Are you a fast writer? Can you slam out a page in no time at all? Do you book tons of work and get it all done in a day so that you can lark away the rest of the week? Or maybe you book yourself solid and procrastinate until the day before it’s all due. Then you ride the high of deadline pressure and knock it out victoriously.
Or, maybe you’re slow. Maybe you have to do a little every day and chip away at it. Maybe you struggle a bit on long projects or need to take breaks often to keep the creativity flowing. You have to keep at it, edit a few times and schedule really well to make sure it comes together when it’s all due.
Slow writer or fast writer? Which is best?
Most people would say fast. The lightening writer knows their stuff like the back of their hand and gets it all done, with plenty of time to spare. That’s envious, isn’t it?
I’m not so sure.
When you’re a craftsperson, you need to care about what you do – and the best I’ve ever seen, from leather carvers to cabinetmakers, take their time. They work at it slowly and carefully. They test each rivet. They plane edges with love. They make sure that the item they’re creating is solid, well-made and top quality.
Now, you might still think that a good craftsperson could whip through that leather carving overnight – and you’d be right. That person could. Most craftspeople have decades of experience and know the intricacies of their work down to the tiniest detail. They certainly could create a near-masterpiece overnight if they wanted to.
Almost all of them don’t.
Why? Are they generally laid back people? Are they relaxed in their thinking and just taking their time? Are they choosing a lifestyle where rushing and busy isn’t part of it? Do they not need the money?
They need the money. They rush in their own way – believe me. They aren’t taking their time. They’re probably not relaxed. They have stresses and deadlines to meet just like anyone out there.
But they want to do the best job they can. And whipping up something at the last minute never, never does the best job.
A last-minute job can be great, sure. It can be stupendous! That article? Thousands of readers! The web copy? Converts like mad! But… imagine if that fantastic work was crafted even further.
Imagine if the work was looked over the day after, and a small detail corrected here, one more changed there… that sentence is too long. Ah, it’s much more powerful said like that! And here, this verb… Let’s change it to that one. Perfect. And here, a header? Definitely.
And so on, and so on.
There’s something to be said for taking your time and doing the best job you can. No work done at the last minute is as good as it can ever be, especially in writing. In fact, you can spend weeks, months and years working at creating the best message.
So back to the question of which is better, slow or fast? I’ll pick my answer: conscientious.
Want to know how you can be that contentious worker without losing time and money? James Chartrand has the answers in his book, The Unlimited Freelancer. Grab your copy and learn how to take the time to work more on what matters while still bringing the money.
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