The Shiny Object Syndrome for Writers

Award-winning writer Kathy Widenhouse has helped hundreds of nonprofits and writers produce successful content and has gained 600K+ views for her writing tutorials. She is the author of 9 books. See more of Kathy’s content here.

Posted 9.17.24

I stared at the list of subject lines that popped into my email inbox. If I wasn’t careful, I’d give in to the Shiny Object Syndrome once again. You know — get distracted and chase the latest writing tool or idea that others tell me is certain to grow my writing business.

My index finger hovered over the links that read …

Build your writing empire in 1 hour a day

Why was I spending more than 60 minutes slogging through research and drafts and editing? This magic bullet might be my answer to saving time!

The future of search is here — let’s discuss it

Thank goodness that someone is willing to explain to me all the ups and downs that go along with Google algorithms. If I just click on this and pay for the coaching, all my confusion will disappear.

The ultimate non-techie website guide

If anyone needs help with website tech, it’s me. Never mind that I’ve been successfully operating my website for more than two decades. This guide could be just the answer to my cyber insecurity.

Help me choose my book cover

Ooh, I liked this guy’s last book. Now, he’s writing a new one — and he’s asking for my feedback! He must really value my opinion (along with that of all the thousands on his email list.)

There was a time when I would have clicked on each of these subject lines. As evidence, my desktop is littered with logins and passwords for courses I will complete someday. I’ve got a couple of hundred free eBooks I’ve downloaded. (They’re filed topically in fifty or sixty folders, resting peacefully in my Documents.)

But this day, I didn’t give in — though I was sorely tempted.

What is the Shiny Object Syndrome?

’m always looking for new ways to improve my writing skills and grow my writing business. My problem isn’t a willingness to try new things.

My problem is called the Shiny Object Syndrome (SOS). It’s the belief that the latest tool that comes to my attention is the answer to my writing success.

If you’re an SOS writer, you indulge in all kinds of new ideas (articles, courses, books, methods, systems, plans, guides, downloadables, trainings, workbooks, bundles) at the expense of what you’ve already planned or put into practice. In other words, you think everyone knows better than you. You spend inordinate amounts of time investigating everyone else’s methodology for writing better and making money with your words.

The Shiny Object Syndrome is particularly dangerous for writers

In the non-writing realm, people cave to the Shiny Object Syndrome for another set of reasons. New ideas or opportunities alleviate boredom. These are the folks who buy the latest car to come on the market … chase a lead role on the company’s latest project while heading up three initiatives already … are among the first guests at the new restaurant on the corner. The Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) drives the chase after every novelty or trend.

But for freelance writers, the Shiny Object Syndrome is not merely a distraction. You wonder why your writing hasn’t gained traction. So you become enamored with finding “just the trick” to propel you to writing stardom and you chase one object after another after another.

However, the real problem is much more basic than all those shiny objects. More on that in a minute. First …

Do you have these Shiny Object Syndrome symptoms?

You know you’re an SOS victim if you …

• Constantly start new projects (and never finish others). You find it hard to complete anything you write because you regularly shift your focus to fresh, exciting ideas.
• Are impulsive. On a whim, you decide to start a new website or pursue clients in a different niche without thoroughly evaluating the market, planning a strategy, or counting the cost.
• Overcommit. You take on more projects or responsibilities you can realistically manage in the amount of time you’ve allotted for your writing.
• Feel overwhelmed. Stress and anxiety rise — while vitality and creativity nosedive — as you add ideas and projects to your pipeline.
• Make inconsistent progress. Projects proceed slowly or remain incomplete because you frequently shift your attention from one to another.
• Neglect your priorities. You miss deadlines. Clients call to ask, “Where’s the draft?” You skip publishing your weekly newsletter — again. You overlook your long-term plans to build your business or your short-term responsibilities in favor of a potentially exciting, low-risk opportunity.
• Lack clarity. This is the biggee. Do you struggle to set clear long-term writing goals or create a strategic plan to grow your writing skills and your reach?

If one or more of these characteristics is you, then read on.

The big problem: no goal , no plan

It’s easy to succumb to SOS when you haven’t defined what writing success looks like for you and what you’ll do to achieve it.

“For entrepreneurs, (the Shiny Object Syndrome) can mean new business ideas, or products or services that aren’t part of their current business plan,” says Jodie Cook in Forbes. “They have an urge to try this new thing that someone seems to be doing successfully.”

It’s not that new things are inherently bad. It’s just that you allow them to waylay your plan. And that assumes you have a plan.

That’s the key problem I see among the writers I coach: no goal and no plan. I hear, “I want to share my ideas with the world,” rather than, “This year, my goal is to create 100 pieces of practical content for mothers of multiples so they can avoid the post-partum challenges I faced when I had my twins.”

How to overcome the Shiny Object Syndrome

With no goal and no plan, you are easily distracted into chasing the next best thing.

For instance, you hear that Ms. Online Writing Specialist is gaining thousands of clicks with Her XYZ Method. Or Mr. Always-A-Bestseller has the sole ideal formula for book sales. You itch to follow their lead.

But before you jump on any bandwagon, you need to know where you’re going. What are your writing goals? How will you achieve them? If you’ve not done so, create your own simple strategic plan by answering a few questions.

1. Where are you now?
2. Where are you going?
3. How will you get there?

Then, weigh every new opportunity (AKA shiny object) against your plan. Be ruthless. Will the shiny object help you achieve your current goals — that is, help you “get there”?

If the answer isn’t an unequivocal yes, then take a pass.

Start with one simple goal

My first months of writing were filled with doubt. My children had yet to attend college. I’d just left the military. My husband was learning a new skill and wasn’t yet generating much income.

But I had a clear writing goal: get writing clients to generate income that could help support my family while my husband onboarded to his new career. I was nervous and wracked with uncertainty. I had a limited time horizon and I had to act efficiently.

So when shiny objects came my way, I selected a handful that helped me reach that goal — how to set up a website, how to create a prospecting package, and how to approach clients to get work. And I discarded others that might get me off track.

Once I achieved my initial writing goal (a stable of paying clients and a full-time writing income), I set another. And repeated the process.

The real magic bullet to writing success

It’s okay to feel uncertain about your writing future. It’s wise to get insight from writers who have been there. It’s smart to examine the shiny objects that can help you reach your goals.

Just don’t become a full-time shiny object chaser.

“Most people say yes to shiny objects,” says 7-figure online entrepreneur Tim Denning. “They chase every opportunity, therefore never going all in on one opportunity and becoming successful.”

Don’t be one of them. Instead, do what Tim says: go all in on one opportunity. You overcome the Shiny Object Syndrome by defining a writing goal, creating a plan to achieve it, and then working on your plan. That process is the true key to your writing success.

By all means, choose the shiny objects that will help you to achieve your goal.

Ignore the rest.

Then, your desktop won’t be littered with unfinished trainings. Your files won’t be packed with luscious information you’ll never use.

Instead, you’ll be among those who are full-time catchers … rather than full-time chasers.

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