When I was a dentist, I thought writers were either best-selling authors or living in their mother's basements.

I never believed it was a viable career choice.

But I started writing in the mornings before work as a creative outlet.

Four years later, my words reach 250,000 people—and those words have earned 7 figures.

Here’s what I learned:

The great online opportunity (and problem)

The internet is the greatest opportunity to do work you love.

And writers lead this path. Good writing is a signal of clear thinking. It creates authority, swinging open doors of opportunity. You can write about ideas you believe in, attract an audience, solve problems you’re passionate about, and be rewarded well.

What a time to be alive.

But all good things have a dark side.

In this case, a sea of almost infinite noise. People think ‘attention is the new oil’ and there’s a mad rush to cash in. But we’re focused on the dollars and not the data. It’s estimated over 90% of oil companies crashed and burned in the first few decades.

The same will happen online.

Superficial content is flooding the market. Creators are fighting to be heard. Low quality offers lurk behind many corners.

Social media has given us the keys to the kingdom. But instead of creative freedom, we end up slaves to an algorithm.

Walk the conventional path and you'll find yourself trapped on a hamster wheel.

Creating content without passion, attracting an audience without purpose. Becoming a commodity, not an authority.

Which is why I put together this essay.

The Magnetic Writer Manifesto

If the internet is plagued with superficial brands, the reward for depth has never been higher. Audiences crave authenticity. They crave connection. They crave quality information.

This manifesto shares 7 principles to help you stand out as a writer.

But a note.

These ideas are not for everyone.

If you’re looking to make a quick buck or hack your way to the ‘top’, I’d be happy to point you to growth gurus on their respective social media platforms.

(there is no top—behind mountains are more mountains—so you might as well do the journey right).

But if you're ready to build something worthwhile, a business that lasts, a business that makes an impact at scale, then welcome.

You’re in the right place.

Let's chat about the first principle.

PRINCIPLE 1: Don’t follow the crowd. Follow your curiosity

I just finished re-reading 1984.

I love dystopian stories that expose the dark side of humanity.

In Orwell's world, the state controls the people.

They have their own language (Newspeak), brainwashing (the 2 Minute Hate), and if you think individually (Thoughtcrime), you’re whisked off to be tortured, pacified, or killed.

I don’t believe we’ll get to this point (although my friend tells me us Brits aren’t doing too great).

But governments aren’t the real threat.

We are.

The issue?

The pull of incentives

“Man is born free but everywhere he is in chains.” — Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Charlie Munger once said to understand behaviour, understand incentives.

Incentives are things we stand to gain.

For example, as I write this, there’s a box of cookies in the kitchen. I wish I didn’t think about them. Because now there’s a high chance I’ll make a cup of tea and devour them after this email.

Short term gain, long term pain.

Now, not all incentives are bad. But it's human nature to do bad things to acquire the best rewards—we always want the hack, the shortcut, the cheat code.

But the best things cannot be rushed.

Consider attention—the ultimate box of digital cookies.

The reason writing is so powerful is because you can reach the world.

But how you earn attention is more important than how fast.

It’s not something we should binge on, but slowly enjoy. If you want a durable business, quality is more important than quantity.

This is hard for our monkey-minds to compute. We’ve never had so much dopamine so freely available.

Just take a look at social media.

Everyone sounds the same.

Growth gurus give boilerplate tactics promising rewards of fame. But follow their advice for a year and you realise you’re building on foundations of sand. And there’s a tidal wave of noise incoming to wash away commodity creators.

Now, I'm no saint.

I've smoked my fair share of the digital dopamine crack pipe.

But algorithms are like 1984’s overlords. They’re creating a society devoid of uniqueness. Clones without creativity.

But online, you’re not killed for standing out.

You’re rewarded.

You are your best differentiator

The quality of your writing is directly related to your ability to resist temptation.

Because the path of least resistance leads to the place of most difficulty:

The noisy middle.

This is why Magnetic Writers follows their curiosity, not the crowd. They focus less on what they ‘should do’ and more on what they want to do.

Your uniqueness should permeate through the content you create, the ideas you pursue, and the offers you build.

At first, you’ll be punished for this pursuit.

You’ll see peers catapult ahead as they ride the next trend. But you’re heading to a better destination. Your tribe is out there—waiting to feel the pull of your passion.

Your north star

Tim Ferriss once said to get better answers, ask better questions.

When you think about what to write and build, don’t ask what the crowd asks:

• Will this go more viral?
• Will this give me more status?
• Will this make me more money?

