“Malcolm Gladwell says in his book ‘Outliers’, that to be great at anything it requires more than just raw talent, it requires time. Lots of time. His magic number is ten thousand hours. I fully agree.”
-Kirk DouPonce
The above is from my “Zombie Cop” novel’s cover artist.
Before hiring him I did my homework.
I didn’t want just “any” artist doing it.
I wanted the BEST artist to do it.
And, so, I looked into who was doing the book covers I already thought looked really cool and his name kept popping up. Turns out he is one of the best in the bid’niz (his “who’s who” of big publishing clients speaks for itself). And, it also turns out his philosophy about hard work and excelling at what you do are identical to mine.
For example:
I found an interview he did online.
And in that interview he was asked…
“What advice would you give to teenagers wanting to get into your field of work?”
His answer applies to ANY skill you want to learn.
Yes, including (especially!) email marketing.
He answered:
“Start cranking on those ten thousand hours. Keep sketch books and fill them up. Also study what other artists have done both from the past and present. Look at bank brochures, menus, business cards, logos, billboards, magazine ads, etc. Learning software is important too. If you only learn one program make sure it’s Adobe Photoshop. With Photoshop and a Wacom tablet, an artist can conquer the world, or at least recreate their own. The best thing you can do is do it and do it often.”
Let’s break it down:
1. Start on your 10k hours
(Daily emails are a great place to begin, babycakes…)
2. Study what other artists (past and present) do
(This is the real purpose of a swipe file — not to copy, but to study and get inspired, don’t let the swipe-n-steal goo-roos con you)
3. Look at brochures, menus, biz cards, logos, ads, etc
(Don’t limit yourself to just emails… study blog posts, sales letters, radio shows, public speakers, any kind of persuasive communication)
4. Best thing you can do is do it and often
(That’s where the rubber meets the dough — action)
Alright, enough.
I know 99% of people reading this won’t do a thing.
They’ll get inspired.
Get excited.
Then, say to themselves “I’ll get to this soon…”
Bah!
No, you’ll get to it NOW.
Today.
Right after deleting this email.
That is, if you’re serious about getting great at writing emails that can give you a comfortable living and de-stress your existence.
Otherwise, why bother?
Maybe go back to your job.
You know…
Putting your 10k hours in for your boss (and HIS family’s lifestyle)… taking orders, running errands and carrying reports to your superiors.
Brrr.
What a hellish thought.
If that’s what you want, I can’t help you.
If you want to master email marketing, go to:
Ben Settle
