Be the lighthouse.

When Maggie Reyes started her blog, she had exactly zero readers.

Well actually, she had one. Her devoted husband.

“You can do it, babe!” he said.

“I know I can!” she said.

Modern Married — Maggie’s blog about falling in love, staying in love, and creating a marriage that feels like a honeymoon — was born.

She started posting inspirational messages and relationship tips online. At first, she had absolutely no readers aside from her husband.

I asked Maggie:

“How did you find the motivation to keep writing even though nobody was paying attention?”

She said:

“I pretended that I was a lighthouse beaming light and love out into the world. I pretended that thousands of people were listening. I wrote as if thousands of people were listening. I never missed a single post because then I’d be letting thousands of people down! I imagined that I was changing thousands of people’s lives by sharing my ideas every day.”

“Finally,” she continued, “A few people started seeing what I was doing. They started sharing it with their friends. Then a few more. Now, a few years later, I am that lighthouse!”

And so it is.

Today:

Modern Married continues to grow. Maggie retired her blog in 2020 and launched The Marriage Life Coach Podcast, which is ranked among the top 2% of podcasts out of over 3 million podcasts tracked by ListenNotes.

She was named one of “the relationship experts to watch” by The Gottman Institute, an award-winning organization that collects scientific data about marriage and divorce.

She runs a thriving practice as a relationship coach and gets paid to help couples build stronger, happier marriages. She is officially living her dream.

Oh, and she’s the author of a mega-bestselling book for couples with more than 3,800 Amazon reviews. (The book was so successful, the publisher did a spin-off card deck too.)

It all happened because Maggie wrote as if the world was already listening.

If you want to be a writer, write. If you want to be a speaker, speak. Whatever you want to do, behave as if it is already your vocation.

Operate like the world is already listening.

Perform like a musician rocking out to a packed stadium, even if (in reality) you’re playing to an audience of one.

Don’t hold back. Don’t be stingy. Give it your all.

Be the lighthouse.

The people who need what you provide will arrive, gathering to bask in your light.