VOLUME 22, ISSUE 1 – JANUARY 2023
THIS MONTH’S MENU:
I. APPETIZER: ARE YOU HAPPY? WRONG QUESTION…
Why Aiming for Contentment—Via Competence—Is a Wiser Bet
II. “FIELD” GREENS: A “WELL-FED LIFE” FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE
“The Cow Story” Illustrates the Math Behind Powerful Retirement-Style Investing!
III. MAIN “MEAT” COURSE: PURSUING A NEW MARKET?
Win Clients by Connecting What You HAVE to What You Can DO
IV. DESSERT: COMBO SUCCESS STORY & TIP
FLCW Offers to “Course-Correct” Project, Wins New Client’s Confidence
I. APPETIZER: ARE YOU HAPPY? WRONG QUESTION…
Why Aiming for Contentment—Via Competence—Is a Wiser Bet
I had a day recently typical of many days. I billed a job well done and well received, and submitted a first draft on a new project. I followed up with a client for whom I’d just finished a big website project, getting on her radar for additional work down the road.
I had a Zoom call with an old client now with a new company (always keep up with people on LinkedIn, because if they liked your work before, they’ll no doubt have writing needs in their new role). I got to the gym for a workout, and I even made a batch of apple muffins!
I was staying busy with productive and enjoyable activities, and taking care of my physical well-being. Okay, maybe apple muffins aren’t exactly “health food,” but the process of creating something supremely tasty was good for my soul—and my stomach.
At the end of the day, what I felt was contentment.
Contentment, not happiness. There seems to be a cultural obsession these days with “being happy”—personally and professionally (I’ll stick to the professional side here).
Funny. A few generations ago, we understood work wasn’t supposed to be fun or make you happy. After all, it was work. Then, in the last 30-40 years, that mindset morphed into “work as fulfillment”—or worse yet, work as “passion.”
(Sidebar: That said, as explored in the December issue, this gig of ours offers greater potential for contentment (if not happiness) than most out there.)
Nice idea, but the empirical fact is, precious few souls are truly happy in their work—much less passionate. Chasing happiness may have achieved meme status, but achieving it often remains elusive.
Why? Because while achieving our goals (i.e., getting that new job/promotion/raise/big sale/successful project, etc.), will certainly make most of us happy, it’ll be fleeting.
Why? Because, consciously or not, we get that linking happiness to external events is not a reliable strategy for enduring happiness. And that realization seems to push happiness even further out of reach.
Rather, in our work lives (and arguably, our personal lives as well), I say our goal should be contentment, by way of competence and mastery. They’re the linchpins, and they’ll reliably drive satisfaction and contentment—assuming we’re applying them in gainful endeavors.
When we are, and when our skills are being rewarded through positive feedback and healthy compensation, contentment is generally not far behind. On that “don’t-worry-be-content” note, let’s eat!
II. “FIELD” GREENS: A “WELL-FED LIFE” FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE
“The Cow Story” Illustrates the Math Behind Powerful Retirement-Style Investing!
It’s wonderful to be in a writing field that affords us the opportunity to make a great living, and, thanks to that fact, perhaps buy a house, have nice stuff, take cool vacations, stay out of debt, and save for retirement.
But I also know that writers (and creative folk in general) often “live in the moment,” and don’t give enough thought to “down the road.”
So, every few years, around this same time, as we start a new year, I take a moment to invite you to think ahead. Simply put…
If you’re not doing regular investing for the future, start now.
Some of you may remember “The Cow Story” I’ve run a few times over the years. Well, here it is again, along with a few encouraging words to take this crucially important step, and extend the enviable notion of “well-fed writing” to the rest of your life!
THE COW STORY
A man decides, at his advisor’s urging, to invest in cows at $100 a month. In Month #1, cows are selling for $100 each, so his investment buys 1 cow.
A news article the next month claims that E. coli bacteria from cows has caused an epidemic. The price of cows falls to $50. His advisor urges him to buy 2 cows despite the man’s disbelief. His $200 investment is now worth $150 (3 x $50), a -25% return.
Next month, mad cow disease rages nationwide. Price: $25. Advisor: Buy more. Four cows this time. His $300 investment is now worth $175 (7 x $25), a -42% return.
Next month, a top medical journal claims beef causes cancer. Price: $10. Advisor: Keep investing. Ten more cows. His $400 is now worth $170 (17 x $10), a -57% return.
No bad OR good news the next month. Price: Still $10. Buy 10 more, says the advisor. His $500 investment is now worth $270 (27 x $10), yielding a -46% return.
Next month, the epidemic subsides and the bovine link is debunked. Price: $25. Four more cows. His $600 investment is now worth $775 (31 x $25), a +29% return.
By the next month, mad cow disease is considered a fluke. Price: $50. Two more cows. His $700 investment is now worth $1650 (33 x $50), a +136% return.
A month later, a beef study shows beef actually reduces colon cancer. Price: $100. One more cow. His $800 investment is now worth $3400 (34 x $100), a +325% return.
Note the price of cows never rose above its original $100, yet he still enjoys a 325% return. THAT’S “Dollar Cost Averaging,” and explains how regular investing, even when the market goes down, can pay big long-term dividends.
