“If you write one story, it may be bad; if you write a hundred, you have the odds in your favor.” – Edgar Rice Burroughs, Born Sep. 1, 1875. Until you are a copywriter… Stop buying copy books. Stop collecting swipes. Stop hand-copying old ads. Stop it. Instead… Start writing some copy. Start publishing it. […]
What Holds You Back From Being a Copywriter is Not Writing Any Copy Read More »
“Teaching is really very, very important. I always tell my students that you should find an opportunity to teach. When you teach others, you teach yourself.” – Itzhak Perlman, Born Aug. 31, 1945. This is really the core of what I’ve built my own business around. Plenty of others have, too. Hell. Entire multi-billion dollar
The Easiest Way to Internalize What You Learn (And Grow Your Audience, Too) Read More »
“One should never write down or up to people, but out of yourself.” – Christopher Isherwood, Born Aug. 26, 1904. Here is a magical shortcut to becoming a good writer. Learn to dictate. You don’t have to use digital dictation tools, but you could. I do sometimes. What I mean is to simply compose your
Sneakiest “Hack” For Writing That Creates Easy Reading Read More »
“To achieve great things, two things are needed; a plan, and not quite enough time.” – Leonard Bernstein, Born Aug. 25, 1918. I believe this so hard. Your plan doesn’t need to be immaculate, or even very detailed. I had a five year plan when I went freelance that had only one sentence per year.
You’re Taking Too Long To Do Everything (And It Will Kill You) Read More »
“Diamonds are nothing more than chunks of coal that stuck to their jobs.” – Malcolm Forbes, Born Aug. 19, 1917. You know what makes diamonds? Start with carbon. That’s you. You’re mostly carbon. Carbon based life forms, they call us. And then you add two ingredients: pressure and time. In the bowels of the earth,
Conquering Challenging Work Is How You Increase Your Awesomeness Read More »
“If there is some art involved, I’d like it to be that it came through the cracks of daily work.” – Martin Mull, Born Aug. 18, 1943. Routine is important. Consistency is important. You want to be elbow deep in work when the muse shows up with inspiration. Because she won’t wait for you to
Be Busy When the Muse Arrives Or Else She Stops Coming By Read More »
“A wide screen just makes a bad film twice as bad.” – Samuel Goldwyn, Born Aug. 17, 1882. Are you getting too caught up in the details of your project? The little things. Tripping over word selection. Alliterative names. Logo design. Etc. If you are even thinking about that stuff before the core
The Emperor Doesn’t Need New Clothes if He Is Buff and Badass Read More »
“Pick up a camera. Shoot something. No matter how small, no matter how cheesy, no matter whether your friends and your sister star in it. Put your name on it as director. Now you’re a director. Everything after that you’re just negotiating your budget and your fee.” – James Cameron, Born Aug. 16, 1954. People
Call the Copy Cops to Check This Guy’s License!! Read More »
“Real success is being totally indulgent about your own trip. You put your blinders on about the garbage and go full speed ahead.” – Betsey Johnson, Born Aug. 10, 1942. Are you doing what you really want to do with your business and/or career? Or are you just chasing the money? Hey, money is good.
“Their” Understanding Is Not Required For YOUR Success Read More »
“Play is the answer to the question, ‘How does anything new come about?’” – Jean Piaget, Born Aug. 9, 1896. One of the wonderful things about working in marketing and advertising – especially the creative end of the business – is that you get paid to play. But even though it’s play, you have to
Play With Your Work And Uncover Hidden Treasure Read More »
