Work Principles for Writers: #4 - 6.
4. Never think you know it all.
Even if you do know it all, you’ll get along with people much better if you think you don’t know it all. Chances are, you don’t yet know it all. “All” is continually growing and continually changing. Even as an expert in a particular area, there is always more you can know.
If you come across as someone who doesn’t have anything left to learn, you turn off potential sources of information. You can’t get a good interview from people who sense that you aren’t really interested in what they have to say. You gain more perspective, knowledge, and empathy by listening than by talking; and you get a whole lot more out of your listening when you do it with a sincere understanding that you still have much to learn… about everything.
5. Help other writers.
and
6. Don’t pick fights.
It can be a mad scramble to get an application in to a new job opening before all the other writers who need work. It’s easy to start comparing. Once you start comparing, you start judging. Once you start judging, well, you start needing a way to make yourself feel better about your experience, your expertise, your know-how, your skills, your presentation, your rates, your hairstyle.
Super. Where does that get you? Nowhere fast. For the most part, the freelance writing community is open, receptive, and warmly helpful. But I’ve seen a few little comments become an ugly spat, and suddenly everyone involved looks unprofessional and petty.
Don’t be one of those people. Be better than that. Be friendly. Be helpful. Answer the same-old questions that people ask, or direct them to a good resource that covers the basics. Share your knowledge and your experience. Be an advocate instead of a competitor.
Two things happen when you choose helpfulness over name-calling. First, you will find that more doors open to you when you start opening doors for other people. It’s a weird little thing called reciprocity that just keeps circling back around. Don’t discount that power. Second, you will become more of an expert in many subjects as you share your knowledge with (and gain knowledge from) others. You will find that you are part of a community, and that the collective knowledge of that community is at your disposal.
Try it, and see if it isn’t true.
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