I Wasted 6 Months Writing Aimlessly. One Simple Shift Changed Everything

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For 6 months I felt lost.

No audience. No growth. My writing was ignored. Then I made one shift. I got crystal clear on what to write about. Within a year I had 16,000 followers and enough income to go part-time.

Most writers never reach this point.

Not because they aren’t talented. But because they stay stuck in the worst trap of all.

Lack of clarity.

When you don’t know what to write, you waste energy doubting yourself. You hesitate. Afraid of picking the wrong niche. So your words remained unnoticed.

The solution isn’t more effort. It’s strategy.

These five insights changed everything for me. And I know they can do the same for you.

1. Chase what excites you, not what you know

Most writers stick to what they know.

And while that feels safe, it’s also a trap. Building an audience doesn’t happen overnight. It takes years of consistent effort. To do that, you need a topic you can keep writing about week after week. Not just for a few months, but for years.

Most writers quit within the first 3 months because they pick the wrong focus.

Older writers need to be careful. The temptation is to rely on your past knowledge. I’ve been there. I spent years in leadership and public speaking, and when I started writing in 2023, I dug into all my old notes. I had tons of material. But it felt stale. I wasn’t exploring, I was repeating.

That’s when I realized the key is curiosity.

Write about what you’re learning. Not what you already know. It’ll breathe new life into your writing.

2. Write for transformation

What should I write about? is the wrong question.

Kieran Drew quit dentistry in 2022 to become a writer. Since then he’s made $750,000. His advice is focus on transformation, not a specific topic.

Think about your audience. What change can you help them make? Once know that, you can write about anything that supports their transformation.

For example, say you’re helping new parents. It’s not just about writing about baby care.

Yes you could write about:

• How to get a baby to sleep

• Nutrition for newborns

• How to deal with illness

But you could also write about:

• Investing in your marriage

• How to find time for a hobby

• Taking care of yourself as a parent

When you focus on transformation, you’re not limited to just one narrow topic. You can share anything that gets them from A to B.

This keeps writing interesting and becomes an audience magnet.

3. Start small (but don’t stay there)

To build an audience readers need clarity

They need to know what they’ll get from you. This creates loyal fans. It sends them off to read all your stuff. But people worry about being stuck in a narrow rut.

Ali Abdaal shows you how to avoid this.

Ali has 6m YouTube subscribers. But started with a narrow niche. Ali was a medical student. So he made videos about what he knew. Studying for medical exams. He grew because he was solving a specific problem for a specific group of people. He had credibility because it was a problem he had recently solved himself.

You can steal this tactic. Because being specific is powerful:

• what challenges have you overcome?

• what problems have you solved?

• what skills have you learned?

But Ali then widened his content. He started talking about productivity. This served his current audience. But widened his appeal.

He then broadened to anything that interests him. He talks about making money online. The equipment he uses. Books he likes. His life plan. He has become his niche.

Start with a narrow focus then widen as you grow.

4. Write about what energizes you

Parker Worth was fed up with his life and decided he wanted to build an online writing business.

He spent months writing about electricity (he was an electrician). But got no growth. He was bored doing it. So gave up. But he comes alive when he tells stories. And has lived a crazy life.

So Parker started sharing his stories. This energized him. And readers loved it. Parker is now a 6 figure creator. Doing what he loves teaching others how to write stories. When you hear Parker talk about storytelling. You can hear the passion in his voice.

It takes a long time to grow online. So pick something you love. Your passion will come through your writing. And enthuse your readers.

Write about what you love

5. Experiment until it resonates

If you want influence, to make money, or to help people. You need people to read your stuff.

Parker Worth failed to connect with electricians. Partly because he wasn’t passionate about it. But also because he picked the wrong platform. He wrote on Twitter. Most electricians prefer videos.

You don’t decide your niche. You discover it. Experiment with content and see what sticks. You need the sweet spot. What you want to create and what people want to read.

The easiest way to do this is to pick 3 possibilities. Write about them for 4 months. See what gets traction. And go all in on what people want.

Write what people want.

Derek

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