Some of the best advice I ever got

 

No one gets where they are by themselves. Positive or otherwise, we’re all shaped by the advice we choose to take or ignore.

These are some of the best bits of advice I’ve gotten over the years. When I follow it, I do better or at least feel better. Hopefully, you’ll find a bit or two that speaks to you.

Words of wisdom and stuff

Say it straight, then say it great.

Don’t depend on anyone else to inspire you. You have to inspire yourself.

Always go to the bathroom before you go into a meeting.

Have confidence in yourself. If you don’t, then don’t expect anyone else too. Know your worth.

Be your own creative director. Push yourself. Push your work. Push yourself as much as you want. Your director and partners can’t do it for you.

If something doesn’t sell the first time, keep it in your pocket. It might work next time.

Understand how you work. Know your own process. Be your own advocate.

Be prepared with rationale. Have a reason for everything because they won’t know why you did what you did. Present things not so much as art but as solutions, and some solutions are more effective than others

Hydrate. Your brain runs on water. If you’re not thinking clearly, it’s not that you suck, you might just be thirsty.

Good copywriting is a balancing act of knowing that you’re making commercial art and being passionate about what you do.

Read your work out loud to yourself. People hear what they read inside their heads, and if it sounds funny to you, it’ll sound funny to them.

In this day and age, every writer needs website. Without one, you fall to back of the line.

Print your work, grab a pen or a pencil and as you read it through, tap under each syllable of every word. You’ll catch most of your mistakes.

Not every customer is a business, but every business is a customer. You’re always writing to people.

Know what’s going on it people’s lives. That goes for customers, too. It’s up to us to be empathetic.

Be a leader in your career. It’s your responsibility to make things happen. If you’re not getting what you want, it’s your fault but you can also fix it.

Knowledge doesn’t change behavior. Behavior changes behavior, even small incremental changes.

When you care about someone, if you don’t take it to the level of accountability, you’re not serving them. Hold them accountable to not hurt themselves. Don’t be a ‘yes’ person. Don’t let them fail. That goes for you, too. Live that way. Serve yourself, even when others won’t.

Practice being safe. Your lizard brain needs to be safe, or it’ll keep interfering.

“Because we’ve always done it this way” is the worst excuse ever to keep doing something.

When you want to criticize, care and coach first. Do so in a way that the other person knows you care.

When you ask for advice, listen to it. You don’t have to take it, but if you’re going to ask, at least hear them out. Same goes for feedback.

Be authentic.

Have anything to add? Share in the comments.