You Have Absolutely No Right
to Be Successful
- The hard truth "get rich quick" gurus never tell you …
- What it really takes to hit the big time …
- Why what you do the rest of today matters …
- Much more …
Dear Business-Builder,
My mom’s cousin married Ty Cobb’s son, Herschel. Since I’m not good at math, I can’t really tell you what that makes me. Ty Cobb’s grand nephew once removed? I dunno.
But still, I’ve always been proud to be related — even distantly — to the man who invented modern baseball. So a few years ago, I read Cobb: A Biography by Al Stump and later, watched the movie starring Tommy Lee Jones.
Great book; good flick. Not because they heralded Cobb’s exploits on the field, but because they painted a crystal-clear picture of the man behind the legend.
Cobb was not an easy man to like. He was aggressive, abrasive and quick to use his fists (or even a knife) on those who provoked him. He once jumped into the stands and mercilessly beat a heckling fan who had no hands.
He was also, some say, a bigot of monumental proportions — despite the fact that he funded a hospital and a scholarship fund that both welcomed African-Americans.
Cobb also publicly supported the decision to integrate baseball, saying that black athletes" … are to be complimented for their gentle conduct both on the field, and, as far as I know, off the field."
But what I love most about Ty Cobb is not his legendary ball-playing skill. I love him for his cantankerous, independent personality. Cobb was intense. Driven. Uncompromising. Disciplined. Hard as nails.
And he had a work ethic that was unrivalled among his peers.
As a result, Cobb set 90 Major League Baseball records during his career — and 80 years after he retired in 1928, he still holds the all-time record batting average and the record for earning the greatest number of career batting titles.
That’s why, when the Baseball Hall of Fame was inaugurated in 1936, Ty Cobb received the greatest number of votes for admission — more than the great Honus Wagner and more, even than the legendary Babe Ruth. Cy Young, the winningest pitcher in history, came in a distant eighth.
You have no right to be successful
In America today, we have taken the idea of "rights" to a ridiculous level. We are now told that we have the "right" to food, education, employment, a certain wage, housing, health care and to a comfortable retirement.
We have, we are told, the right to be cared for from the cradle to the grave.
This is, of course, complete idiocy. Utter nonsense. No such rights are mentioned anywhere in the Constitution or anywhere else, for that matter. Except of course by wacko liberal activists and the media morons who give them exposure.
Meanwhile, ironically, many of the same people who campaign for these non-existent rights are guilty of attempting to deny us the rights that actually are guaranteed us by the Constitution: The right to life … liberty … the pursuit of happiness. The right to free speech, privacy and to keep and bear arms, to name a few.
So, since here at The Total Package, we believe that words actually have meaning, let’s call a spade a spade: When a person, a church or a government gives you anything that you cannot or will not provide for yourself, it is charity. People who accept charity are, by definition, charity cases: Burdens on society.
Once upon a time, having to accept charity was humiliating. Like having a sign hung around your neck identifying you as lazy, irresponsible or a person who made foolish decisions. A loser.
Anyone with a modicum of self-respect would move mountains to avoid being labeled in such an insulting way. And those who counted on charity as a life strategy — who acted as though they were entitled to it — were quickly disappointed. There was a limit to the community’s generosity.
Today, though charity has been institutionalized as a "right" at the federal level. Those who accept it no longer suffer any insults to their dignity. And since the limits to how much charity is offered no longer exist, many live their entire lives feeling that they are entitled.
What it really takes to become a success
The other day in an interview, I was asked, "What are the most crucial qualities for an entrepreneur, a marketer or a copywriter to have?"
I’m sure the interviewer expected me to say something like, "You need to be a great writer. You need to be creative."
My answer: "Courage. Independence. Intensity. Persistence. And a mind-blowing work ethic."
- It takes courage and fierce independence to decline the comfort and security of a dead-end job … go out on your own … invest your own money and your own time … risk losing it all … and to take sole responsibility for your success or failure.
- It takes monumental amounts of intensity to learn what must be learned and to apply it in ways that produce the optimum result.
