The Simmonds Signal

Write to bring peace to your mind. Write to create financial abundance. Write to find your people. Write to discover your personal path to spirituality. Write to know yourself. Write.

Insights, actionable tips, and philosophies for writers, creatives, and storytellers…

Do you journal?

I do now.

At 30 years old, I’ve finally made it a daily habit.

Something I wish I started 10 years ago. If I had, maybe I wouldn’t have wasted so much of my life feeling lost.

Because journaling changes you.

• It clears the fog in your head

• It helps you untangle emotions trapped beneath your awareness

• It forces you to face the real you, not the one you pretend to be

But the biggest shift?

It’s not journaling itself. It’s what you journal about.

Because sometimes, I write things that make me feel like a traumatized kid again.

Things I’ve buried so deep, I forgot they exist—until they boil their way to the surface and refuse to be ignored.

And today?

Today was one of those days.

I sat there, writing, and an emotional wave from my childhood just took over me. I had to sit in it. Had to let the tears come because, honestly, I had no other choice.

In that moment, I was that kid again.

(I’m the one on the right).

The lonely, socially awkward kid who struggled to make friends.

• The one who never quite fit in

• The one who watched everyone else form friendships like it was easy

• The one who tried to connect, only to be reminded, over and over again, that I was alone

The pain became so great that I stopped trying.

I Retreated.

I disappeared into video games, where rejection didn’t exist (I even fell in love with a video game character or two).

I chose solitude, not because I wanted to, but because I didn’t know what else to do.

And that feeling of being invisible. Of not mattering it never really left me.

I’ve learned how to make friends now. I’ve cultivated healthy relationships. Built a great business. And built a life I no longer feel the need to escape from.

But that childhood wound?

It’s still there.

And today, as I wrote, I realized how much that pain still influences my thoughts, goals, and decisions:

Everything I do…

• Writing

• Creating

• Teaching

• Building businesses

Is just me trying to prove to myself that I matter.

That I matter to someone other than myself.

• Every time someone tells me my words helped them…

• Every time a Growth Ghost student lands a client…

• Every time someone reaches out and says, “This changed my life”…

It’s like I’m looking that little kid in the eyes and telling him:

“See? You do matter.”

If I'm brutally honest with myself, that’s why I do this.

• That’s why I write these emails

• That’s why I teach people how to design meaningful lives

• That’s why I partnered on Growth Ghosts—to help others transition into a writing career that has actual earning potential. A career that gives our students a sense of meaning and confidence that they can achieve something great.

Because I know what it feels like to drift.

To feel like life is happening to you, not because of you.

To numb yourself with distractions instead of facing the truth.

And if I could go back? If I could shake my younger self awake sooner?

I would.

But I can’t.

So instead, I do this.

I offer others the same guidance I wish I could offer to my younger self.

And every time you open these emails, every time you reply, every time you tell me my words made a difference…

You’re not just helping yourself.

You’re healing me too.

So thank you.

-Taylin John Simmonds

PS. When you’re ready, here’s a few ways I can help you:

1. Watch this podcast to learn how I built a $500k per year digital writing business from square one. This is by far my favorite podcast I’ve been on.

2. Watch this for 5 realistic ways to make your first $1,000 online (even if you’re a beginner with little writing experience)

3. Read this to land your first $3,000 per month ghostwriting client. No bullsh*t, just an actionable system.

4. Watch this video created by my mentor, Dakota, to learn more about ghostwriting. Whether you’re an amateur or seasoned writer, this is you fastest path to earning 6 figures as a writer (I’m biased, of course).