I am ever hopeful of finding a gem in one of those “free” webinars, and every so often, I do.

I admit it. I am addicted. I continually sign up for those “free” webinars and telecons, knowing full well that most of them are 90% sales pitch, 9% talking up the speaker and maybe 1% actual content. I do so because every so often, I actually sign up for one which is more content than pitch, and tonight was one of those times.

#AWAI sponsored one called “An Inside Look at Becoming an Online Copywriter in 2014” featuring Nick Usborne who has been working in the business for about 30 years. I ended up logging in a bit late, and they had already launched into a discussion of the content of the call, already a huge plus. In fact, Mr. Usborne gave his presentation and answered questions from the AWAI presenter (I believe it was Rebecca Matter) for most of the hour. The sales pitch was the usual hype, but it was remarkably short.

The best part of the presentation for me, though, as I’ve been slogging my way through the Accelerated Copywriting course in fits and starts for the last few months, is that Mr. Usborne hit on something which interests me far more than writing that winning sales letter or email. He said that there is a definite need for people to write web content. Not landing pages which are still selling, but pages of information. My eyes really lit up when he started talking about writing newsletters. My brain lit up like a Christmas tree as I thought: “Well, heckfire! This ain’t my first rodeo. I wrote newsletters for groups I was in back in the days when they had to be typed up in Word or some other word processing program, printed out and copied for distribution! Doing everything online is a whole lot easier. As for coming up with content, that’s just input from the client about upcoming events, promotions and such along with some research via Google to find interesting information to share with a site’s readers! I can do this!

Ok, so I still need to get through the rest of the Accelerated Copywriting course, but now, I have a real end in sight! Yes, I’ll have to use what I’ve learned to set up a website, and yes, I’ll have to use some of the techniques mentioned to find clients, but this is more my speed! I find it way too hard to get hyped up to sell something. I’m the one who will scan all the way to the bottom of those fancy letters and landing pages, asking, “Let’s just cut to the chase. If I’m interested enough to scan this far, just tell me how much so I can decide whether I think it’s worth the price!” All of that hard work is wasted on me.

But to put out a newsletter letting subscribers know what’s going on, maybe even (horrors!) include a deal and a mild sales pitch, well! That’s my cuppa tea! Wouldn’t you know, I get inspired to kick butt on that darned course right when my workload increases and I get to enjoy a few days with my daughter? It doesn’t rain but it pours!

The truth is, when I have too little to do, I tend to drag it out, fiddle farting around with stupid stuff way too long. But when I have deadlines or goals, I become Wonder Woman and can crank out more work in eight hours than most people do in several days. Volume gives me hyper focus.

Blog posts may get shorter (I can almost hear some of my readers sighing with relief!) as I put more time and effort into both paying gigs and things which will become paying gigs. This came just in time, because I was considering putting something up on Fiverr for writing letters of complaint to various companies (another thing I’m rather good at, if I do say so myself!). My letters along with an abundance of persistence have given me success with the likes of Chrysler, GM, Union Bank and Blue Shield, to name a few. I may not be able to sell, but I can make one hell of a case for a dispute to be resolved in my favor!

Needless to say, I’m very excited about moving forward on both the additional tasks I’ve taken on for existing clients as well as the studying which will ultimately give me the freedom to write what I want to write, and eventually publish books. (My recent discovery that getting a novel written, edited and published is a much longer process than I realized has made me consider other options in the meantime, but until now, I wasn’t finding anything I could really sink my teeth into.)

I guess it was the idea of having to research products until I knew them inside out and then try to sell them in a sneaky letter designed to keep someone reading until the end. Just not me. But to be able to help companies share information, to educate and inform…that’s for me!!!

Have you ever started a project and halfway through found that it really didn’t inspire you? I do that a lot. Yet, all it would take is a single gem like the one I mined today to get me all hyped up and motivated again. I tell my daughter all the time, that you sometimes have to get through the boring tedious stuff because it’s a means to the end that really fires your passion. Accelerated Copywriting is the tedium I must master in order to reach my goal which is a writing career that will support me for the rest of my life, and even leave behind a legacy for others. I’m far too old to live in a garret and be a starving artist, so I need to use the tools at hand to ensure that I have the wherewithal to pursue me dream of being a novelist.

I’m consumed with excitement!

For weeks now, I’ve been searching for answers, for guidance, for signs that I’m still going in the right direction. I was starting to feel like I was asking the wrong questions, but now I realize it was just a matter of timing. I had to hit my own bottom as far as frustration and lack of motivation before I’d hear the message and see the possibilities. Such is the mindset of an ADHD personality. There are times when I really do need that virtual 20 pound sledgehammer to the head!

All I can say is, give some of those webinars and telecons a try if the subject matter interests you. If it turns out to be mostly just an admiration society for the speaker and a sales pitch, you can always bail after the first few minutes (which I’ve done on many occasions), but by signing up and showing up, you might just find one that lights a fire under you, too!

My gratitudes tonight are:
1. I am grateful for inspiration and new motivation.
2. I am grateful that my true skills and joys can be turned into a business venture with great promise.
3. I am grateful for my increased workload.
4. I am grateful for my friends and family who have kept me pushing forward, albeit slower than I’d like.
5. I am grateful for abundance: work, friends, family, inspiration, motivation, opportunities, joy, health, love, harmony, happiness, health and prosperity.

Namaste