And if curiosity is your north star...

Specificity is the secret to slicing through the noise.

PRINCIPLE 2: Specificity Creates Authority

Each year, I have a Christmas reunion with my university friends.

In our last one, I had a few too many drinks and split my rum and coke on my friend’s lush cream carpet. In the morning, we began a hungover quest for a cleaner.

There was an abundance of choice.

But the person we picked was a no brainer.

His name?

The Rug Doctor.

He came. He saw. He conquered (and cleaned).

We paid a premium and trusted his every word. Now I’m writing an email about him to thousands of people.

This is the power of specificity.

Reputation requires focus

With so much noise, building a reputation as a generalist is impossible.

If you try to serve everyone, you end up going nowhere.

Think of it like a shotgun vs a sniper.

A shotgun spreads wide but doesn't go far.

A sniper has incredible power in one direction. Your brand should be the same. You want to burst through the crowd and into the other side.

The aim is to become well known for something, and use that reputation as a springboard for future success.

Specificity creates authority. It builds trust. It gives a competitive moat that helps you weather the storm of saturation.

Most importantly, it turns you into a magnet for those you can serve most.

Naval Ravikant once said, "Become the best in the world at what you do. Keep redefining it until that's true.”

Let's discuss four ways you can follow his advice:

Layer One: Who You Serve

Your business exists to help one person win.

The internet isn't your local town with hundreds of customers. Last year, 5.5 billion users were online. Serve just 0.001% and you've got 55,000 potential customers.

And like Kevin Kelly says, you only need 1,000 true fans to make a real impact.

This is why a Magnetic Writer focuses on their One True Fan—the person they serve best. Nail your message for this person and it's only a matter of time till you attract thousands.

Online, we band together based on how we think and feel. Focus on:

• Problems
• Pains
• Fears
• Doubts
• Frustations
• Desires
• Dreams

Understand where your reader is now. Help them get to where they want to be.

Which leads us to redefinition number 2.

Layer 2: What Problem You Solve

Online, reputation spreads like wildfire.

There are no geographical boundaries to stop your name reaching those in pain. Solve many problems and you weaken your brand's magnetism. Solve one problem and you supercharge it.

Picking the right problem is a combination of three criteria:

• Something you're good at
• Something you're passionate about
• Something people will pay money to solve right now (a ‘bleeding neck’)

People say passion isn't necessary in business. Nonsense. No one can compete with an entrepreneur having fun. And enthusiasm seeps into the page as you write.

But you can’t just be useful to stand out in a crowded market.

You must be unique.

Layer 3: How You Solve It

Understand:

Your future customers have tried other solutions. Position yourself as their missing link through unique frameworks, terms, systems, and stories.

The aim is to build an island of ideas so that when your One True Fan finds you, they never want to leave.

You’re seeing this in action right now with this Manifesto essay. I’m inviting you into my world. Some will love it, others will think I’m talking baloney (who do you think I serve?).

Layer 4: Why People Should Care

In a world of superficiality, the best way to stand out is to have a deeper why.

This is the point of purpose: To attract the people who feel the same.

Sure, you’ll catch attention talking about followers, dollars, and surface level desires. But you create fans when you construct a Message of Meaning—when you get your audience saying “Hell Yeah” instead of “Yeah Yeah”.

While your competition fight for attention, you'll build your own category.

While they compete on price, you'll command premium rates.

While they chase everyone, perfect clients will chase you.

That’s what sets a Magnetic Writer apart.

So...

Follow your curiosity. Layer on specificity.

And now it's time to craft a deeply resonating message.

PRINCIPLE 3: Create a Message with Meaning

A lesson I wish I learned four years ago:

If everyone likes your writing, no one loves it.

When you try to please everyone, you please no one. The aim is to get your reader to say "Hell yeah" not "Yeah yeah”.

To do so, you must be polarising.

Consider our magnet analogy.

For a magnet to be effective, it needs a positive and negative node.

This mirrors how humans think. We respond to both positive and negative forces. But our monkey minds have skewed our perspective: we pay more attention to the negative.

This is why the news and politics are so poisonous—why appeal to what you love when I can tap into what you fear?

Now, I'm not suggesting you become a dick or rely on clickbait for attention.

But the lesson is there, loud and clear:

There is no room for a weak message in a crowded market.

You can’t grow your business if your audience don’t care.

If you want them to know what you stand for, they must know what you stand against.

Your Core Values

Now, this essay is about you. Not me. But I’d struggle to show you the power of values without a monologue. Please humour me for 5 minutes. You’ll see how to apply this to your own content.

