I’ll hold my hands up (metaphorically, otherwise typing becomes difficult) and say that this post is inspired by another post I read this morning.
The bit that resonated with me was the part about failing, failing again, learning from those failures, then carrying on, but better than before.
Why has it resonated with me this morning in particular? Well, I received a lovely email from someone who’s just starting out as a freelance copywriter. She was thanking me for previous advice I’d given her and asking for a bit more.
I think she’ll go on to do really well, as she’s not afraid/too proud to ask things of others, she’s polite and friendly when given advice…. oh, and she’s a bloody good writer, too (I would link to her site, but I’ve given the impression she’s just starting out – when I think she could go for quite big jobs – so don’t want to embarrass her).
Now, I don’t think for one minute that I’m the best copywriter out there – that there aren’t far more senior copywriters, both in terms of years of experience and/or brands they’ve worked on – but I’m happy to give out advice.
I’m happy to give out advice, as I’m basically revealing all of the ****-ups I’ve made, along the way, so that she doesn’t repeat them. I’m fine admitting to past failures (and there’s been plenty of them) if it means someone else doesn’t have to go through the same thing.
I’m also fine admitting to these mistakes, as I learnt from all of them. I didn’t repeat the same mistake twice, because it caused too much hassle the first time!
This copywriter is younger than me, so – if she listens carefully to other people’s mistakes, and how to avoid them – she could be streets ahead of me, and many others, in a relatively short space of time.
I don’t mind this at all. The likelihood of us ever competing for the same clients is slim to zero.
The long and the short of it is; it’s okay to have made mistakes, it’s okay to admit that you made those mistakes, and if you can help someone else out by sharing what you’ve done (both good and bad), even better.