5 Weirdly Simple Habits That Made Me A Stronger Writer (None Are "Write More")

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I’ve written 600 articles in 26 months.

Most writers don’t make it past number 37.

They burn out. Run dry. Whisper maybe this wasn’t meant to be… and go back to jobs they can’t stand. Not because they weren’t good. But because they didn’t last.

I did. And it changed everything. I walked out of my job. Built a business. Took back control of my time. I admit I’m not more talented. But my secret? It’s these 5 simple habits.

They keep your ideas flowing—and your fire lit.

1. Keep a “yes, and…” journal

Everyone’s obsessed with finding ideas.

But you don’t need more ideas. You need to expand the ones you already have. Instead of chasing dopamine hits from novelty, I chase depth.

Every week, I revisit one old idea and add: “Yes, and…” Then I write 100 words. No rules. Just follow the thread. It’s basically improv for your brain. No pressure to be smart. No demand to be right. Just: “Where could this go if I trusted myself a little more?”

Because here’s the real reason most writing sounds flat: It’s regurgitated. People don’t think for themselves. They copywhat performed for someone else.

But fresh writing comes from fresh thinking. And freshing thinking doesn’t come from copying what works for others. It comes from wrestling your thoughts onto the page. Unfiltered, unpolished, unperformative.

The gold isn't in new thoughts. It's buried where you stopped digging.

2. Read outside your echo chamber

A few months ago I realized something uncomfortable.

I was starting to sound like everyone else. Same Substack threads. Same Medium essays. Same recycled LinkedIn “insights.” My writing was becoming bland. Which is a great way to wreck your growth.

Then I picked up Lost Connections by Johann Hari. A book about depression. Not my niche. Not for online creators. Not even “on brand.” But a few chapters in, I was underlining whole pages.

One story about a guy with a meaningless job hit me sideways. I twisted it into a post about how writing can be your escape route from a soul-sucking job. That post exploded. Tons of new readers. It felt good to write something real.

All because I stopped drinking from the same contaminated pool as everyone else.

That’s what the “creator economy” quietly teaches you:

• Stay in your niche

• Copy what performs

• Read what’s trending

And slowly, invisibly, your voice turns to mush.

The boldest thing you can do today? Read outside what’s “useful.” Pick up a weird memoir. A cookbook with stories. A philosophy book that gives you a headache. Anything that shatters the algorithmic loop.

Because if you only read what everyone else reads, you’ll only think what everyone else thinks.

3. Record don’t write your first draft

This one started with pure frustration.

I’d been staring at the blinking cursor for 40 minutes, rewriting the same first sentence for the fifth time. Nothing sounded right. Everything came out stiff. Like I was auditioning for a job I didn’t even want.

So I snapped. Closed the doc. Opened my phone. Hit record. And just talked. Like I was ranting to a friend over coffee. Three minutes later, I had the bones of the entire post. It wasn’t polished. It wasn’t pretty. But it was alive.

My voice was looser. The metaphors landed. The structure, which I’d been wrestling with all morning, just fell into place. That post became one of my most shared pieces that month. Not because it was “optimized.” Because it was real.

Now, if I’m stuck, I don’t write. I talk. Out loud. Into my phone. No script. No pressure. No perfection filter.

If you want to write like a human. Press record.

4. Take bigger swings

This one scared me.

I’d written a post that felt too honest. Not optimized. Not “on brand.” Just raw truth. I said what I really thought not what I thought would be well received. And I hit publish with a pit in my stomach, fully bracing for unsubscribes, eyerolls, maybe a passive-aggressive comment or two.

Instead?

It blew up.

Most read post of the month. People forwarded it. Quoted it. One person messaged me: “This gave me the push I needed to finally start.”

That’s when it hit me: The thing you’re scared to say? That’s usually the thing someone else desperately needs to hear. But most writers never get there. Not because they’re lazy, but because they’re stuck in invisible permission loops.

• Don’t be too bold.

• Don’t upset the algorithm.

• Don’t write anything that makes people uncomfortable.

But that voice in your head? That’s not your intuition. That’s your inner editor trying to keep you safe and small. You need guts. Not recklessness. Not shock value. Just the courage to say the real thing even if it makes your stomach flip.

So here’s what to do:

• Write the post that scares you

• Publish the idea you’re not “qualified” to share.

• Say the thing you wish someone else would say first.

Because safe is invisible. And invisible is the death of your voice.

5. Walk. A lot.

This habit started with a line I read from Ryan Holiday.

He said he walks every day even if it cuts into his writing time. Because it improves his thinking. So everyday, after my first writing session, I’d head out for a 40-minute walk. No AirPods. Just me, my thoughts, and the occasional near-death experience with a silent cyclist.

At first, it felt wrong. Like I was slacking. Like I was wasting time. But that’s what the hustle voice in your head tells you: if you’re not consuming or creating, you’re falling behind.

But that voice is lying.

The best ideas didn’t show up when I was “maximizing time.” They showed up somewhere between lamp post 12 and the woman who walks her cat on a lead. This one habit has done more for my writing than any course, tool, or template.

It’s where I came up with my most profitable product idea. $8000 from a walk? Yes please. The algorithm wants you addicted to input. But creativity lives in the gaps.

The next time you hit a wall, don’t scroll—walk.

Derek

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