There’s a TON of money looking for great copywriters…
I’ve had a handful of different financial publishers reach out to me in the past week. Independently.
They all want to give me money.
I quote my high fees. They balk. I tell them that if they don’t pay it, someone else will. They ask where to send the check.
Not only that, they want to know how many times they can send me those same big checks, over and over again. They want to know how many projects they can tie me down for.
And here’s the thing: I’m NOT chasing these deals. They’re coming to me.
Part of this is the season. It’s go time in the consumer publishing worlds. There’s a hot season between now and Thanksgiving, and another from January through May. During this time, they need as much profitable copy as they can churn out.
But, there’s something more to it, too.
Because not every copywriter is getting this level of action. Not every copywriter is getting these inquiries.
I’m NOT the greatest. But I’m good. I’ve figured out how to consistently create winners for clients, with a few home runs thrown in for good measure. That’s actually surprisingly hard. But if you can figure out how to do it…
Which leads me to the main point of this email…
There’s only one thing you really need to do to achieve tremendous success…
And this applies to copywriting or pretty much any endeavor where results are recognized.
You have to get really freaking good at what you do. So Good They Can’t Ignore You.
This is the kind of thing that’s really annoying to hear, as a novice in a field. (It’s as annoying to hear as the employer who tells you they want to hire someone with experience, but the only way to get experience is to get hired.)
I know.
It’s easy, from my perspective, to look back on my career and say this. Where I’m at. With my reputation.
But it’s also 100% true.
You can play the gimmicks and try to use tactics to get ahead, but they’ll barely budge the needle…
It’s really common for a marketer to come along and offer to sell you a seemingly-magic solution to your career growth challenges.
They’ll show you tricks to get in the door.
They’ll reveal the secrets to getting top gigs.
They’ll have selling systems, and prospecting tricks, and all that.
And any one of those things can marginally improve your success as a novice, and for that reason is an OKAY thing to pursue.
But you don’t have people beating down your door and offering to hire you on terms YOU set by using those tricks.
You don’t learn that in a program.
It’s not even something that can be coached.
The only way to the top levels of success is GREATNESS…
Become so good at a financially-valued skill that you can’t be ignored.
Get known among a small circle, probably for the work you were doing on the way up.
And then, just don’t screw it up.
I get frustrated when I get emails from people who aren’t putting in the work. I get frustrated when I hear of people who bought one business opportunity program on copywriting and who expect the riches to flow. I get frustrated when I see people upset that they’re not filthy rich yet, after a couple years in the business.
Greatness takes time.
It takes 10,000 hours, and then some.
It takes continuous improvement.
It takes having a vision of becoming the best, and working to make that real.
It takes blood, sweat, and tears — and probably some pretty dark times where you think you’re a fraud and impostor, and you should just give up.
It takes sticking with it through all of that.
Many copywriters want “the six-figure lifestyle”…
This is the UNIVERSAL desire, that goes well beyond copywriters. I’m listening to an audiobook of someone who got into trading on Wall Street looking for this lifestyle, too.
It includes a high enough income to not want for a good life…
It includes complete freedom to live and work where you want…
It includes total control of your own schedule…
What most people who dream of this lifestyle don’t realize is how much freaking effort goes into making it happen. And how the people who make it happen “easiest” are often the people who really want it the least, because they’re naturally driven to dive back into the next challenge.
It’s possible to do somewhat well and really coast. Or, you can do really well and only somewhat coast. But if you try to do really well by really coasting? It doesn’t add up.
But if you want the biggest successes? Don’t coast. Find the internal drive to create and sustain momentum. Then, push yourself a little further.
Achieve greatness.
Not in who you are, or how you feel. But in what you do.
Do great things that are valuable to people.
Do that over and over again.
And at some point, the world will notice. At some point, you’ll end up having bigger deals dropped in your lap than you ever used to fight for. Deals that make you uncomfortable.
And then you’ll put your head down, and just keep doing the work you know it takes to do great things.
Yours for bigger breakthroughs,
Roy Furr
