SAMIA: Hello, Salaam, Shalom, Namaste, Sat Sri Akal, Aloha, Holah, Ciao, Bonjour, Buna, and Privet! It's really really good to be with you again. And I know you'll be so happy you have joined us today… we have a fabulous guest with us, that's Kimberly or Kim... Kim Day for short. And Kim is a Book Publisher and author of “Write and Grow Rich”. How fun is that? Welcome, Kim...

KIM: Oh, thank you so much for having me here, Samia... And welcome to anyone who's out there listening.

SAMIA: Oh, yes... And Kim, please tell us more about who you are and what you do...

KIM: Oh, thank you for asking. Yeah, I am, as you mentioned, a publisher. I am the author of the book called “Write and Grow Rich”, which is not just my book, actually. It's also my signature program, where I teach coaches, consultants, course creators and entrepreneurs, how they can write and publish a book to use as a marketing tool to grow their business… to use as a tool to uplevel their branding, position themselves as a thought leader or expert in their space… and ultimately attract a lot more clients into their business... Because would you agree, if we had more clients in our business, it would really make our business a lot more fun and easy, right...

SAMIA: Indeed, indeed... I think that… it's like, you don't have a business if you don't have clients. And even as a ChangeMaker, you know, you cannot change the world, you cannot serve your community and your society as you want to without having people that you can actually serve and who want to work with you. So that is so, so important...

KIM: Absolutely. And I mean, it's really kind of almost ironic, because a little bit about my backstory is I was a financial advisor for over 13 years. And I was struggling. I used to call it the income rollercoaster… you know, where you have a really great month of clients, and then you're like, oh, my gosh, where is my next visa payment coming from, or my next mortgage payment coming from... And I was always in this big panic about, you know, finding my next client and go… and attracting new people into my business. And it was once I published and wrote my very first book, which was called “The Financial Fitness Playbook”, that my whole business changed... I started attracting new clients into my business. I was getting TV and radio spots… I was… it was doing all of this stuff to more magnetically attract people into my business, which of course, made it a lot more fun and easy. And in fact, it made it so much more fun and easy that I decided to completely make a change and go 180 and start teaching people this powerful transformational strategy for their business. So...

SAMIA: Yeah, that is so cool... And I know a lot's of fellow authors… I'm an author myself, who have had this kind of experience where once you write that book, and assuming you know a little bit about how to use your book to make money, that it's really, really helpful as a way of uplifting your name, your brand, your credibility... And those are the things that then make it more fun and easy to attract the clients that you want. So we... I know you and me, we will talk lots more about awesome, awesome ways to make money with your book. But before we can get to that point, we have to talk about how to actually write your book and make it more fun and easy. Because I know so many people have the intention to write the book... the desire to write the book… they've even maybe started to write a book, and they get stuck. They're not able to get their book done. They're not able to get their book published. So will you tell me a little bit more about any tips or tricks or techniques that you have for how to make book writing more fun and easy…

KIM: I love that you asked that. And of course I can talk for days about that topic matter because it's exactly what I do in my program, right... And I think maybe not so much the fun part, but the easy part is really about having a path to follow, right... The step-by-step instructions, that blueprint, if you will, to getting it done. Because, you know, when you're embarking on a big project, whether it be you know… change isn't always easy, it's... people definitely perceive it as hard. And it doesn't have to be as hard as you make it out to be if you have guidance, if you have mentorship, if you have that blueprint to follow… So you know, like even when I was changing out of my finance career into entrepreneurship, that was hard... But having the book and knowing that I was doing something that was really going to help people change their lives, made it more fun and easy because I was so passionate about what I was doing... So before we dive into the… if making book writing fun and easy, I just want to encourage you, if you're listening, and you're thinking about making a career change, because you're, you know, you're in a job that you're just not... you just don't love, you've got a boss that you you know, that isn't, isn't someone you love… If you're just not having fun, and you feel like there's something tapping you on the shoulder for a bigger purpose, I'm telling you, if I can do it, you can do it, right... Like Samia, if you can do it, your listeners can do it. So you know, consider maybe that this is the year that you make that big leap... And if you do, having a book is a really powerful tool to launch yourself into that expert zone, right… because we perceive authors to be credible experts, right... I think about the people I was following in my finance career, and now the people that I'm following in my marketing journey, and most of the guru's or the mentors that I follow are all published authors... 