- It takes remarkable persistence to stick with it when the going gets tough; to pick yourself up after a failure … when all around you are urging you to quit and settle for the mediocrity and pseudo-security of worker bee.
- It takes an untiring commitment to excellence in every aspect of your work — and attention even to seemingly unimportant details — to produce work that will lift you head and shoulders among your competitors.
- And of course, to do all this, you’ll need the work ethic of a champion.
Of a Ty Cobb.
This ain’t no "lazy man’s way to riches."
It’s enough that, if you do it right, becoming an entrepreneur, a marketer or a copywriter CAN make you rich.
A society that does not condemn you to live out your days in a particular caste; that gives you both the opportunity and ample incentive to better yourself, to become rich and to provide a better life and greater opportunity for your family is all that we are owed.
From that point on, the person of dignity — the person who refuses to become anybody’s charity case — is pretty much on his or her own.
I’m constantly amazed by the number of people who believe that this marketing and copywriting is easy.
Somehow, they’ve come to believe they can hang out their shingle, let work take a back seat to their new life of "freedom," exert the bare minimum of effort and still hit the big time.
Let me tell you from personal experience, my friend: It isn’t going to happen.
Because like baseball, this direct response marketing thing is a bottom-line business. It’s not about being good-looking or having a sparkling personality or being able to B.S. your way out of sticky situations.
In this gig, the results you produce are measured in dollars and cents. Do the work, take it seriously and hang great numbers on the line and you’re a winner. Try to skate by on charm … sleepwalk through it … and you’ll get your head handed to you.
Everything you do today is a brush stroke on a canvas; a portrait of you ten years, twenty years, forty years from now.
The measure of success, reputation, wealth and quality of life you’ll enjoy later in your career is being determined right now; today by the amount of effort you’ll expend plus the quality of decisions you make in the next few hours, this week, this month, this year.
Your life will be little more and little less than what naturally happens to people who do what you do, exert the amount of effort you exert and make the decision you make.
So wouldn’t this be a good time to renew your commitment? To resolve to expend every iota of thought, energy and every hour you can to ensuring that your work achieves the standard of excellence required for success?
Give it a good think: What is it about your knowledge base … your skill mastery … the effort and depth of thought you invest in each project … the attention to detail in your finished work … that could be; should be improved?
Just do that this week, and the vast sum of money you’ve paid for your subscription to this blog will be well justified. I guarantee it.
Yours for Bigger Winners, More Often,
Clayton Makepeace
Publisher & Editor
THE TOTAL PACKAGE™
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37 Comments »
Join the Discussion!
Let us know what you think. Or ask us anything. Or offer your own sage advice.
The only rule: RESPECT THIS HOUSE! Postings that contain abusive language and/or personal attacks will be cheerfully VAPORIZED. One cross word and – POOF! – your well-thought-out post will be gone in a puff of smoke.
– Clayton
Comment by Seth Chong — July 21, 2008 @ 12:08 pm
Priceless.
Comment by Cris — July 21, 2008 @ 1:05 pm
Beautifully said.
Makepeace for President!
Comment by Emette Massey — July 21, 2008 @ 1:12 pm
Amen brother Clayton! You’re preaching to the choir!
This needed to be said. I see so many people (some closely related to me) both young and old who believes the freaking world owes them something . . . a better life . . . a job . . . instant riches . . . a retirement plan!
What bullsh#!
What these people need to do is to roll up their sleeves and get busy earning their dreams. Not expecting somebody hand it to them on a silver platter.
Nodody owes them a damn thing. We have forgotten the meaning (or choose to ignore it) of the word responsibility. We all want success but are not willing to pay the price to get it.
Don’t get me wrong. I beleive it fine to save time by NOT reinventing the wheel. Rather we should always be willing to learn from true sources–those who have in the trenches day in a day out. We should be constantly be improving our craft everyday and looking for ways to get better response or results from our efforts.