First, here are my core values:

• Freedom
• Mastery
• Impact
• Character
• Truth

By themselves, these words are hollow.

But when you define your values, you bring them to life. They impact every choice and consequence—shaping your reality. And like magnets, they draw in the people you're meant to serve.

People you can serve.

If you don't know your values, I recorded a mini course sharing how to decide them here.

Now let's chat about what to do with them.

How to express your values.

Once you know your core values, ask:

• What does this mean to me? (positive node)
• What pisses me off about it? (negative node)

Let’s run through mine.

Freedom

I value being able to do what I want, where I want, when I want.

I want to be free from anxiety, fear, and (too much) stress. When I give these things up, I know I’ve strayed from my most important principle.

What pisses me off is that society sells freedom as a retirement gift. A carrot dangled at the finish line of a 40-year marathon—keeping us running until our legs give out.

From the day we’re born, we’re force fed the idea that success is measured in fame, not freedom. And so we chase money and status without realising these are the things that keep us in chains.

They are not the point of life, but tools to live it well.

We’re always chasing, comparing, and competing. But if you understand that the point is not to win, but to enjoy, you can be free. Right here, right now.

Mastery

Everyone has something they can be great at.

What pisses me off is that we have never had such an opportunity to make that statement a reality.

But instead of taking advantage, we’re perpetually distracted.

We give away our attention without understanding the cost. We expect instant results without understanding good things take time. We're too scared to take risks despite never being more secure.

Character

Character is being clear on, and sticking to, your principles.

It’s about reacting well, treating people fairly, finding the positive angles. It’s about being the person you say you are. Not just when it’s easy, but when life throws 10 tonnes of shit your way.

What pisses me off is inauthenticity and superficiality.

I don’t like to associate with people whose principles shift at the slightest wiff of an issue or short-term incentive. Victim mentality, pessimism, selfishness, dishonesty are all traits of weak character.

Impact

Zig Ziglar once said, “you get to what you want from life when you help other people get what they want.”

It’s one of my favourite quotes.

To stop obsessing over the self, we should commit to something bigger than ourselves. We should solve problems and strive to be useful.

What pisses me off is when people expect the world yet give the world nothing. We’d would much happier if we got off our phones, switched off our TVs, and got to work.

Truth

I value truth—from myself and the world around me. I added this to my list recently.

Why?

Because I realised almost every unhappy outcome in my life was a result of dishonesty—usually with myself. I'm a recovering people pleaser who never trusted my intuition.

But it’s better to live an uncomfortable truth than a comfortable lie.

This is why I stand against fakeness on a societal level.

Underneath the myriad of lies there is a beautiful reality rolling by. We're just too distracted to notice it.

Who are you?

Phew, monologue over.

Some people have zoned out reading that stuff. But you're still here.

And that’s the point.

I'm not writing for everyone. I'm writing for you. You gave me 5 minutes of your time because you agree with some or all of what I've said.

Or you think I'm crazy.

Either way, we've established polarity.

I'm forcing you to pick a side.

Are you with me or not?

And that's what you need to do. Once you know your values, you should express them in everything you create:

• Content
• Emails
• Offers
• (Life)

This way, people know if they’re in the right place when they enter your world.

This work isn't easy. You have to reflect and think for yourself.

That's precisely why it matters. Self-awareness is rare. But it's important for your business (and for living an intentional life).

Set aside some time and:

1. Reflect on your core values. Decide 3-5.
2. Write out what they mean to you.
3. What pisses you off as related to each?
4. Write some 'negative node' content for each

And speaking of content...

If you want to be a Magnetic Writer, you must be a master of persuasion. The point is to attract, to pull people into your world.

And there are 5 pillars of persuasive writing to help you achieve this.

PRINCIPLE 4: Use The Power of Persuasion

There's a common expression online:

Content is your credentials.

I can confirm this more than most.

Three years ago, I was a dentist staring in mouths for a living. Today, my writing business makes $500k/year, yet I have no business or writing qualifications.

The Internet doesn't care about your degree. It cares about your results.

It celebrates passion and persistence.

That's what makes Magnetic Writing powerful—you attract attention to your mission.

Your job is to prove:

• How you help
• What makes you different
• That you understand your customer
• And you’re worth investing in

Fail and you’re stuck in the crowd—shouting but not heard. Selling but not bought.

Succeed and content becomes a magnet for opportunity.

