’ll know what works.
As writers, you can take risks by founding a new startup, dropshipping, or doing anything that corresponds to writing. Such include:
- Selling a course
- Starting a podcast
- Educating writers
- Becoming a public speaker
3. Find equal competitors
I had to say this:
“Find your relevant competition.”
Examine where you stand. Don’t compare yourself to Jane Austin or Charles Dickens if you're a beginner writer.
Find the best competitive fit.
To do that, follow these steps:
- If you’re a writer: find how many words you write in a day, the number of words per hour, awards, appreciation, total reads, and the number of mentions, e.g., in the editorial bulletin.
- If you’re in another career: experience level, people you’ve worked with, years of serving, connections, etc.
Allow yourself to make identical competitors.
If you have above-level coemption, you’re likely to stay unsatisfied. However, having equal competition gives you vast ground to learn and ripen.
Even now, look at yourself and see the contest you have. Are those people equal to you in any way?
If they don't, the competition isn’t on equal grounds.
4. Keep the flow- autofill
another meaning of the Goldilocks rule is to find “manageable difficulty.”
We mostly do this when:
- Make soup not too thick or too slurry
- Twisting water faucet for the correct amount of cold and hot
- Wearing clothes that are not too tight or loose
We uncover the optimal balance every day.
Flow allows us to learn. Flow translates to experience. Your memory of the last winter is instantly triggered when you change the faucet’s temperature to hot.
Experience provides proof. Similarly, your clothing size provides you with the correct background. Your daily habits (flow) help you to find the manageable difficulty.
As writers, you need to keep the flow. If you don’t, you’re simply out of the game.
Goldilocks rule is the second stage. The first level is “stay consistent.”
Follow these simple practices and never break the routine chain:
- Reward: give yourself a cookie or a cake to complete a routine/habit consistently for one month.
- Seinfeld strategy: put a cross on the calendar once you complete your habit, and you’re more likely never to break a chain.
- Tell a friend: I know this sounds insane, but tell your close friends about this new habit you’re building, and you’ll never skip it because of the shame.
Final thoughts:
Goldilocks rule is a perfect blend of hard work and happiness.
Extra happiness in your life may cause you to become immobile. Extra hard work might make you uncreative.
A perfect balance ensures you enjoy life while keeping your share of hard work.
Because the only key to making the most of your life is making the most of your life.
Read it again!
