I Write With Purpose

I Write With Purpose.

I attended a broadcast of Live2Lead conference by John Maxwell, one of my favorite speakers and authors in the topic of leadership. He shared two things that resonated with me as an author and writer. The first one was when John asked his mentor (also an author) the question, “Why do you write?” His mentor responded, “Because I want to influence people I will never meet.” John Maxwell said, “Then, I will write.” And that’s what it took for him to start writing and he now has published more than 75 books. He is influencing the world in the subject of leadership.

When I ask myself this question, my answer is similar, “I write to inspire, educate, and influence people I will never meet.” I may never influence the world but I’m purposed to influence my world.

I started my publishing company, Malzahn Publishing, in 2015 to make it easier for me to publish all my books. Now, when people tell me they want to write a book, I ask them two key questions to think about before starting the process of writing and publishing their books: 1) Do you have a book in you? They usually have to stop and think about it but most of them have responded, “Yes.” Then I ask the next question. 2) Who do you want to help by writing this book? I believe each book has to have a purpose and the main one should be to help others.

The second thing John Maxwell said that resonated with me was the question he asked himself every time he wrote a book: “Will my reader turn the page?” He always wants to ensure he keeps his readers engaged. That is the biggest challenge for authors and writers. So I will always ask myself that question too going forward.

I started writing in 2004 and I will never stop. I wrote my first book, Devotions for Working Women: A Daily Inspiration to Live a Successful and Balanced Life, to help working women strive to have a successful, yet balanced life. As a full-time working mother, I was able to achieve success and some balance in my life. In this daily devotional, I share my experiences and tips that helped me throughout my journey with other working women.

It took me the next ten years to finish writing and to publish my second book, The Fire Within: Connect Your Gifts with Your Calling. The purpose of this book to help you discover your unique gifts and talents, and to encourage you to develop and polish those gifts so you can use them to help others. As you do that, you will discover your mission, purpose, and calling—whatever term you prefer to use to answer the question, “Why am I here?”

Because I like to maximize others’ gifts and because I treasure friendships, I wrote my third book in collaboration with one of my sisters who is an artist. The Friendship Book: Because You Matter to Me features 50 photos of her original paintings and 50 friendship poems I wrote to honor all my friends around the world.

Part of my purpose is to help emerging leaders be successful as they begin their leadership journey. My fourth book, Bring YOUR Shoes: A Fresh Perspective for Leaders with Big Shoes to Fill, encourages leaders to discover and maximize their own talents as well as the talents of those they lead. Then they can lead by maximizing the team’s talents. This book is a tool for emerging leaders.

In 2019, I became a grandmother for the first time and that changed my life. I was inspired to write my first children’s book, Inside Your Mama’s Tummy: Your Journey Until You Arrived. A grandma, a mother, or an expectant mom can read this beautiful story to young children about their incredible journey inside their mama’s tummy until they arrived into the world. The book describes the progress the baby makes each week and compares the size of the baby to fruits and vegetables to make it fun and visual for the children.

If you write for any reason, whether it’s for work, as a hobby, or as an author, remember to ask yourself these questions: “Why do I write? Who am I helping? And, Will my reader turn the page?” Always make sure your purpose includes to help others grow in some way and to help them become a better person – so you can say: I write with purpose.