Great business books move us and inspire us. If you want to write one, here are four questions you should answer before you write a single word.
Who is my reader?
Note that the question is not “Who are my readers?” Markets don’t buy books. Demographic descriptions don’t buy books. Only people buy books. And only one person will read your book at a time. Writing to one person lets you pack powerful emotion into your book.
Why will he or she buy this book?
People usually buy a book to make progress of some kind. They may want to solve a problem or they may want to do better. Why will they pick up your book? Trace the process your reader will go through leading up to the decision to buy the book. It will give you insight into why they buy.
What do I want them to do when they’re done reading?
What specific action or actions do you want your reader to take? When you know that you can make helpful suggestions about when and how to do things.
How will they feel about doing it?
This really four questions wrapped in one. What benefit will they get if they do what you suggest? What problem will be solved if they do what you suggest? What current habits will be hard to break? What will make them nervous about doing things your way?