Fine folks like you, Carline, Gary Bencivenga, John Carlton are making it much easier by sharing your vast experiences–laying out right here in forums like this.
Think of the time this saves us. Think of the lessons we get right at our fingertips that took you guys decades to learn and master!
And I for one thank you whole heartily!
All we need to do is set our sights on what we truly want, pay attention to what you’re telling us, resolve to learn it cold and start writing . . . and writing some more till we get it right. In other words be willing to pay the price that success requires.
As you said direct response is a bottom line business. Success is directly related to how much skill sweat we all put into our work–yes it’s work.
I believe we all who want to become excellent direct reponse rainmakers should commit to becoming excellent in our craft!
Thanks for letting me vent/share my thoughts!
Warmly,
Emette
P.S. The next time someone comes up to me and start whinning about not being successful, I’m going to sent your post to them and strongly urge them to read every word of it.
Comment by Linda Byam — July 21, 2008 @ 1:22 pm
Clayton,
You remind me of my late husband, who knew when to give me a pat on the back or a kick in the butt. Thanks!
Linda
Comment by Paul Black — July 21, 2008 @ 2:22 pm
Thanks, Clayton. Most entrepreneurs, I’m sure, would agree 100%.
It’s tough sometimes, when you’re working like crazy to get ahead, and things aren’t quite rolling your way. Bills keep on coming, and paying next month’s mortgage looks like an impossible task.
The temptation to blame the economy, or the customers, or some other so-called "cause", gets to you. It can’t be your fault. It must be some factor of fate, out of your control.
Then, you read one of your posts, or Troy’s or Daniel’s, or any one of several others, and you think, "Why are they giving out so much information for free? What’s in it for them?"
And that’s when you realize something; true success includes the requirement that you give something back. You need that Attitude of Gratitude, as Sir John Templeton, the billionaire investor, once proclaimed.
Thanks are due to you, and Monica Day (for her wonderful copywriting newsletter) and all your colleagues for keeping us on track with your advice, and your encouragement.
Getting a start is hard. However, it’s better when we have resources like you, and your other contributors.
Paul
Comment by Marcelino Latorre — July 21, 2008 @ 2:35 pm
HOLY COW: Everything you do today is a brush stroke on a canvas; a portrait of you ten years, twenty years, forty years from now. (This is the reason why I push pencils now..)Man I love you guys, Clayton, Carline, Tony and all the others at the Total Package you guys couldn’t even imagine how your posts have transformed my life.
Comment by Justin — July 21, 2008 @ 2:52 pm
Another home run for Ty Cobb’s grand nephew once removed…
Awesome.
Comment by Kelvin Eastgate — July 21, 2008 @ 2:56 pm
Noble words, Clayton. And just what I need when my very first serious foray into IM is struggling to get off the runway!
Many thanks for sharing your wisdom.
To echo what Cris said "Makepeace for Prime Minister" (I’m from the UK, you see.)
Kelvin
Comment by Marc Holmes — July 21, 2008 @ 3:16 pm
As one of the foolish souls brash enough to piss Clayton off – and he never forgave my faux pas – his post today made me set aside my differences (read that: ego) and respond.
There is a very cogent reason Makepeace has made himself such an irritatingly (in the best sense) strong example of what success means.
It’s called moxie, cojones of carborundum – whatever you wish to label it. And this is why I still pore over every single thing he sends out.
Ignore his missive today at your peril. The wisdom he sent us should hang over every marketer’s or copywriter’s desk. It is, in my estimation, the entrepreneur’s manifesto.
Best,
Marc
Comment by Stacy Karacostas — July 21, 2008 @ 3:20 pm
Great post Clayton! I have such a hard time with people who believe they "deserve" whatever, and don’t take responsibility for their lives. Thank goodness I was raised working in my parent’s business, and left home at 17 to make my own way in the world.
Live wasn’t always easy (I lived in my car 3 different times for a total of about 1.5 years), and more than once I had less than $50 in my bank account, but I always made it happen. Now I’m almost 40, have a great marriage, own a couple pieces of property and a thriving business, and live a life that’s full of everything except regret.