SAMIA: Yeah. 

KIM: So you know, think about someone that you follow that you look up to, and I bet you nine, 9 times out of 10, they are a published author... So I love to share my tips about how to make that process less overwhelming, less scary, and really, truly make it fun and easy... so you can get that book out of your head and into your hands. So you can not only change your own life but change the lives of the people that you're looking to work with...

SAMIA: That's amazing. It's amazing... So what would you say is like maybe one of the biggest problems and the tip to solve it...

KIM: Yeah. So I talked about the tip number one, which was to find… find a path to follow, right... Find a step-by-step system... And you know, of course, I do have a program that helps people do that, but you don't whether you choose me or whether you choose somebody else, or whether you go and look it up on google because there are lots of resources out there, you know, find a step by step by step path that you can follow to make the journey easier… it might not make it as fun, so much fun, but it will definitely solve the easy part... Some of the other things that I usually talk to people about are making sure you know who it is that you are looking to attract into your business. Understanding this vital piece of information is the key to making the book-writing process so much easier. Because once you know who you're trying to talk to you, once you know the problem that it is that you solve for that person, and once you know the transformational results you want to help somebody get, it's much easier to put that together in a message that you can clearly articulate, that attracts magnetically that person to your business which, you know, it makes everything… the rest of it all just kind of fall into place...

SAMIA: Yeah. That makes sense, that makes sense... I mean, when you talk to business coaches, that is generally the number one thing most of them will have you work on also… like even with your business in general… to have clarity on who it is that you're going to help and how you're going to help them. So it makes sense that if you're writing a book to help you with your business that you would need to be clear on that as well...

KIM: Yeah, that's like the foundational piece to any piece of marketing… like a book is just one marketing strategy that you can use, right... You can use podcast to grow your business or email marketing... I mean, you are in the podcasting space right Samia, and that's a fabulous tool. I love speaking as an opportunity to position yourself as a thought leader and expert… and a podcast is just one of the many speaking platforms that somebody could use… but either way, whether you're using a book or podcast, social media, knowing who you're trying to talk to, is the definitely the first step in making it so much more easy. Because once you have that message clarity, the rest of the book just kind of starts to flow out, right...

SAMIA: Yes, indeed... And you earlier mentioned about finding a process to follow for getting your book published or written out rather... what are some of the elements of that process... Like, what are the things people should be looking for… so how do they know they're found the right process or a good process?

KIM: Well, I guess finding a mentor that can clearly articulate what their process is would be key… Mine is a five-step… I call it my 5 P’s signature process... And each of the P’s stand for one of the modules in the program or one of the sections in my book. And the first one, which we were just talking about was the first P, which is the "Planning", right... When you have that plan of who you're trying to write to. Then the next pieces come together really fast, right... So the second P is the "Promotion piece". So most people think you write your book and get it all the pieces that and then you start promoting it. I believe you start promoting your book before you've even written a single word… you start talking to people about it, right, you start telling people… Hey, I'm the author of the upcoming book, Write and Grow Rich, where I show entrepreneurs how they can supersize their brand, their business and their bank account by writing and publishing a book... I said that sentence over and over and over again before my first book was… before that book was ever published. But people perceived me as an author, the minute that those words were spoken out of my mouth. So part of understanding your perfect client then is that ,that gives you the ability to craft a nice, hot magnetic title, right... something that's fun and attracts your clients to you… Well, I have a fun energy, but not everybody… But… right… but knowing who your audience is allows you to craft, craft that compelling title… it's going to attract them, which will help you with that promotion, right. So that's part of that. The third P, which is the "Produce" is like you actually do have to write the book at some point. But I'm telling you, with my system, if you think writing a book can be hard, I'm telling you, it is the fastest and easiest thing you could build for your business… the fastest marketing asset… because I'll give you a hot tip secret, your whole book is probably sitting in your laptop right now. So I have a process that I take everybody through that actually can get your book out of your head, out of your laptop, out of articles, blog posts, presentations, social media posts… content you've already created… I show you a process to repurpose that content seamlessly with your course or your program and other content you've created and turn it into your book that helps attract clients. And when you get that process nailed down… my client Amber actually wrote her entire manuscript in four days. Because with the foundation in place, it's actually so fast and so easy, that it becomes fun...

