Sometimes, the best thing to do is just walk away.
Last week I was working on a project that meant a great deal to me – writing copy for a new web page about my one-on-one mentoring program. My schedule was abnormally clear of other commitments that week so I was excited. This was my chance to focus on my own copy and get that puppy done.
I spent hours and hours on my back deck churning out pages and pages of raw copy. Then, when I was sure I had the guts of what I wanted to say, I headed for my computer, ready to pour my passionate scribblings into a Word document.
And that’s when it all went to hell.
I’d type in the first section, read it over and think, “This isn’t it. This isn’t working. I don’t like it.”
I pressed on, determined to keep going, trusting that if I kept writing, it would come together. I skipped over the parts that weren’t perfect to start writing other sections. But the more I wrote, the worse it got.
It was as if I were locked in some kind of demon curse where the more I’d try to write, the more crappy my copy became.
This went on for days.
On Wednesday, I took a break to work on other projects, but on Thursday, when I jumped back in, I still couldn’t seem to write anything that wasn’t stupid, hollow, insipid, sucky or just not me.
Not only was I upset that I couldn’t seem to come up with the copy I needed, I felt like a big fat fraud.
I mean, I’m a friggin’ copywriter. I should be able to write my own copy. Plus, I’m the one who’s always coming up with ways to make it easy and fun for my clients to write their own brilliant copy. Yet I was struggling. Mightily.
Ever heard of a crisis of creative confidence? Well, I was having one.
Now, I know you’ve been there, right? You’ve had your own battles when it comes to writing copy that’s clear and compelling… copy you feel good about, copy that powerfully communicates your message in a way that’s sure to excite your clients. Copy that’s 100% you.
And I’m sure, like me, you’ve looked at copy you’ve written and thought to yourself, “Well, this just stinks.”
So, what can you do?
Well, as frustrating and confidence-crushing this experience was, it gave me 3 great tips for you whenever you ever find yourself in a similarly stuck situation, where you’re focused on a creative project that’s just not working.
Here’s what I discovered.
Tip #1: Cut Yourself Some Creative Slack
Creativity is not a linear, by the clock, predictable process. Nope, it’s wild, impulsive, unwieldy beast. One that needs a lot of space to roam, run, sleep, hide, pounce… and then devour small animals.
As an entrepreneur, when you need brilliant copy, you need it now. Before the end of the week.
And while it’s completely possible to create brilliant copy in one week or less, it’s also completely possible that it’s just not going to happen. Because, like a wild animal, your creative process won’t be made docile and obedient just because you have a deadline.
Your best ideas and perfect words may be off grazing on wildflowers when you need them rounded up and herded into the corral of your consciousness.
It’s okay. You’re not an idiot. You’re not creatively washed up. You just need to let your creative beast graze in the fields and play hard to get for a while.
You need to wait, do nothing and keep the corral door wide open.
Tip #2: Stop Writing, Start Asking
If, like me, you’ve been at your writing for days and you’re in the same stagnant place, you need to stop writing. For a day. Maybe two. And instead, ask yourself some questions:
- What’s the real reason this piece/project isn’t working right now?
- Do I really believe in what I’m writing?
- Am I telling the truth?
- If I’m telling the truth, am I telling it in a way that feels true to who I am and what I stand for?
- Do I know what I’m writing about, or am I just pretending to know?
- Do I know whom I’m writing to, or am I guessing?
- What is it I really want to express that I’m not saying?
- If this piece were to suddenly appear exactly as I wanted it to be, what would it look like? What would the copy say?
Give yourself time to ask, ponder and cut through the gristly knot of resistance that’s impeding the flow and completion of your copy.
When I finally surrendered to the fact that what I was writing wasn’t going to work, I stepped away and got honest with myself. What was really going on here?
The answer was liberating. I realized I was trying too hard to be the “good copywriter” and write something impressive, clever and ever so slightly mind-blowing. And the pressure of that was seriously tripping me up.
Tip #3: Throw It All Out. Start Over.
Sometimes, what you’re working on won’t come together not because your copywriting skills are bad or you’re creatively challenged, but because your original idea, theme or premise just isn’t right. For you. For whatever reason.
If you’ve got pages and pages of copy that you’re trying to cobble together into a respectable rough draft, and you’ve been at it for a while, and it’s still not working for you, dump it all. Be willing to take all those pages and dump them into the trash.
I know. The thought is slightly sickening. Especially if you’ve invested days and days of work into creating those pages.
But believe me. It will be a huge relief. And it will actually take you less time to start over then it will to keep hacking away at what’s not working
But before you start writing anew, use the questions in Tip #2 above to help you gain a new perspective or approach. Don’t just rewrite the stuff you had before. Take a whole new approach. Cop a new attitude. Tap into a different kind of energy.
This is what I did last week. I took a whole week’s worth of work and threw it out. I was tempted to save a paragraph, the cool analogy, that clever intro. But I knew if I did, it would be like trying to make a tasty omelet out of yesterday’s scrambled eggs.
And don’t forget…
When it comes to creating something new, something from scratch, something you’ve never done before, don’t expect yourself to be a Brilliant Creation Factory. Where you push a button, the machine starts running and out pops one perfect piece after another.
That’s not how the creative process works.
You actually need a lot of non-doing, non-producing. Where all you do is sit and stare out the window. Or walk the dog. Or take a shower. Or take a nap.
During these seemingly “unproductive” times, your wild creative beast is out grazing, getting plump and energized before it meanders back into the corral of your conscious mind, ready to romp and play.
Have you found a way to get back into the creative groove when a project you’re working on isn’t jiving? Share it in the comments below.