Many first-time entrepreneur authors have trouble balancing authority and relatability when writing their books. They’re hesitant to talk about the mistakes they’ve made because they don’t want readers to see them as any less of an expert.
But in reality, sharing your failures allows you to build authenticity with your readers. It makes them trust you more, not less.
Why Sharing Your Mistakes Makes Your Book Stronger
Your mistakes humanize you, and above all, they give readers hope.
Readers need to be able to connect the dots between where they are (deep in the trials of entrepreneurship) and where you are (enjoying the freedom your hard work has bought you). If they believe your path to success was smooth and obstacle-free, that’s going to make it really tough for them to connect those dots.
If the reader loses hope that you’ll be able to help them solve their problem, it becomes pretty unlikely they’ll take the next step after reading your book—whether that’s signing up for your coaching service, purchasing your course, or subscribing to free resources you offer.
Show them that you’ve been where they are, you’ve faced many of the same challenges they have, and you’ve come out on the other side—then tell them how to do that too.
Your knowledge didn’t come easily: It was earned through a sizable investment of your time, money, and energy. So why hide that? Your mistakes and the lessons they taught you are what got you to where you are today.
Sharing these stories with your readers gives them the opportunity to overcome challenges more quickly than you were able to and even avoid some missteps altogether.
The Failure-to-Framework Formula
The key is to turn your mistakes into lessons with tactical action steps your readers can implement. Here’s a step-by-step formula you can follow to do this effectively:
1. Tell the story of your mistake with specifics.
Don’t just say, “I made a hiring mistake once.” Paint the picture. What happened? What did you do wrong? What were the consequences? Your readers need to see the full scope of the mistake to understand why it mattered.
2. Show how you fixed it and what you learned.
After sharing what went wrong, explain how you course-corrected. What did you do differently? What did you learn? This is where you begin to transition from storytelling to teaching.
3. Make it relevant to your reader’s situation.
If your story is specific to your industry or circumstances, help readers see how it applies to them. What does this mistake look like in other contexts? How might it show up in their business?
For a fantastic example of how to make stories relevant to your reader, read Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin. In the book, Jocko and Leif share stories from their time as U.S. Navy SEALs. After telling each story, they extract a leadership principle from it and explain how it applies to business.
4. Give them a framework to avoid or overcome the same misstep.
Then turn your lesson into actionable steps readers can follow. Give them the tactical guidance they need to either avoid making the same mistake or recover if they’re already in it.
For example, you might say “Here’s the hiring process I use now to avoid this mistake” and then lay out the exact steps you now follow.
5. Show the framework in action.
Bring it full circle with a real example—either a client case study or a hypothetical scenario. This helps readers see exactly how to apply your framework in practice and what results they can expect.
Your failures are proof that you’ve walked the path your readers are on. When you share them strategically using this formula, you accomplish two critical things: You build the trust and relatability that draws them in, and you position yourself as a credible authority by giving them actionable guidance they can implement immediately.
If you want more support with this, book a free call to talk to our team. Whether you’ve already started writing or are still in the planning stage, we’ll meet you where you are and help you bring your book to life.
Owner of Aha! Editorial