I’ve copied and pasted a line from your post that I plan to pass on to my newsletter readers: "Everything you do today is a brush stroke on a canvas; a portrait of you ten years, twenty years, forty years from now."
Love that! And in an age where it seems fewer and fewer people realize that the decisions they make and the actions they take today have a huge impact on all their tomorrow’s, these are words to live by.
Thanks!
Stacy
Comment by Tony Pearl — July 21, 2008 @ 3:28 pm
Well said, sir!
I live in the Washington, D.C. area,
and see the majority of people here
walk around with this attitude every
single day.
And it stinks.
This "The World Owes Me,"
"I’m a poor victim" attitude
is probably responsible for more
social & economic decay than we
can possibly put in to hard figures.
Let the gov’t do a study on THAT!
(Like that will ever happen, lol).
And then we have a man like Clayton,
(and most of the readers of this blog,
I’m sure) who stands up & voices his
humble-yet-accurate opinion on how
things like "Courage. Independence.
Intensity. Persistence.
And (God forbid!) a mind-blowing work ethic…"
are needed to be successful
in this (or any) business!
I… don’t think you’ll read about those
things in the Washington Post or the NY Times!!
And I’m not even gonna get started on how
our TRUE Rights are being stripped away
from us more & more every day.
Again - well said, Sir Clayton Makepeace-Cobb!
And thanks for posts like this in your blog.
Peace,
Tony Pearl
P.S. I wonder how Ty Cobb would feel about things
if he were still alive today…?
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — July 21, 2008 @ 4:04 pm
Thanks again, guys and gals! These are the kinds of thank-yous that make writing this thing worthwhile every week.
Marc: You ticked me off? When? I seriously doubt it; I think I’d remember if you had. Anyways – glad the article helped.
Stacy, I’ve got stories like yours, too. The road that got me here was definitely a rocky one – especially in the early going. But you know what? Not only do the hardships I went through make me proud today … they also deserve a big chunk of the credit for every rapidly deteriorating U.S. peso I earn.
Chris and Kevin: Makepeace for president? Prime Minister? No way! I don’t think I could learn to talk s-l-o-w enough to get those boobs in Congress and Parliament to understand!
Tony: What would Ty Cobb do? Judging from his history, he’d probably break out his trusty shiv and start neutering deadbeats and the entitlement whores in Washington who live off them.
Ah, the good old days …
Cheers, y’all,
– Clayton
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — July 21, 2008 @ 4:05 pm
Uh … no insult intended to any ladies of easy virtue who may read this …
Comment by Dawna Brown — July 21, 2008 @ 4:11 pm
Living here in Germany we’re blessed to be away from so many of the "rights" in the States.
Yes, the problems exist here, but not to the level there.
And, you may not know this, but you pay for your "rights" here to the tune of 48-53% of your paycheck, from the minute you start working! (you think US taxes are high)
Here’s an idea - do you think if they taxed the US "rights" checks (48-53%) every month some might get off their butts and go make something out of their lives?
Nah, would never happen, no one in the government would take on that responsibility.
bis spater,
Dawna
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — July 21, 2008 @ 4:22 pm
Hey, Dawna … Bis später, Krokodil
(See you later, alligator!)
Comment by Shanda — July 21, 2008 @ 4:30 pm
Seems like i’m reading a new self-help book every month these days, but somehow they can never quite reach me the way you do. Thanks for the goose bumps!~Shanda
Comment by Brendan — July 21, 2008 @ 4:59 pm
Wow! What a day. You see, as a copywriter newbie this could not have come at a better time. I am currently working as a pharmacist in leeds (UK)…(0900 - 1830 hrs) every day (Ok! Monday to Friday). And am doing AWAI copywriting course and have also bought The Ultimate Desktop Copy Coach ( A must have for every copywriter- Its like Copywriting Steroids-accelerated results guaranteed), going to the gym 3 times every week, studying Spanish, Learning to play piano by ear, go to church 3 times a week…you get the picture…And believe me, with all the determination and persistence that I have…this article has been like a kick on my backside. It gives me momentum and a reason to pursue my dreams knowing that nothing great is ever achieved by following a crowd.Today…I had a customer insulting me at work…because she has the ‘right,’ to whatever she so wishes - a crazy world indeed.But you’ve hit a homerun…Success comes to those who deserve it not those who wish for it. Clayton, you’re special…just to remind you anyway.
