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Transcript

This is Your Only Competition · The Daily Writer

• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Daily Rider Podcast, where we bring you tips and inspiration each day to help you build habits for writing success.
• 0:14
  SPEAKER_00: For more resources, including your free Daily Rider Starter Kit, visit DailyRiderLife.com.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: Everywhere you look, it probably feels like you have a competitor.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: It might be authors on social media, people in bookstores, in a writing group, or even in your own family if you've got people in your family who are writing books also.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_00: But the truth is that you're not competing with other authors.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_00: You're not in a race with them.
• 0:39
  SPEAKER_00: There's no finish line, there's no referee, and there's no prize at the end.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_00: Now, yes, there are bestseller lists and literary awards, but those don't really mean a lot in the grand scheme of things.
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_00: Sorry to burst your bubble.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_00: For one thing, traditional bestseller lists are never 100% accurate.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_00: Did you know that the New York Times bestseller list is a ranking of books put together by an editorial team and not a reflection of actual book sales?
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, if that is kind of depressing when you stop and think about it.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: I agree with you.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_00: And when it comes to Amazon bestsellers, we all know that it's easy to make a few sales in an obscure category over a couple of hours and technically become a quote unquote Amazon bestseller.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: And then when it comes to literary awards, the truth is that the average reader could care less which books won which awards.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_00: Few people outside of authors and publishers care about that stuff.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: Plus, literary awards are just a reflection of people's opinions.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not saying that that's not useful and not good.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_00: I'm just saying it's basically just people's opinions.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_00: No, those things do not reflect your real competitors.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: Your only real competition is yourself.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, who were you 10 years ago or a year ago or a month ago or a week ago?
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: Have you grown?
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_00: Have you changed?
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_00: Have you learned some things?
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_00: Have you improved your writing craft?
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_00: Have you grown your business?
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: Have you made some mistakes and then course corrected?
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_00: If you're better than you were before, that means you're winning.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_00: You're doing just fine.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_00: Don't worry about the quote unquote competition.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: Just focus on improving yourself day after day and year after year.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: Here's today's challenge.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_00: Take 30 seconds and write down three ways you have improved over the last year.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_00: Then give yourself a pat on the back because, after all, you're doing great.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for listening, and I'll see you next time.