Written by Kenneth Turnbull – May 29th, 2019
Let’s talk about deadlines…
Freelancers in general are notorious for treating deadlines as suggestions. And those same freelancers are the same folks you’ll see populating Facebook groups, bemoaning how hard it is to find good clients.
Hmmm… I wonder why that could be?
Bottom line is this:
If you want to earn a reputation as a top-notch freelance copywriter, you’ve got to deliver the copy you promised, by the date and time your promised, and you’ve got to write that copy to the best of your ability.
Living up to those standards ain’t always easy. Sometimes life gets in the way.
But the truth is:
The deadline doesn’t care that your laptop broke down.
The deadline doesn’t care that your girlfriend just dumped you.
And the deadline doesn’t care that your cat got ran over by a car.
So the best writers have a few reliable techniques in their arsenal to make certain they hit their deadlines… even when it seems like the entire world is plotting against them.
One of my favorite techniques is the brain dump.
It’s stupidly simple. And devastating effective at clearing your mind of worries and distractions, freeing up the mental space for you to churn out your best copy.
Here’s how it works:
Simply open up a blank word doc on your computer. Then start writing down all the junk that’s bothering you.
Did some jerk cut you off in traffic the other day, and you’re still irrationally pissed at him?
Write it down.
Are you currently dealing with a bad client who is dragging their feet when it comes to paying you?
Write it down.
If there’s something that’s going on your life that clouding your ability to think clearly:
Write it down.
This little writing exercise will only take you 10-15 minutes. But it’ll do wonders for your mind, helping you regain the clarity you need to write your best copy when you’ve got a looming deadline.
Stay Sharp,
Kenneth Turnbull
The Gonzo Ad-Man