Don’t know a good financial planner? Tap your network and ask around. I promise that more than a few of your friends are likely working with someone they like and trust.
In the Atlanta area and looking for a good one? Email me and I’ll hook you up with mine.
III. MAIN “MEAT” COURSE: PURSUING A NEW MARKET?
Win Clients by Connecting What You HAVE to What You Can DO
As commercial freelancers, we all want to pursue new industry directions from time to time. To maximize your success in those uncharted waters, follow this excellent advice from friend, colleague, “business-building coach for writers and copywriters,” and & E-PUB regular), Ed Gandia.
Many of my coaching clients ask how they can break into new markets with their writing business. Some of them are looking for a change.
They’ve worked in the same industry for many years and want to get into something completely different.
Some have heard about markets that are growing like crazy (e.g., renewable energy, education software) and think these would be great target markets.
Others have an interest in a particular subject matter (e.g., healthcare, clean tech), and they want to build their business around that.
I’d love to tell my clients “Hey, you can break into any market you want!” And some business coaches do tell their clients that. But my advice is different.
As much as I wish it were otherwise, you can’t just pick a target market out of thin air—especially when you’re first starting out. It’s true even if you’re established but have little to no experience in that new market.
Because if you do, you’re making it much, much more difficult for your freelance writing business to succeed.
Your Prospects Have to be Able to Connect the Dots
In order to land clients, you need to be able to connect the dots for your prospects. Specifically, the “here’s-what-I-have” dot to the “here’s-what-I-can-do-for-you” dot.
Your background, experience and skills have to relate—in some way—to what the prospect needs. Otherwise, why would that prospect hire you?
As long as prospects can connect the dots, even tenuously, you’ll eventually find one that’s willing to go with what you’ve got.
You’ll make your case, it will resonate with them, and you’ll get a shot. You’ll have the opportunity to prove yourself.
Will you be nervous? Yes. Will it take you forever to get the project done because you’re a bit freaked out? Probably. But once you have that project under your belt, it will be even easier for future prospects to connect the dots.
And over the following months and years, you’ll forge an even stronger connection between what you can do and what clients need. And when you do, you’ll have more flexibility in the markets you choose to target.
The Market Will Show You the Way
I’ve had clients who’ve successfully taken their freelance writing businesses into new markets. But they did it only after they built their businesses around their background, experience and skills.
Honestly, it’s hard to plan too far ahead. You can say, “I’ll start by focusing on X market and then I’ll go into this market and then that market.”
But you won’t really know what you’ll do until you start the process.
Because after you land that first client—and more clients after that—your thinking will change. You’ll find new opportunities you were completely unaware of before.
You’ll get clearer on the kind of work you like to do (and not do!). You’ll figure out the clients you like to work with and not work with.
And over time, the market will reveal itself to you. The direction you should take will become more obvious.
The bottom line: Start with what you have. Focus on getting your business off the ground successfully. Once it’s in the air, you’ll spend less time agonizing over which markets to target. Because the market will show you the way.
IV. DESSERT: COMBO SUCCESS STORY & TIP
FLCW Offers to “Course-Correct” Project, Wins New Client’s Confidence
I got the following success story/tip from a Midwest-based copywriter who prefers to remain anonymous. Great lessons here in humility, professionalism and taking the long view. Enjoy!
Hey Peter: I’d been doing some white papers and blog posts for one client (a marketing manager I’ll call Dave) for about six months. He seemed a bit overwhelmed in the role, and often didn’t provide me much in the way of source material or guidance at the start of a project.
Over time, as I became familiar with the industry and the product line, I could work with little supervision, and turn around projects that always passed muster with him.
But because Dave was a bit over his head, I didn’t realize that my work wasn’t ideally hitting the mark: he wasn’t able to guide me effectively, and was just happy to have the work done. As a result, I thought everything was fine, when it actually wasn’t.
Following up a few weeks after turning in a project, I heard back from another marketing manager, Mike, who told me Dave had been let go—not surprising.
I asked Mike, now my new contact, if there were any edits needed on the project. He replied back that my draft, “wasn’t really what we had envisioned.”
I replied back immediately, requesting a quick call to discuss his ideal vision for the project. He appreciated my collaborative spirit, and thanked me for not taking his feedback personally (great client, no?). I told him that the main thing was to make sure he got what he wanted.
And, Mike had confirmed with me that they had big plans for content creation in 2023, so clearly, my goal was to position myself to take advantage of that ongoing workload.
He acknowledged that I’d executed the project according to the instructions I’d received (however minimal they were) and, as such, didn’t expect an entire rework for free.
I asked if $200 to $300 extra for my efforts would be acceptable, and he said, absolutely.
We had our meeting, I reworked it and he loved it. It did take more time than I thought, so I asked if he was okay with the high end ($300), and he wholeheartedly was.
So, I worked for a reduced rate for a short stretch, but demonstrated my willingness to go the extra mile to make something right.
In the process, I went from the writer who he wasn’t 100% sure of, to someone they knew could deliver for them. Now, come January, I’m ideally positioned to be their go-to writer moving forward.