We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Megan Patiry a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Megan , appreciate you joining us today. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

When I abruptly quit my job in college (with no knowledge of how I was going to pay rent) after reading the 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferris … I not only realized the power of words, but that every elevation in life requires risk.

That college retail job was my last 9-5 before becoming a full-time writer and author. I was an English major with a journalism concentration at the time, so I knew writing was my strong suit. After quitting, I put all of those free hours into figuring out how to (quickly) monetize writing. I ended up receiving an internship opportunity with a student news site, and by what seems like a miracle, was published almost immediately on the Huffington Post.

Because that was such a “big” sample to have, I was able to break into the industry pretty quickly.

I often look back and think, “Wow, that really did click into place better than I ever imagined it would, and even though I was scared to death throughout the entire process.”

This taught me a lesson I try to remind myself of whenever I feel myself hesitating to take a risk: most “miracles” occur, not because we’re lucky … but because we take the leap. Without the pressure of quitting my job at such a precarious time, I may have never had the guts to fully “go for it” as a freelancer or writer.

Often, our miracles are already beside us, waiting. Our job is to turn to them, shake their hand, and leap.

Megan , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Whenever I’m asked, “How do you write so well?” I always have this moment where I wonder if the answer is ever going to change. Mainly because it seems like a small thing, or not really a “path” to writing better.

That answer is: to read 3 times more than you write.

I’ve been reading fiction and nonfiction since I could, we’ll … read. I thank my mom for part of this since she was an avid reader and our weekends always featured a library excursion.

I truly believe those stacks of books were like a labyrinth, leading to the center of my career as a writer.

My first solo book, The Alice Effect, was published last year, and I’ve also been featured in several poetry anthologies.

I am also a freelance writer, where I provide copywriting services to tell brands’ stories, plus write articles in the wellness, psychology, and publishing niches. For clients, I provide anything from blogs to email newsletters, and even scripts for videos.

Oddly enough, I’m also great at providing book title ideas. This isn’t an “official” career, but I do have samples of titles. I tend to lean more toward work that offers creative challenges and expansion such as this.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

In many industries, you’ll be encouraged to always follow templates for success. Now, there’s nothing wrong with this for many businesses, but in a creative field … I found that it truly held me back.

Often, massive success arises out of work that breaks the mold. It doesn’t follow the template of everyone else: it creates its own. In artistic fields, this is extremely important. Following trends is good for generating quick income, but it’s limiting, since the price of a copy is never as high as the original.

My best piece of advice if you’re in a creative field like myself is to find your own unique style.

I’ll give an example of this: my book, the Alice Effect, is about how perspective drives everything. And, how if we ever want to innovate, we have to look at things differently. We have to turn them upside down.

So, instead of simply stating this, I decided to visually show it in my book – I started with the last chapter, and counted down to the first. The first chapter was the end of the book.

Why? To illustrate that even things we think could never change … can be changed. And, because the end of a book should be a beginning for the reader. A point, at which, they feel changed. It should be their chapter 1.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

I don’t have a mega audience on Instagram, but I can say that I’ve seen the most growth when I provide two things: actionable value and authenticity.

Provide actionable steps/tips people can use right now, for free. And do it in your own voice and style.

We all love social media accounts that we learn something from and that provides value to us. Always remember the audience and how your content can help them.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://meganpatiry.journoportfolio.com/
• Instagram: meganrosepatiry
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/mwlite/in/meganpatiry

Image Credits
Megan Patiry