SAMIA: Yes… and I love that. And I totally believe you by the way, Kim. I know it can be done... I know for me, it took me a little bit longer than four days… I got most of my book written out in like less than two weeks...

KIM: That's fabulous Samia... that's amazing…

SAMIA: Thank you. And a lot of that had exactly to do with what you're saying… that it was already existing in bits and pieces out in the world thanks to blog posts I had written... I actually had another podcast that I was doing at that time. And a lot of what's in my book now, it's actually transcriptions of podcast episodes from my first podcast show that I had. And you know, just things like that, that once I knew what I wanted to write, it's like, Oh, don't have to reinvent the wheels, don't have to write new stuff. It's like already, like 90% of it was out there. And there were just a few little pieces that I was like, okay, I will write these and like, fresh… because, you know, you change you grow... So there are some things that might need updating and things like that. But yeah, otherwise, 90% of the book was already done...

KIM: Right? And I mean, like even the pieces that you don't really think about when you're thinking about book content, but like your author bio, and like a description about your book, you've likely written most of that stuff if you've ever even been on a podcast or gone and done a PowerPoint presentation or spoke at a networking event… because you have to tell people about who you are and what you do. So likely, almost every piece of your book has already been written at some point… you might have to, you know, throw in a dedication, some acknowledgments… but you know, a lot of the resources that you'll need to compile and pull together… I talk about, you know, a great book isn't written, it's actually assembled... And this is the key to most people when they realize… oh, I never thought about it that way... But it's not that you're starting from scratch, just like you said, Samia… gathering content… if you're already working in your space, and you're listening to this right now, I'm telling you… if you're already working in your space, probably most 90% of your book is already written. And I'll show you how to put it all together so that it looks professional, so that it has all the components that are traditionally published a book has… So it has an amazing title and subtitle, it has a great client-attracting cover… because you know, the saying you can't judge a book by its cover... In the world of books, that is not true. People do judge your book by its cover. So we make sure you have a really great cover that goes along with your really great title and your really great content. So at the end of the day, you've got a really amazing asset, right… something you've created, that will help serve your business over and over and over again, and open doors to more speaking opportunities, to more meda publicity… to so many amazing things that will uplevel your business and help you not only create more income for yourself but to have more influence and more impact, not only in your life but in the lives of the clients that you serve... 

SAMIA: Yeah… and I love the point that you just made Kim about having a really awesome book cover... Because, yes, I would agree that from a values perspective, it'd be great if people didn't judge a book by its cover. And/but the fact is that people do judge a book by its cover, and... you know, you just reminded me of a conference that I had been invited to… actually this was after I got my book published… and at this conference, actually, once they found out that I was a published author, they were like… Oh, please, why don't you put up a booth to do book sales… And when I got to the conference, there were a number of other authors who were present, who also set up their booths to sell their book... And I remember there were like several of them whose books were self-published. I mean, technically, my book is also self-published… but I worked with an author coach, a book publishing coach to, like, just make sure that, you know, everything was done in a professional and appropriate manner. But there were, like, several of the other authors at this particular conference that were there… and they were self-published… and you could immediately see that they didn't actually know what they were doing… In terms of, like… you look at… I looked at this book cover, and the… I loved the lady who wrote the book… I was actually really attracted by her personality to go to her booth to check out her book myself. When I got to the booth, I picked up her book, I sort of flipped it… flipped it back and forth, just looking at the cover. And immediately I started seeing things like, there was like some spelling mistakes on the back, you know in the section where the book description was… there were like, the printing wasn't done really well… like there were like spots that clearly weren't part of any kind of a design, but just a bad printing job, and things like that… And it just immediately sort of made me feel like I don't know how good this book is. And I had to, like sort of catch myself and be like, no, no, Samia, just because the book isn’t printed well doesn't mean it's not a good book or that this lady is not good... And I mean, I did feel really attracted to her person. But it took that… it definitely took that moment of me catching myself and then, you know, talking to myself, and, you know, convincing myself that, you know, it's okay and I should… I can move forward with wanting to develop a relationship with this lady and working with her and so forth. But you know it took even me… like, my initial reaction… and a lot of people won't be so thoughtful, and they will just judge the book by its cover, you know...

