How To Become Dangerously Good (And Fast) Writing Blog Posts

A few helpful things I've learned over the past 10 years distilled in a 4-minute short read

Writing blog posts is probably the best way to build a valuable online audience.

Why?

Because blog posts attract people who can actually read. People with attention spans longer than a baboon. And these turned out to be my best buyers.

But here’s the problem most fellows face:

They think writing quality blog posts has to take forever.

They spend 3 days crafting one post. Rewrite for 10. Then never post it because it’s not “good enough”.

No wonder they burn out after publishing twice.

I’ve probably written 1,000 blog posts over the past 10 years. Most of them don’t get a lot of views. Some of them went viral and racked up millions of views through SEO.

What do they all have in common?

Two things. First, they add new email subscribers to my list. And I then sell online courses and coaching to that same list and quietly make 6-figures with it.

Second, I write most of my blogs in 30-45 minutes.

Good for me? Hah!

Let me show you how to become dangerously good at writing blog posts. Fast.

Step 1: Increase your reps

This sounds obvious.

But the only way to get faster at writing is to write more. A lot more. More than you imagine.

When I started blogging in 2012, it took me an entire day to write one crappy 800-word post.

Then I’d write a sentence. Delete it. Write another one. Delete that too.

It was as slow as watching grass grow. So I’d only publish every now and then.

But in 2022, I decided to write blog posts like clockwork. After a few months, something happened. What used to take me 5 hours now took 1.

Your brain is like a muscle. The more you use it for writing, the stronger it gets.

So step one is to commit to writing at least three to five blog posts per week. Make it your main focus. Forget about funnels. Forget about YouTube. Make writing blog posts your one thing.

Good news? You can do this before you go to work.

Step 2: Always use the same structure

Most people think they need to reinvent the wheel with every blog post.

They don’t.

The secret to writing fast is having a structure you can reuse over and over again.

I have about 3 blog post templates that I rotate between:

• The “Compilation”: A collection of ideas, mistakes, or best practices.

• The “Tutorial”: A step-by-step guide to achieve a specific outcome

• The “Argument”: A piece where I make a point and prove it with.. ehem... yes... arguments.

That’s it.

Each post has an intro and a conclusion.

Then all I do is map out my 3-10 ideas per post, depending on the template. So if it’s an argument, I map out three to ten arguments. If it’s a tutorial, I map out three to ten steps. And if it’s a compilation, I map out three to seven “things”.

And this is something that I never outsource to AI, by the way.

Step 3: Find a good headline

Your blog post is completely useless if nobody clicks on it.

And if you want to be able to click, you need to have a good headline. Headlines (or Titles if you prefer) used to be one of my biggest time-wasters.

I’d write the entire post, then spend two hours trying to come up with the perfect headline.

That’s backwards.

Now I write the headline first. It gives me direction for the entire post.

Look what’s already working. I’m not talking about carbon-copying someone else. I’m talking about using proven headline formulas and topics and adding your own spin to ‘em.

I’ve seen many times articles about “stop building an audience” going viral on Medium.

This gives you two insights: Number one, you can actually model that same headline. And number two, you can model that same angle. And then populate it with your ideas.

Don’t try to be original. Adapt what’s already working.

If you want some inspiration, click here to get a free cheat sheet with 21+ headline examples that are working right now. (It’s free)

Step 4: Now just write (or draft with AI)

Once you have your outline and headline, writing becomes paint-by-numbers.

Each section has a big idea. Simply expand on it.

For each subsection, I write three to five sentences that illustrate the main point. That’s it.

I don’t overthink it. I don’t try to be Shakespeare. I sometimes also use AI for it (after prompting it with my ideas + style)

I make the point. I give an example, an analogy, more context, or a story.

This cuts editing time with a chainsaw. When each section has a clear purpose, there’s less fluff to cut out later.

Most people write these meandering, stream-of-consciousness posts that take forever to edit. They bury their points in unnecessary words.

Keep it simple. One point per section. Support it. Move on.

Step 5: Let it breathe

Now you have a solid first draft.

Let it breathe for 1-3 days and go back to it with fresh eyes. You won’t need to rewrite the whole thing, because your outline and structure are solid.

Simply spot:

• Repetitions

• Things you could make more specific

• Sentences that you could shorten

This takes 10-15 minutes.

Anyone can be a prolific blog post writer in their spare time

I don’t have a 9-5.

But I’m not chained to my computer either. I work only in the mornings, yet make six figures a year writing.

This framework looks simple. But it took me years to find out. Now, go ahead and have some fun with it.

PS: I wrote this in 25 minutes.