Why do you want to write a book? The recent boom of interest in self-publishing has led to an explosion of books being created. While there are positives to this new market, it could also have negative impacts on book quality. Writing a book can be a daunting, time-consuming task. However, it is one of the best things you can do and leave as a legacy. There are many benefits to writing a book. Writing helps you better understand your thoughts and who you are as an individual. It also allows you to contribute to the world by adding to the vast body of knowledge that already exists on the subject. One of the most common reasons people write books is to share experiences, teach lessons, or inspire others. That said, not every idea will make it into books. Some ideas and write-ups are best kept as blog posts and articles. Blog posts and articles are the perfect media for publishing content on a given topic. Blog posts are a great way to share insights and tips for readers, while articles provide in-depth analysis of specific topics. Sometimes these articles and blog posts serve a better and more timely need than if they were written in books. As much as I advise people to write books, I also place a caveat that not everything can turn out as a book or for that matter a great book. This is because the task of writing a book has several pitfalls that need to be avoided. For example, some people don't have the time or discipline to write a book. Others have an idea that isn't likely to sell well in the market. The first governing principle on writing books is the reason for the book. Now, it may seem like an obvious starting point, but many people forget about it or neglect to consider it. If you don't know what your book is about or what you want your readers to get out of reading it, then how can you expect them to buy and read your book? That serves as a precursor for publishing. It informs the option of the right audience, the market, and the specific need. In my book publishing classes, I always assert my belief that authors should clarify their reasons for writing a book before beginning the publishing process. This will give them a clear vision of their goals and what they want to achieve. If they would like to write a book for profit, they can use this information when choosing how much time and effort to put into writing. For authors who are not looking for monetary gain, it helps know if this is something they are willing to sacrifice their time, energy, and money on it. It is clarity that will set the direction of the book publishing project. People write for so many reasons, either to make money, inspire, educate, or gain social status. In a recent Facebook post by the Zimbabwean telecommunications mogul, Strive Masiyiwa, who also founded and presides over Econet in Zimbabwe, Canada, and Zimbabwe respectively; he had this to say “I wanted to reach people who don’t usually read books. I ended up reaching more than 100m according to Facebook!” He believes that a book would have limited him in reaching out to a large number of people. Additionally, he didn’t want people paying for his content, he said: “I did not want people to pay for this material.” So he resorted to using Social Media as a means of sharing his content. He's the go-to guy for entrepreneurs seeking to learn more in the field. He offers deep insights and openly engages with his audience on Facebook. I highly recommend every young entrepreneur follow his page on Social Media to learn more.