Chip MacGregor

April 23, 2012

What helps a writer facing career decisions?

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Brant wrote and asked a question that I figure goes through every writer’s mind at one point or another, so it’s probably worth giving it some thought. It’s not rocket science—but because it’s not rocket science, it can be easy to overlook. He asked, “I’m trying to decide if I should move from part time writer to full time writing — what advice would you have for someone who just needs to make major career decisions as a writer?” 

1. Go slow. The decisions I’ve raced into have a tendency to be the ones I’ve regretted. There is rarely a time a writer MUST make a decision today, rather than thinking about it and sleeping on it for a night. 

2. Listen. I’ve found my gut will tell me if I’m right. I hate to be so vague, but I always found that to be true—when it didn’t feel right, it probably wasn’t. So learn to stop and listen — to trusted friends, to people in the industry, to that voice in your head. 

3. If my gut fails me, my SPOUSE will tell me if I’m right. While I hate to admit this, my wife is probably right more often than I am. (But don’t tell her I said this.)

4. If I’m doing something solely for the money, I’m probably making a mistake. The worst situations I got into as a freelance writer were the ones where I didn’t want the job, or didn’t understand the job, but needed the money. (“A book detailing your…what? Your history? And your business decisions? And your thoughts on life? And include a rant against the US parrot-importation laws? Sure, I can do that.”) 

5. Everybody needs a calendar and a to-do list. Trust me—it makes saying “no” much easier if you can say, “I’m busy that day.” Even if all you’re busy with is taking your daughter to the school play. And having a to-do list allows me to prioritize and get to the really important things in my work life. 

6. Be prepared to face tough choices. I used to find that my life swung back and forth between “CRAZY BUSY” and “looking for something to do because I was taking this stupid break.” Somewhere along the line, I balanced those out a bit more because I made some decisions about what I wanted to do and what I didn’t want to do. If you haven’t made those decisions, you’ll find your life and schedule are considerably more complicated. 

7. Stay in shape. It may seem completely unrelated (or even cliché), but I’ve noticed I make better decisions about moving forward or putting on the brakes when I’m exercising regularly, eating right, and feeling good. Sorry to sound like your mother.  

8. Keep connected to other people. I make better decisions when I talk things over with people I respect, whose wisdom I can listen to. 

9. Take a break every now and then. Even God rested. You’re not him. Take a hint. 

10. I still screw these up sometimes, so don’t take this post as “Chip has it all together.” Hey, last time I checked we were all screw-ups. So don’t beat yourself up if you’re in a bad place right now. Instead, sit down with a piece of paper. Don’t try and tackle all your issues at once—list them. Figure out how you can tackle them one by one. Put together a new calendar. Determine a weak, crummy purpose statement that at least gives you a head start. And make a commitment to be in a better spot by… May 1. (NOT “everything will be perfect,” but “I will have made progress on my planning.”)

More on career planning coming — what helps YOU when you face big decisions? 

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