Friend,

There are many reasons copywriters fail.

Lack of skill. Lack of discipline. Lack of clients.

But all failed copywriters have something in common.

They lose the battle in their mind.

They don't believe they have the skills required to win.

They don't have the confidence to back themselves.

They don't have the willpower to stick it out.

Every copywriter experiences this mental battle and its one that's heavily influenced by comparison.

Comparison can be a great tool when used correctly.

However in the age of social media, it's having the opposite effect.

It makes writers think short term.

It makes writers feel like they're not doing enough.

It makes writers overestimate what they can achieve in a year and underestimate what they can achieve in ten.

This is a trap I fell into very early in my career.

I was working 10-hour days every day.

I was landing clients, building my skills and delivering results.

I'd finish work, go to Instagram and Twitter only to see that other copywriters were doing better than me.

I felt demotivated. I didn't feel like I was doing enough.

This went on for a while until I wanted to quit.

Something had to change.

I deleted social media and started focusing on myself.

Instead of comparing my results to other copywriters, I started comparing them to my results the year before.

The outcome?

My love for writing returned.

I started to see how many improvements I was making.

I was achieving better results than ever before.

All because I stopped comparing myself to others.

I've found comparison to be bad for 3 reasons.

1) Social Media is a highlight reel

We only see others' biggest (and often edited) successes. We don't see all the failure, hard work and pain behind the scenes.

This makes us feel like we're not doing enough when in reality we're often doing more than the person who posted their highlight.

2) We all have our own journey

I used to believe there was a single path to success. You do X and you'll achieve Y result.

The reality is very different. Everyone has their own path.

What works for me, may not work for you and vice versa.

If you don't realise this you may believe you have fundamental flaws when in reality you just need to take a different path.

3) You're prone to shiny object syndrome

From the age of 14 to 20 I was always looking for the next big.

Social media marketing. Day Trading. Affiliate marketing.

But I never stuck to anything long enough to get good at it.

Once I found copywriting and stuck with it I really started to see my business take off.

However, if you're always comparing, you're always thinking the grass is greener on the other side.

I can tell you from experience this is rarely the case.

The reality is, it's you vs you.

What someone posts on their social media doesn't impact you in any way.

It's just our chimp brain comparing us to a highlight reel.

Stop comparing yourself to others and start comparing you to you.

This is how you'll ultimately get better and win at not just copywriting, but life.

Use that comparison energy to build yourself up and you can change your whole life in a year.

- Copy Mav