We’ve had the pleasure of hearing some truly remarkable stories and transformations from the students inside our Comprehensive Copywriting Academy. In this special episode, we’re giving you a roundup of some of the very best advice from our CCA students and working copywriters.
What all of our success stories have in common? A willingness to embrace discomfort, dream a little bigger, and welcome new opportunities. Get ready to be inspired because if they can do it, what’s stopping you?
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Looking for closed captioning or a transcript? Watch the episode on YouTube!
A Sneak Peek at the Episode
[1:50] It’s always helpful to hear advice from actual working copywriters, so today’s episode is a roundup of some of the very best advice we’ve heard from our Comprehensive Copywriting Academy students and working copywriters.
[4:23] Stacey reminds us that imposter syndrome can often come out as a lot of negative self-talk and beating ourselves up. But this is usually just our brain’s way of dealing with something new and uncomfortable. Imposter syndrome is not going away–it will be your buddy on this journey with you, so try to honor it and approach it compassionately!
[8:29] Courtney assures us that once you have the features vs. benefits concept clear, you can start making money as a copywriter–all of the other pieces will fall into place. She really adopted the mindset of ‘if they can do it, I can do it’, using other people’s success stories to inspire her, and it has really paid off.
[13:56] Kate is currently training for a 10K, which is a great analogy for going through the CCA course. You have to trust the process and continue following the steps, even if it doesn’t always feel comfortable. If you keep going, you will achieve your end goal, whether that’s running a 10K or becoming a copywriter.
[15:21] Adele and her now husband Jake talk about navigating a complete career change with someone who loves you, but is maybe not initially as supportive as you would like them to be.
[18:38] Nicki advises us not to take advice about our copywriting career from someone who’s not familiar with copywriting or not familiar with freelancing and who doesn’t know how successful, lucrative, and fulfilling it can actually be.
[22:30] Mike shares his approach to landing a senior copywriting role and encourages us to reframe how we look at copywriting jobs that are out there. Qualifications are often a wishlist for companies–demonstrating that you can write is a lot more important.
[28:22] We’re all going to experience a lot of rejection when it comes to applying for jobs, but don’t shut down opportunities for yourself because you could end up working at an amazing job!
[31:29] CCA student Carli saw an opportunity for an internship and despite feeling too old for it, she threw her hat into the ring. She was really attracted to the company, the topic, and the mix of work, so she was willing to take a chance on it. Don’t be afraid to go for the opportunities that you are excited about!
[36:19] Tammy transitioned from teaching to copywriting and landed a role at an agency. Unfortunately that agency had a round of layoffs that Tammy was impacted by, but her resilient mindset didn’t let that hold her back from moving on and finding great success after that experience.
Must-Hear Takeaways
As with every episode, we highly encourage you to listen to the entire conversation! But here are a few of the highlights:
“Anytime you’re feeling imposter syndrome and you’re feeling these feelings, you should almost celebrate it as a win because you are doing something that’s making you uncomfortable. And not everyone does that. Not everyone even puts themselves in the position to feel uncomfortable. So that alone is a win.” – Kate
“So you apply for something, what’s the worst that happens? They say ‘no’ or they don’t get back to you. They say, ‘thanks so much, but we’re going with a different candidate’ or ‘thanks so much for applying, but you’re not right for the role’. Big flipping deal. But what’s the best that could happen? You could end up working at an amazing job for maybe a while or maybe you work there for a little while and you go, ‘actually now I want to go back to freelance’ or whatever. But don’t be the person who limits yourself. There are already so many limits in the world, so don’t impose any limits on yourself.” – Nicki
“I really adopted this mindset that if they can do it, I can do it. I would go through the Facebook group and look for people’s testimonies and their stories of success and things that they’ve done. And I’m like, okay, I can do it. If they can do it, I can do it. I mean I adopted that mantra wholeheartedly and it really has paid off. I think people really get hung up on trying to do it perfectly. Just do it. You will learn.” – Courtney
“A key element of success in any business is that you can’t be afraid to be a beginner and look like a beginner. We all start off that way. So if somebody laughs at me, that’s fine, I’m learning. So you just can’t be afraid. And if you see a chance and you’re like, ‘I’m not sure if I’m ready yet’ or ‘I don’t have my portfolio site’, but this person wants what I have, just go for it. You know you’ve got nothing to lose at this point, so you’ve just got to go for it. And if you are afraid, you just do the thing anyway.” – Carli
Mentioned on this Episode
- Hitting 6 Figures As a Copywriter in 6 Months – Stacy’s Story
- Changing Careers to Become a Copywriter – Adele’s Story
- Landing a 4-Figure Project 2 Months In—Courtney’s Story
- Landing a Senior Copywriter Role with No Paid Experience – Mike’s Story
- Becoming a Social Media Copywriter & Manager – Carli’s Story
- Navigating Ups and Downs in a Copywriting Career – Tammy’s Story
Related Links
- Overcoming Copywriter Imposter Syndrome
- What to Do When You Feel Inadequate
- What to Look for in a Copywriting Job
- 5 Reasons You’re Not Getting Copywriting Job Responses
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About the Build Your Business Podcast
Ready to turn your love of writing into a successful copywriting career?
Join professional copywriters Nicki Krawczyk and Kate Sitarz to get the tips, tools, and training to help you become a copywriter and build a thriving business of your own. Nicki and Kate have 20+ and 10+ years of experience, respectively, writing copy for multi-billion-dollar companies, solopreneurs, and every size business in between.
Whether you want to land an on-staff job, freelance full-time and work from wherever you want, or make extra money with a side hustle, the best place to start learning is right here.
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Last Updated on June 10, 2024