Comment by Samir — July 21, 2008 @ 5:34 pm
Clayton, thank you for a message well written and a lesson well deserved by all. No matter how much each of us might be close to or far from an understanding of this sort of persistent work ethic, we all need the frequent nudges and reminders.
What do you call a rude awakening that ends up being a pleasant surprise? An appropriate term doesn’t come to mind at the moment, but thank you for it.
Comment by Sean Romanoff — July 21, 2008 @ 6:41 pm
Hi Clayton - You’re absolutely right. A person rises and falls by his or her own hard work. You make your own destiny.
But let’s be honest, some…not all…but some, may think that copywriting and marketing is easy because of…(pausing for drum roll)…MARKETING!
Many copywriting courses use the "easiness" of writing a simple DM letter as an enticement. They talk about the good life so many copywriter/entrepreneurs enjoy. The ads make it clear these successful people know a secret that everyone else is ignorant of.
I grew up in small business, so I know that’s not the way it works. But many are sure that others understand the key to working less and earning more, and are convinced that copywriting is one of those ways.
As opposed to busting up wooden pallets, which I did one summer, it is physically easier. But getting clients and crafting even solid marketing materials takes time and thought - otherwise known as work.
So ease up on some of those who think you don’t work hard to do what you do. It’s only because you make it look so easy
Thanks - Sean
Comment by Alan Kaplan — July 21, 2008 @ 6:44 pm
Mr. Makepeace… Thank you… like most succinct and perfectly expressed messages as this… I’m inspired and it gives me the High Octane Fuel to Burn when I’m under the gun to make it happen… I also think of those who must read this and have it drilled into their brains …I’m afraid they will not… but I say… HEY!… thank the universe I am WIDE AWAKE and LISTENING… I read very few blogs… I don’t miss yours.
Thank you for your candor and honesty!
Sincerely,
Alan Kaplan
HomeBusinessBrains.com
Comment by James Brown — July 21, 2008 @ 10:58 pm
Hi Clayton,
I alway enjoy your posts. Your friends who add to the posts always have fab information.
Today’s post was number one and really hit home. I started copywriting over a year ago. I had two clients and then every way I’ve tried to market myself has bombed. I’ve been batting zero since last Oct. I promised myself and my copywriting coach that no matter what-I would never give up. Your post today just add more fuel to my fire to succeed. I printed it out and put it on the wall beside Bob Parson’s 16 Rules to live by.
Look forward to the next gem.
Regards, James
Comment by Nizom — July 22, 2008 @ 2:14 am
Hi Clayton,
You know what?
I’m VERY lucky person! Because finally, in the recent 2-3 years, I came across people like Gary Halbert, Gary Bencivenga and you!
And I’m already becoming rich…by learning from you, guys…and saving my time.
Thank you a lot, Clayton.
Please know that you’ve got a follower from Uzbekistan (Central Asia).
Nizom.
Comment by Phil — July 22, 2008 @ 4:34 am
Great article. It’s articles like this that keep me holding out on those days were there is no site of a tunnel, let alone any light at the end of it
Cutting your own path through the rough, is definitely not for the faint hearted.
Every now and then an internal heated tug of war arises, where I start attempting to justify why a day job isn’t such a bad thing. In these moments of doubt I pull out my favourite battle hardy and trusty quote that always puts me straight.
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." ~Theodore Roosevelt~
Don’t settle. Keep fighting.
Phil.
Comment by Roshawn Dawson — July 22, 2008 @ 5:30 am
Incredible.
Thanks for the amazing post. This one is definitely bookmark worthy.
