Just got off the phone for hour-long conversation with my friend Bret Burchard of the Phoenix Suns and ChampionShift.

*If you don’t know Bret yet, you will. NBA coaches – most notably Brad Stevens of the Boston Celtics – are reading Bret’s writing to their teams*

I was talking to him about his work and his love of writing. Reminded of an old blogging trick that unlocks inspiration… I thought I’d share.

The Struggle of Blogging

I’ve surveyed hundreds of bloggers (be one of them HERE) and one constant struggle is answering the question “WHAT SHOULD I POST?” Virtually ALL bloggers know they “should” post more or post better or be more authentic. Then the blank screen pops up and we are flooded with questions:

“What will be authentic?”

“Will anyone think I’m smart?”

“Will this resonate with anyone?”

I’m going to show you how to get over those questions and get that darn blogging mojo flowing’ again.

One Trick to Keep the Inspiration Flowing

One thing I’ve done to keep authentic, personal content inspiration flowing.

Go to My Old Journals

I like to go to journals from two through five years ago. If you don’t have journals, maybe go through Facebook statuses or Tweets (Timehop is a great APP to make this easy). Just do whatever you need to do to be transported back in time a few years.

Take your mind back to old passions, thoughts, ideas or beliefs. You’ll notice they’ve shifted, changed or grown stronger. You’ll notice your own journey a bit more clearly.

You’ll remember that crappy day at work that made you say anyone who wears a tie is dumb. Or you will understand why teenagers are so “weird” today, but you were “cool” back when you were that age.

The Benefits

By going to your journals for content inspiration, you immediately gain two benefits:

Benefit 1: An Authentic Expression

You’ll be able to capture authentic, personal expressions of yourself that you can clarify and build on. The content will ooze authenticity without little effort. HECK, maybe you’ll even impress yourself with how profound you were 5 years ago.

Benefit 2: Remember What It’s Like

Often thought-leaders can develop a “holier-than-thou” voice. Being un-relatable equals the death of content-creators. If you’re unable to relate to your audience, they’ll go elsewhere.

Reminding yourself what it was like being a less-experienced you, will help give clarity to your voice. You’ll be speaking the language of people who are a few years behind you, those you’re perfectly poised to lead.

Benefit 3: Attract the Perfect Audience for You

There is no audience more perfect for YOU to lead than the audience that resonates with where you’ve been. How does is sound to build an audience to whom you can speak hyper-naturally knowing that they’ll deeply resonate with where you’ve been?

No Go Dust Off That Old Journal and Get to Writing!

I’d love to see a few of you do it and leave a link in the comments below.

Any other tricks or tips you’ve found to getting unblocked in your writing?