Let’s run through the 5 pillars of persuasive writing:

• Personal
• Practical
• Polarising
• Proof
• Predictions

Personal

If you want to survive the next decade, personal content is crucial.

Why?

Because we're at the start of an AI revolution. Many careers may not even exist in 2 years. But the desire for connection is deep seated in our nature. The more we talk to robots, the more we will crave the human touch.

Your brand reflects your passion. It helps people relate.

And so you must double down on personal perspective content:

• Share knowledge you earned though experience, not learned in a book
• Be open about your flaws and mistakes (without harming your biz)
• Frame your advice through stories
• Swap “How To’s” to “How I’s”
• Build in public

Nobody can compete with you at being you.

Practical

Some people say free content doesn't work. Horseshit. Bad content doesn't work. Content without a sales funnel doesn’t work.

Almost everyone I've paid helped me for free first.

The secret:

Don’t give away the keys to the kingdom, but share a taste of what your audience can achieve. They pay attention to your useful ideas, then pay you money to implement your systems.

And remember…

You don't need to be a pro to give useful advice. Don't write because you're an expert. You write to become one.

Polarising

Being useful and personal isn't enough.

Polarisation is one of the oldest bond-building tactics in the playbook. Religion, politics, nationalism—take your pick.

If you want people to stand with you, give them something to stand against.

We already discussed a great way to be polarising through your values.

Another technique?

Contrast.

Go onto your competitors' social media profiles. List everything they say that you disagree with.

Then build your brand and business around the answers.

Your audience is seeing the same thing as you.

Show them why the world is wrong (and if you articulate yourself well enough, they'll think you're right).

Proof

Let me tell you a mistake I made last year.

I wasn't taking on high-ticket clients, so I didn’t see the point of posting much proof.

I wanted less commitments in my calendar, not more.

But marketing is a game of perception. And the Internet is full of fakers. This means the default state of an audience is skepticism.

You can't just talk the talk. You must walk the walk.

And most importantly, you must be your own cheerleader as you do it. Your profile should an ode to how you help.

Small wins are proof. Client interactions are proof. Podcast interviews are proof. Testimonials and case studies are proof on steroids.

Try my trust-litmus test:

If someone finds you on social media, how long does it take to see proof? How about your email list?

If it's longer than a minute, you have a business bottleneck.

Throw away the growth-guru tactics and write for your business instead.

Predictions

It's human nature to seek certainty in an uncertain world.

One of the simplest ways to persuade people you're worth paying attention to is to predict where your industry is heading.

These can be:

• Positive predictions. Encouraging people to take action in a certain direction.
• Negative predictions. Highlighting mistakes that will lead to ruin.

Predictions feel risky, but they’re not really.

If you’re wrong, no one remembers.

If you’re right, everyone thinks you’re a genius.

For example, my competitors encourage my audience to write with AI.

But if everyone writes with a robot...

Audience's are only going to crave more connection. The writers with the human touch will win.

Plus, writing is thinking.

And so outsourcing it is dumb. We're in the business of ideas.

My prediction is that those who resist the path of least resistance, win.

Bringing it together

These five pillars belong at every touchpoint:

• Social media (bio, pinned posts, content)
• Email (lead magnets, welcome sequences, newsletter)
• Offers (products, community, coaching—in sales and delivery)

This persuasive pull helps you charge premium prices. It positions you as the go-to person in your niche. It keeps you top of mind amid infinite noise.

While others fight for attention, you'll attract an audience that search for you in their feed and inbox.

And that’s a powerful position to be in.

It means you have a message that people love.

And with leverage, the impact of this is insane.

PRINCIPLE 5: Play the Long Term Leverage Game

Leverage is the key to freedom.

I realised this 2 years ago.

An idea from James Clear stopped me in my (busy) tracks:

Compounding assets include:

• Skills
• Reputation
• An email list
• An audience
• Unique ideas
• Relationships
• A productized offer

These assets create leverage.

Leverage creates freedom.

Freedom gives you space to think.

And thinking is how you succeed as a writer. Not only will you write more clearly, but your creativity and judgment will skyrocket. And in an age of almost infinite leverage, these are the two most important skills.

The biggest risk to your long-term freedom is the “Money Now Trap”.

This is where you get stuck chasing and fulfilling clients.

You have no time to build assets that will grow your business for you.

For example, when I started online, my friends raced to 20-30k/months 10x faster than me.

But they‘re still there now. Hustling but barely moving. They don't have an email list or engaged audience.

Nor do they have systems, automations, and processes.

