An author buddy of mine
commented on how she wished she was like me
and be so eager to write every day.
WTH?
I’m not eager to write every day.
I have to force myself
every single freakin’ morning
to sit in that seat
and type.
But I don’t often share that
because readers like to believe in
the ‘magic’ of stories.
You see,
professionals are expected
to make their often difficult jobs
look easy.
That we supposedly know
what we’re doing
can be reassuring to customers.
Unfortunately,
we often forget that with
the proteges we are mentoring,
we should be sharing
that exactly the opposite is true.
If we don’t,
our proteges will believe
they aren’t good enough
or gifted enough.
They won’t realize
that talent isn’t enough,
that talent needs to be paired
with hard work
to pay off in success.
So, yes,
show customers only the magic
but share the inner workings
and the blood, sweat, and tears,
with the people you’re mentoring.