Hi,
Yesterday I told you how a butt-kicking is helping me do a better job with the re-launch of the Ultimate E-Book Tele-Workshop Series. I also promised to tell you about the butt-kicking today.
Here’s what happened:
I sent an e-mail to Nick Usborne asking him to participate in the tele-workshop series as an expert. The same e-mail was sent to all the experts.
While Clayton, Joe, Bob, Chris, Terry, and several more responded positively, Nick took a dislike to me. It was actually kind of funny because I didn’t know it.
I didn’t find out that I had upset Nick until after I asked a friend to help me with an introduction to Nick. Even then, rather than send me a message, Nick asked our mutual friend to deliver his message.
Then I got my butt kicked.
In issue #166 of NIck’s ezine (Excess Voice), he went to town on my newbie buttocks.
Now, the point isn’t so much the trashing Nick dealt out. I think we all know it isn’t what happens that matters any where near as much as how you deal with it.
I confess – when I read Nick’s article it really hurt. After all, he never took the time to give me any feedback. And Joe Vitale found the exact same e-mail interesting enough to ask me to particpate in his Operation YES.
So I thought there has to be something here that clicks with one person and irritates with another. (Okay – that’s really obvious, I know – but it’s important.)
The whole point of Nick’s article is to speak in a natural voice. Well, I did that. A lot of people liked what I wrote and responded well. What made Nick react so poorly?
Here’s what I’ve learned from taking this butt-kicking seriously and thinking it through:
1. We all know you can’t make everyone happy. The important thing is to listen to the people who voice their opinion when they’re not happy. Maybe you can’t fix what went wrong. Okay. But you can look for ways to keep it from happening again.
2. When you’re approaching an expert for an interview, pay special attention to how they do things. My e-mail worked with 17 experts and missed with one. I’ve spoken with some of those experts and they agree that researching each person, and writing an individual letter, really is the best approach.
3. Learn from your mistakes. Take the butt-kicking and make it a motivation to do better – just like Clayton did with his copy.
So that’s how I got my butt kicked, and what it did to help me along. Let me know if it helped you, too. Send me an e-mail conrad@conradhallcopywriting.com.
Conrad