They weren't capitalizing on the real online opportunity:

The army of robots at your disposal. Every word and automation will work tirelessly to build relationships and generate revenue.

Let me give you an example.

How writing equals freedom

I run my business through Notion.

When I write, my VA uploads to Hypefury to post across 4 social media platforms.

Under these posts, we share assets in exchange for email addresses. Convertkit automatically sends my best ideas, resources, and products.

When someone buys High Impact Writing, they enter a post-purchase email series.

For 4 weeks, they receive valuable content plus natural recommendations for my other products. My ‘offer ecosystem’ consists of ten assets that cost almost zero time to deliver.

What this means:

I can write a 2-minute social media post that leads to potentially hundreds of hours of content consumed, value added, and generates thousands of dollars of revenue.

This leads me to our sixth principle—and one of the smartest uses of leverage.

PRINCIPLE 6: Earn With Your Mind and Not Your Time

Your mind is your greatest asset.

And as a writer, you can use the ideas bouncing around in your skull to create massive impact.

You can make your words work for you.

How?

Productize your knowledge.

This doesn't necessarily mean charging for ideas. It means replicating them so they can serve your audience at scale.

• Reply to an email? Turn it into a tweet
• Send a newsletter? Post to your site
• Build a framework? Create a lead magnet
• Solve a problem? Release a product
• Create a transformation? Build a cohort

This way, you're not stuck chasing linear results.

Especially once you automate, delegate, and systemize your processes.

Like Clear said, each year should get easier.

The more you build, the more leveraged and impactful your writing becomes.

And your income is a by-product of your impact.

A good question for your projects:

Are you building what your future self will thank you for?

Build smart and make it count.

And this leads us to our final principle.

PRINCIPLE 7: Carve Your Own Path

In January 2025, I started writing my first book.

I'd been dragging my feet on this for a year.

I was always ‘too busy’.

But writing books is my dream. And I was unhappy in my business because I wasn't doing what I wanted.

Are you making the wrong decision?

Naval Ravikant once said: "The only test of intelligence is if you get what you want from life."

I think about this often.

There are a lot of smart unhappy people, and I'd hate to be one of them. But it's too easy to make choices that make you miserable. Usually due to incentives like money or status.

But lurking underneath these drivers, it's fear.

When I think about the book, I'm terrified it'll flop.

It might expose that I'm not as good a writer as people think. Or confirm that whisper in my head: "You're not that interesting and no one cares."

The smart move would be sticking to emails and products.

Because at least that’s safe.

Playing things safe is just another way of slowly dying. It's why Benjamin Franklin (reportedly) said, “Most people die at 25 but aren’t buried until 75.”

You must remember:

You might ask: What does this have to do with Magnetic Writing?

Simple.

The best writers are pioneers.

It's your job not to hide in the crowd. It's your job to carve your own path and invite the world along for the ride.

The internet will reward you for taking risks

I learned this when I quit dentistry to write online. But your moves don’t have to be so grandiose. It just has to be unique to you.

Because few people have the balls (or ovaries) to do what they want.

Take this essay for example.

I was speaking to a copywriting friend recently, and I explained that I'd love to write more about philosophy. But it’s not ‘optimal’ for my business. As the words left my mouth, I realized I sounded like a little bitch.

…which she politely confirmed.

So here we are.

Talking philosophy.

If you're only here for tangible writing tips you might think this principle is crap.

But I care deeply about what I do with my life.

I'm hoping you might read this and think, “hell yeah, me too”.

If not, that's okay.

As a writer, it's not your job to please everyone.

In fact, if no one hates your content, no one loves it.

This is what Naval Ravikant meant by 'escape competition through authenticity.'

You gotta do your thing.

If you let fear dictate your direction, don't be surprised when you end up somewhere shit.

This is true for content, business, and life.

If fear is the enemy, then the solution is joy

I can't preach about being fearless.

Every big decision still sends me running to my business mentor-turned-therapist.

But here's what I’ve learned:

When faced with two decisions, pick the one that scares you.

Because fear is just your mind telling where you'll grow most.

You create your best content when you feel alive.

You build your best business when you love what you do.

You make the most impact when you step into the unknown.

Magnetic Writing is about attraction.

And people are attracted to energy.

'Do what you want' is simple to say but hard to execute. But it's worth every uncertainty, every doubt.

It's how you'll become a writer worth paying attention to.

It's how you'll enjoy your life most, too.

And isn't that the point?

There's never been a better time to get what you want. You’ve just got to take the leap and go for it.

Hope this essay helped,

Kieran