It’s been nearly two weeks since I finished the editing of my second manuscript. The whole process took me roughly 6-7 weeks. Nearly everyday, I managed to do 2 pages or more of editing. In the beginning it was hard, the middle I picked up momentum and at the end my head was fried.

When it was done, I was able to knock off 5 “Word” pages, cut approximately 5,000 words and, more importantly, make a complete story.

The editing process of this book was by far the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. There are not alot of things in the world that are hard to me. Just a little thinking and follow through is needed to complete most things. But this process was intense, and mind draining because I had to constantly be honest with myself about each paragraph and line and word. I don’t wish this on my worst enemy. But, the most important part is that it’s done. I gave the book to my new editor for the last time. I know that she will do a great job. Once she is done, I can’t wait to give it out to people to enjoy or hate or be indifferent about it.

But, there is something else that I need to say about the manuscript and the editing process before I return to the real world.

I don’t think I can explain to you how hard it was to edit my work. I wanted to give up so many times because I was using way too much brain power. I’ve never experienced that type of focus and devotion out of myself. The thing that helped me get through it all was applying a couple of lessons from Super Coach. Which was to do a little everyday and if I felt burned out, just chill. It was refreshing to give myself a break. And as each week went by, I saw that I was closer to the finish line than the beginning. At the end, I came to the conclusion that I can do anything that I want to do. So, if I want to create a successful business, I can do that. If I want to create the perfect dinner for my wife: I got it. It doesn’t matter what I want to do, I know that I can do it. It’s refreshing that I’m the only person who can hold myself back on doing whatever it is that I want.

The second thing that I learned about the editing process is that I’m a better writer because of it. It humbles me to realize that I can’t create something great just from the first write. It became routine for me to cut bullshit that I thought was some awesome writing. But as I looked and analyzed and rewrote and came back to, I was able to rewrite the statement, saying and phase the way I imagined it.

With that said, I have no idea where my book will go. I know it is good…to me. To me, the most rewarding part, is that I was truly able to capture the story that has been in my head for over a year and something that took me 4 years to accumulate the experience in order to put it down on the page. I’m thinking about the next book, but I want to focus on finishing my master-plan for this book. I’ll start the next phase in a week or so.