KIM: ...and you only get one chance to make a good first impression, right...

SAMIA: Exactly…

KIM: So putting your best foot forward, and in this case, your best front cover forward… which, you know, also then leads to the back cover, right... Because a great front cover… immediately, what does somebody do once they see that good front cover? Well, they want to see if the book description is going to be like, Hey, do I want to know more… And then they read that tiny little… and I've see so many people, they start with themselves as the author at the top of the book… and you know, your reader wants to know what they're gonna get out of the book, right. So making sure you have a client-focused book discription is powerfully important...

SAMIA: Yes…

KIM: And then, of course, the third thing that every reader does, after they look at the front cover, after they look at the back cover, what do they do… they thumb open to your table of contents. So make sure at least those three things are like spot on when you're… when you go to publish. And I love that you shared, Samia, that you used a, like a book coach. Or in my world, we sometimes call that an independent publisher. So I'm, I'm a publisher, but I'm an indie publisher… so you don't have to apply to get your book published with me, right, like a traditional publisher and face all the rejection. Basically, I will walk you through the process of getting your book from A to Z, step by step. And I will do my very, very best to make it fun and easy. And at the end of the day, you know, it's all about getting your plans together, effectively promoting your book, producing it, getting the thing written… you'll of course have to publish it. I teach how to publish to the big guy, to Amazon… They, you know, they've really changed the face of self-publishing for business owners today. So it's not as daunting as it used to be when it was only traditional publishing... And, of course, the most fun and easy step of them all, which I know we're going to cover on another podcast, so people will have to tune in… is the big P, called "Profit". So how do you then use your book to bring people into your community to serve them, give them valuable content, and ultimately, walk them down the path to doing business with you...

SAMIA: Yeah.

KIM: It's the, it's, you know, it's not about making money selling books… the real money is in the business behind the book. So you want to make sure you're positioning your book properly to maximize profit...

SAMIA: Yes, exactly. I love what you just said about making sure you position your book properly… because I think that sort of...

KIM: ..there's another P, maybe I'm gonna add that in as a module… positioning...

SAMIA: I know, I totally see how the positioning part is a very integral aspect of the profit-making part… and for that matter, even the planning part, you know, the planning P, and so forth. And I think a lot of that has to do with having clarity about why you're writing the book in the first place. Because you could maybe be thinking about writing a book just for your satisfaction, in terms of, you know, like, maybe you want to write a memoir that you just want to share yourself, your life story, life wisdom… that kind of thing. And you have no real intention of utilizing it for business purposes. And so in that case, you know, it'll be a different kind of book, then a book that you're writing wanting to use it to promote your business. And therefore, you know, you have to think about things differently in that… in the context of how you're going to position your book and...

KIM: ..Absolutely.

SAMIA: ...you know, like all of that stuff… So for me, I can begin to see all the connections between all the five P's that you have...

