Use your experiences to build a business, help others

I work with lots of people who want to tell their stories. In many cases, these people feel their lives are so interesting that they must write books and share their experiences with others. The only problem is that most people's personal stories are interesting only to their friends and family. So I help these people turn their stories into books that can be of interest to a wider audience. I do this by looking beyond simply the person's story and seeing the needs of the reader.

Many people have experiences that teach them something, provide insight or give them a different perspective. In such an instance, sharing the story can be helpful to others. The key is to share the story in such a way that it engages the reader and helps the reader, and doesn't just drone on and on about the author's life or experiences. Unless you're a celebrity, the public most likely won't care enough about the mundane details of your life to read a whole book about it. No matter how interesting you think it is.

But this doesn't mean your story shouldn't be told. Just do what I just said: Tell it in a way that helps your reader, and doesn't just pump up your ego. Memoirs or personal stories must have the right elements.

Most people need help telling their stories in this way. So don't be afraid to reach out to a ghostwriter who can help you properly craft the story. When I am working on a ghostwriting project, I try to maintain the client's voice, tell his or her story AND make it a book that is actually marketable by tapping into universal themes and information to help the audience, the reader. It's not always an easy process, but so far, I've been able to turn every ghostwriting project, no matter how mundane the client's story, into something others would actually pay to read.

Our lives provide many opportunities for us to help others. Whether you are a professional, business owner, teacher, clergy member, activist or someone else with information and a passion, you can turn what you know into a new revenue stream for yourself and a tool to help others. Maybe this will be the start of a new business. Maybe it will be a timely addition to a business you already have. Or maybe it'll simply be a way for you to help others in the way you see fit.

Consider your own life. What you may have initially seen as a bunch of heartache and drama that you had to go through, may actually be the basis for helping others.

Did you go through a rough divorce and somehow managed to hold onto your sanity and now, you can actually have a decent conversation with your ex about the children? Maybe you have unique insight to help others navigate divorce and have an amicable relationship with the ex afterward.

Did you find yourself downsized, broke and bankrupt but now you've recovered financially? Maybe your experience gave you some practical tips that you can share with others to help them get through one of the most devastating times of their lives.

Maybe you had cancer and now you're in remission and living a whole different life. Perhaps your experience gave you a new perspective.

Any life-changing -- and quite frankly, painful -- life experience can get you thinking about writing a book. But the key to turning that experience and that book into something more people than just your friends will read is to relate it to others.

From there, you can build a business, organization or other idea around that experience or book. You may find that what you thought was the biggest mess of your life turns out to be the biggest blessing. If you do it right.