[book review] Working Out Loud: the best way to grow up is to share things

I’m grateful to Kate who shared this book with me. I am doing my best to run my blog and she knows it. There are a lot of things I learned in the book.

After I read it, I think it’s a book everyone should read in this generation. This book is easy to understand and with enough practical advice for us to follow. If we follow this advice we could be better people.

Before I read WOL, I had already started my blog and updated it every day. However, it’s not easy for me to get ideas. My writing is not stable, I’m not a professional writer. I didn’t know what to write after I finished several articles. I got stuck and felt hopeless.

What’s worse! In the beginning, when I started to run my blog, I wanted to get some benefits after I shared some words. It’s easy to worry too much about short-term gain and loss. I payed too much attention on the hit rate or reader's feedback. 

However, in the book John Stepper shared a lot of personal experiences with us and told us how to do things. What’s more, in the end of the book, there’s a 12-week guideline for us. It makes sure that we could make some changes.

The 5 Elements of Working Out Loud

WOL is the abbreviation of working out loud. It’s popular in the western world but not yet in Asia. WOL is a lifestyle which shares our own experiences in daily life. The experience is normal for you but is special for those who need it. Any experience is useful and someone in the world needs it.

Purposeful Discovery

This first step of working out loud is to discover. It’s not a new thing for me when I am running my blog, I have to discover what I can share with readers. 

I am a dentist and I focus on orthodontics (about braces). In order to share my experiences, I pay more attention to the patient’s needs and concerns. I will make it into an article and it’s easy to understand. My goal is to give a hand to those who have worried about the process of getting braces. If they search on the internet, my words can help. 

In order to make sure my thoughts were correct, I spent more time on searching for and reading related articles or papers. I noticed that I am the one who benefits most from purposeful discovery. I gain knowledge from the process. What’s more, there is a serendipity because I love my job more. 

Relationships

I’m passive in a relationship and it possibly made me go the long way around. Relationships are important to everyone in the world. They are what I need to change my life.

In the past, I set up a goal I would search how to do it online and tried to finish it by myself. Sometimes it’s easy for me but sometimes it’s a disaster.

If I know how to make it by establishing relationships, it would be much easier. When we set a goal we should ask our relationships for help because there probably is someone who can help. Even though you don't have anyone who can help, it’s fine. John Stepper tells us how to get connected with others on the internet and it’s very easy to do. 

You can follow those who can help first. It could be Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter. If you give them a like or leave a comment frequently, they will notice you. As time goes on, you could form relationships.

Generosity

It’s a challenge for me to talk with a stranger. I didn’t know how to do it. I thought too much and made it too complex. After I read WOL, I found it’s easy to do. In fact, giving a like or leaving a comment is enough to attract attention.

John Stepper shared a fact with us. There is a famous blogger who had more than 10 million readers but only 10 thousand people(0.1%) had ever left a message. Therefore, it means a lot to leave a message. It didn’t cost even one minute. Just being generous and sharing your opinions on the internet is enough to attract their attention. 

Visible Work

As long as you keep sharing something on the internet, it’s possible to be visible. Research has shown that there were more than 100 million blogs in the world in 2008 but more than 95% of them were abandoned. It means that if you sharing for benefit or power, it’s usually going to be a disappointment.

If you want to share something continuously, the most important part is mindset. When you get visible simply to donate more, it’s an altruistic behavior. Altruistic people have a higher chance to keep sharing things. When you produce more meaningful words on the internet, it’s easier to be visible. It’s virtually a cycle!

A Growth Mindset

People with a fixed mindset think it's difficult to be better. People with a growth mindset know that it’s possible to keep growing. What’s the best way to grow up? I think it’s sharing something you know but others don’t. 

It would be a hard time for you to share something and expect feedbacks from readers. Therefore, it’s important to have the correct mindset to keeping sharing. I believe that altruism is the best way to make it happen.

My first time hearing about altruism was from a book written by INAMORI KAZUO. INAMORI KAZUO is a Japanese businessman and he hosted a book club. In the book club, people share their experiences about fulfilling altruistic behavior. In our book club, I know more about altruism and I agree with it.

For me, sharing things in a blog is a way of fulfilling altruism. When i did purposeful discovery, I gained more knowledge and it probably is useful for me in the future. Sometimes I need to ask those who have experience. Currently, I believe that I am growing.

Conclusion

In order to run my blog, I spend a lot of time thinking what I could share with readers. After reading the book, Working Out Loud, I learned something. It doesn't matter if your experience is just normal; it means a lot to those who need it. I just need to focus on sharing my experiences honestly. 

I noticed that those who can update thousands of articles don’t do it for money or reputation. When you devote yourself to get something, it’s difficult to keep it. Understanding the 5 elements of WOL, there are a lot of things I could do. I changed my mindset and feel energetic. I want to share more!