KIM: Yeah, and I mean, you bring up a really great point because you know there are people that do want to write that memoir, they feel like they've got a really big powerful story to tell. When I was doing some PR and media training, which I also help my authors with as well, from the wonderful coaches I had, I brought their knowledge and gleaned what I needed to from them… and I teach this to my students as well… But she used to call it your passion book versus your food book... Another coach that I know calls it the… or sorry… she calls it the heart book versus the food book… this other coach called it the passion versus the profit book... And so your passion or your heart book is, of course, that memoir, your story, right? Your profit book or your food book is the one that puts food on the table, right... It's the one that's going to bring people down the path to working with you. And my take on that, is why can't your book be both? So positioned properly to attract your clients, but then your story, which is exactly what qualifies you to work with the people that you're working with, right... Your life is your PhD, that makes you uniquely qualified to be the coach or the consultant or the teacher or trainer that you are. So I teach people how to position their book as a marketing tool, but then interweave their story about what makes them uniquely them into the book to qualify or to bring credibility to why they're the perfect teacher that somebody should be working with. So…

SAMIA: I love that Kim. And guess what? I did that too, in my book...

KIM: Yes.

SAMIA: Yeah, that was actually one of the really meaningful aspects of the book writing process… being able to weave those two things in together… because like, I think you know, what happens also is in this community of changemakers that we're speaking to… a lot of changemakers, I notice have followed a similar path to me, in the sense that the change-making work that we are inspired to do in our lives, it comes from our having experienced something like… some challenge, some difficulty, some trauma… and what we have gone through and learned in the process of, you know, healing from that, creating positive change in our own lives around that issue… then you know, we are like, we get to a point where we're like… hey, I want to share this with other people... I want to help other people solve this problem, and have an easier time of it than I did, you know… and so our personal stories are, in fact, a really integral part of the work that we're doing and why we're doing it. And so it makes a lot of sense to incorporate our story in our books…

KIM: Yeah, so when somebody comes to me with their autobiography, but I know that they're an entrepreneur, I'm like, hey, you know, what, what have you considered this? Why not write the book that's going to support growing your business, but weave your autobiography in through the stories and the experiences that you share within the pages of your book... And you know, those stories become the glue that attracts people to you and holds your program and your expertise and your thought leadership together. And they definitely should be... It shouldn't be an and/or situation… or sorry… it shouldn't be an “one or the other” situation, it should be an “one AND the other” situation... So I love that. I love that you did that with your book too. And I mean, you spoke and you spoke right to my heart with the, you know… the best coaches and consultants are ones that have gone through some sort of a struggle themselves, they got to the other side of that struggle, and now they're passionate about teaching somebody how to avoid the struggle. I mean, it's the same thing that I did, right... I was a Financial Advisor for 13 years struggling to find clients, wrote the book, had success within 12 months, doubled my income, and then thought… wow, why aren't more entrepreneurs learning better marketing strategies like this? I'm gonna go teach it, right... So it's that whole concept of learn, do, teach… and I love that… and most of the best coaches that's how they came about their business, right...

SAMIA: Yeah. Indeed...

KIM: Yeah.

SAMIA: Thanks so much for sharing all of that amazing wisdom with us Kim… and I… because I know you're going to come back and do a second episode and we are going to talk more about creating money with your book... how to, you know, get to that profit-making piece of things... so we are going to wrap up for today. Do you have any last words to share for right now?

KIM: Well, I want you to know that if you're considering writing a book, if this is your time, and something's tapping you on the shoulder, you've got a big story that you want to share, a big message to bring out to the world, and you want to make that big income, influence and impact in not only your own lives but the lives of the people that are waiting to work with you... And I highly suggest a book is one of the fastest paths to achieve that result. And I'd love the opportunity to help you get there if you want. And I do have a free gift for anyone who is listening right now. So if you want to get that planning piece dialed in, I have a "10-Step Guide to Plan and Write a Client-Attracting Book" and I am happy to share that with you for free... So Samia I'll get the link to that, that you can drop in your show notes...

SAMIA: Awesome, awesome, awesome... That’ll be so fabulous. Thank you so much, Kim. And yes, to all of our listeners, please make sure you check the show notes. I will make sure I include Kim's links in there so you can connect with her and get this fabulous bonus that she's offering also. And just connect with her whenever you're ready. And yeah, until we connect next time, I wish you lots and lots of peace and joy…