Comment by Dr. Vikrama — July 22, 2008 @ 7:31 am
Hi Friends,
This is so much true….
"I’m constantly amazed by the number of people who believe that this marketing and copywriting is easy. Somehow, they’ve come to believe they can hang out their shingle, let work take a back seat to their new life of "freedom," exert the bare minimum of effort and still hit the big time. Let me tell you from personal experience, my friend: It isn’t going to happen. Because like baseball, this direct response marketing thing is a bottom-line business. It’s not about being good-looking or having a sparkling personality or being able to B.S. your way out of sticky situations."Don’t you feel so???….I have been a freelance health writer and run three websites. I was lured into copywriting by one of prestigious institute most of you knew about.. They all claim copywriting to be so much easy skill. It could be easy if we have a master like Clayton Makepeace, rather than reading bluff promotions of a fairy lifestyle.That comes later.Thanks Again Dear Clayton Sir,Best Regards
Comment by Tony Smith — July 22, 2008 @ 11:13 am
Excellent truth there.
I guess we’re in that lazy generation now, with our instant gratification, zero-effort society, people always looking for their get-rich-INSTANTLY schemes…
great post, I’ve linked to it from mine.
cheers,
Tony.
Comment by Robert — July 22, 2008 @ 11:38 am
My vote for best sentence -
"Everything you do today is a brush stroke on a canvas; a portrait of you ten years, twenty years, forty years from now"
Has a way of burning into your mind.
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — July 22, 2008 @ 12:44 pm
Hey guys – if you like the article, why not give us a hand and talk it up around the ‘net on other blogs?
It’ll help us help more people – and will help us help YOU more.
Cheers!
Comment by Ero — July 23, 2008 @ 4:09 am
I’m not sure your copywriting skills are equals to your political ones. I mean, it ’s so simplistic I would’nt know where to begin… But here is a try.
"Rights" are just something society give itself as a standard. We, as societies, communities, try and try to behave and find solutions for problems we cause. At the moment, there is no society where everybody is a winner. How do we integrate losers ? How do we help those who cannot help themselves – because there are uneducated, too old, crazy, or even maybe stupid.
Norvegian people for example have the highest ratio of kids finishing high school, at around 17, with all their grades : something like 98,8%, if I remember correctly.
Guess what ? They believe in the "right to education" for everyone and each one of their kids. And they do what they mean.
It’s not a copywriting issue, after all. You don’t have years of experience in politics, you don’t have years of experience trying to understand the causes of poverty, uneducation, crime, mental sickness.
Then, you have an excuse for having such a kneejerk opinion.
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — July 23, 2008 @ 6:40 am
Hey – we have our first dissenting voice! Yay!
Hi Ero … thanks for weighing in.
And of course for illuminating me and disabusing me of my "simplistic," "kneejerk" opinion.
Just tell me where to send the check so I can make sure that you enjoy all your rights? After all – someone has to pay … for all this charity …
Cheers!
Comment by Joe C — July 23, 2008 @ 2:37 pm
I think Clayton would have enjoyed Henry Fords company and viser versa. He (Ford) being the man that coined the words - "Opportunities are usually disguised as hard work, so most people don’t recognized them. "
Comment by Joe C — July 23, 2008 @ 2:46 pm
A socialist in our midts? Aint that America!
Comment by Bill — July 24, 2008 @ 7:41 am
Hey Clayton.
Thought I’d join the discussion this morning before I get to work doing what I’ve been doing every day for all my working life: doing the best work I can and constantly learning how to do it better, whatever I’m doing.
Right now, I’m spending a good bit of time working on a site concept for my soon-to-be released website. I love hard work. I mean it. I’ve been a pastor for the last 20+ years and have dealt with all kinds of people. I’ve worked hard at being able to listen intensely and actively in order to help individuals better themselves.
In the course of doing this work, I’ve learned a lot about human nature, which I think puts me in a good position to write copy… With the help of Masterson, Bly, Vitale, Hollingshead, Makepeace and others, of course.
