It took me 10 months of writing to find myself

After 7 days of it, I was feeling the strain.

Mentally, physically, and emotionally, it was all there.

I would feel the momentary panic, my mind reeling from the emptiness inside.

There would be nothing…

Then, there would be everything.

I would reach out to the keyboard and let my mind wander.

I wouldn’t stop until I felt like the thought was completed.

• No editing.

• No hesitation.

• No judgment.

I would let it all flow.

Evolution Complete

In the past ten months of writing, this newsletter has never faltered.

I may have punted on the message a bit at times.

Hell, I may have even thought about quitting.

I’m glad I didn’t.

There are always about half of you that keep showing up week after week just as I do. (Thank you for that, by the way, that means a great deal to me).

Because of you, I have:

• posted over 18,000 times on X

• started writing more on Medium

• written over 25 entries of this newsletter

and I’m still far from where I want to be.

Nobody said this was going to be easy.

I’ve seen countless creators spin up a newsletter, post once or twice or even three times, then nothing.

I’ve seen even more make grand statements about reaching some ridiculous amount of money in 6 months, only to see them disappear from my timeline a few weeks later.

I’ve see so many people lament the difficulties of maintaining a sustainable cadence of output of content, be it writing or video or visuals.

People have to quit for one reason or another, and it’s their prerogative.

This isn’t easy, and nothing will change that reality.

Anything worth doing never is.

The crazy part is that I’ve only been here for 10 months.

The key word is “ONLY”.

It still throws me for a loop when people make pithy posts like “just learn copywriting and the money will come rolling in” or “ghostwriting will make you millions in the first year”.

It’s true for some of them because they are bringing in skills and a background in marketing or communications or have life experience that is conducive to picking up these high-value skills in a very short amount of time.

I’m not one of them.

That’s not an excuse, though. It just means that I have to start from a point much closer to zero than they did.

I’m playing the long game; the infinite game; the game of lifelong learning.

If all you’re doing is reading about a skill, you’re not learning it.

If you’re here struggling to learn about the power of showing up

• mentally

• physically

• emotionally

and you don’t know where you’re going, then stick around.

I’ve mined my own mind and others for months now, and it’s time to reframe this newsletter into something that is actionably useful to you.

So here’s the theme of this newsletter moving forward:

Your presence is what matters in every aspect of life.

• Show up for what you wish for.

• Show up for what you believe in.

• Show up for what you aspire to become.

Prime your presence.

This is going to be the next stage. It’s a crazy, winding path that I’ve taken, but it’s one that has been worth it.

However, I do think that everything I’ve shared with you up to this point is worth packaging into a nice little gift for those of you who’ve stuck around.

I’ve also got plans to make what I’ve learned into a 7-day challenge for you to get to the core of who you are (and hopefully save you from having to write for months to get there).

Vince

P.S. Don’t worry, I’ll still be fun and games. This was just a bit heavier, and I’m getting over a cold shared to me by my kids this week.

P.P.S. If you’re an old-school 90’s gamer, there’s a reference in this entry that might jump out at you.