Hiya Reader—

The question I get the most from teachers isn’t what you’d think.

They're not always looking for the step-by-step breakdown of how I got from THERE to HERE.

They don’t ask about whether my colleagues or principal knew what I was doing.

The thing people most want to know is:

How do I know if I can be successful at this copywriting thing?

For me, it actually wasn’t a big dramatic experience that allowed me to understand it was all “working.”

I sat down on a normal Saturday to pay bills—something I usually avoided until the last minute.

But when I opened my bank account, something caught my eye.

I stared for 2 long minutes at the top line—a small direct deposit from a consulting firm—a mixture of disbelief and excitement rising in my body.

Someone just paid me for my writing.

I got paid to write.

When I tell people I became a copywriter, I know some imagine I landed some big-time, glamorous, household-name client right away.

But that’s not what happened. That’s rarely what happens. (I’ll tell you why this is OK)

My first real copywriting job was with a consulting firm. I had been bold and reached out to someone in a business community I was part of that had said they needed a copywriter.

The scared part of me—that hadn’t officially been hired for copywriting work yet—tried to talk me out of it.

“But you’re NOT a copywriter…” my inner critic reminded me. (RUDE)

By this point I had practiced reminding that annoying voice that everyone has to start somewhere. So I brushed it off.

And I emailed the guy. I was honest about my experience, about wanting and being willing to learn.

He gave me a shot.

They paid me $90 per blog post at first to write SEO articles about… honestly… pretty random topics.

I wrote four in my first month...and made $360.

Not life changing dough by any means.

I whooped.

And then I bought my husband dinner (+ paid the babysitter!).

Because when that first payment hit my account, it didn’t matter...

I had proven I could be a paid copywriter.

I had proven a business would pay me:

Not for grading papers.
Not to manage behavior.
Not to sit in endless meetings (THAT COULD HAVE BEEN AN EMAIL … IYKYK).

They paid me to be a copywriter. From the peace and (relative) quiet of my home.

It felt small—but it felt really, really real.

And that’s the part no one talks about:

The path to copywriting doesn’t usually start with a dramatic leap.

It starts with proof that you can.

That first $360 wasn’t about the money.

It was about that first bit of momentum.

On March 10th, I’m hosting a live webinar that walks you through how you can build your own copywriting momentum.

The link to register will be in the next email(ish), so stay tuned.

In the meantime, I’d really love to know where on this path you are RIGHT NOW.

This will help me to tailor the info in the webinar so it's a perfect fit for what you need at this moment in time.

You can simply click on the phrase below that best describes your current situation:

👉 I’m still teaching but exploring options​​
👉 I’m planning my exit within 6-12 months​
👉I'm already copywriting/running a business and want better clients​

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Don’t see your description? Hit reply and let me know where you stand.

Rooting for you,

Meredith