Perhaps the most important and aggrevating thing I’ve learned is that people are either going to put in the effort to be all they can be, or they’re not. You can usually tell which of these you’re dealing with in a matter of minutes. When I run into someone who’s just trying to get something out of me or wants me to solve a serious problem or crisis for them, I don’t waste my time.
Now don’t get me wrong. I have a lot of compassion for people who, for one reason or another, have been kicked in the teeth and keep getting up off the ground. But I have zero tolerance for folks who think the "system" ought to just foot the bill for new teeth!
Anything is possible in this life if you’re willing to put in the effort and you have the desire to better yourself. Nothing but more misery and anger is in store for anyone who thinks they can just use others as long as they get what they want.
For this group, I think the film "The Pursuit of Happyness" should be required viewing. Now there was a guy that understood that "happyness" is not a "right." The PURSUIT is. And pursue he did… With a vengeance.
Of course, I learned that lesson a long time ago from my father. Dad could be a real horse’s keister sometimes. But he worked that thing off until he got where he wanted to be. With only a high school education, he spent long hours after work studying for the AIA exams. He became a licensed architect with no fancy college degree, just a little natural talent and a boatload of hard work and drive.
Will I make it as a copywriter? Yes. Do I have any illusions about it being easy? No. Because I’ll never betray my dad and all the other mentors in my life who have taught me that "easy" is a dead-end street.
Regards,
Bill H.
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — July 24, 2008 @ 1:16 pm
You’re already a winner, Bill … now, it’s only a matter of time until you get your reward.
Comment by Dan Curriden — July 26, 2008 @ 1:44 pm
Wow!
This is now posted above my desk, and in my patient newsletter, giving you attribution, of course:
"Everything you do today is a brush stroke on a canvas; a portrait of you ten years, twenty years, forty years from now."
Great analogy. Who says direct response copywriters can’t write beautifully?
Thanks Clayton!
Comment by Increase Sales Coach — July 26, 2008 @ 6:46 pm
Hey Clayton,
This post is playing to a drum that beats day in and day out in my heart just like most entrepreneurs. Nothing makes me angrier than a person who thinks someone else owes them something or a person who thinks they’re a victim and it’s someone else’s responsibility to make them whole again.
I’d rather be a victor than a victim any day. Part of being a victor is recognizing what isn’t working and determining what you need to do differently to make it work.
Part of being a victor is recognizing you have to be willing to invest in yourself by getting the help you need. Consequently, I became an Easy Writers club member just a few short months ago. Because I realized the copy I wrote stunk and was one of the biggest stumbling blocks I had.
I read EVERY post on your blog. I STUDY every issue of the Screaming Eagle. I listen intently to each Roadhouse Rant.
And I just purchased the Ultimate Desktop Copy Coach and have read through it the first time, and will now go back and thoroughly study and dissect it working to internalize that knowledge.
The point being it takes courage to put ideas into action, but unless you take action your ideas are worthless. Because of what I’ve put into action from what I learned as an Easy writer member I’ve just recently written a sales page that’s converting at 7.6% for me. I’m certainly not a copywriter just a small business owner, but WOW what a difference a little knowledge from one of the best can make.
Thanks a bunch Clayton for all your insights!!!
Comment by Clyde McDade — July 28, 2008 @ 2:49 am
Thank you so much Clayton for your honesty.
I can’t tell you how many times
I’ve read how "easy" it is to become
a 6 or 7 figure copywriter.
It’s not.
But like baseball that’s
what makes it great.
I haven’t broken 6 or seven
figures yet.
I don’t have a ton of money
in the bank or ten cars
in my garage.
But I’ll tell ya this.
Each day I bust my hump
to write and learn.
Then I write and learn some more.
Some projects failed
and others succeeded.
But I’ll never quit on my dream.
I’m not the most talented
or creative guy in the world.
But I can outwork anybody.
I’ll keep working hard to
reach my copywriting dream.
Thanks for the "real"
secret to copywriting success.
Gratefully,
Clyde McDade