I Can See Clearly Now… Why A More Difficult Path Can Be More Satisfying

This morning, getting out of my comfy bed was a bit of an effort.?

You see, over the long weekend, we hiked, probably further than we have for a long while. And, we camped out - in our shiny new tent.

At the end of the first day, my feet and shoulders were talking to me, and they were none too happy. In fact, they’d been screaming at me like the unhappy child in the backseat of the car for the whole afternoon.

But, when we finally stopped and took off our packs, I revelled in cooking up a storm on a tiny camping stove and chatting under the stars. Now, this is what it’s all about!

I went to sleep feeling happy and fulfilled.

Then, things took a slight turn when my old backpacking sleeping mat decided to deflate at 2 am. My 50-something bones protested loudly for the rest of the night. My summer sleeping bag and liner weren’t quite up to the job either. So after putting up with it until it got light, I did my best Robocop impression to get out of the tent and get moving again.

Swallowing our pride a little (we call it being sensible), we shortened the route home by taking a bus part of the way.

All in all, we arrived back home pleased with what we’d achieved, but in need of a hot bath and an early night.

OK, so I’ll definitely be treating myself to a new sleeping mat (put your product suggestions in the comments please). And I’ll almost certainly be investing in a warmer sleeping bag – especially before I go to Scotland in September. But the important thing is that we did it. We got out there and achieved what we set out to do…

Yesterday I did very little, but this morning I got on my mat for a yoga session.

It starts with the teacher saying…

“Think about one word that describes how you want to feel today…”

Resisting the temptation to scream “30, I want to feel 30!” I chose ‘CLARITY’.

Today, I want to be clear about what I’m doing and why.

Why did I quit my secure 9 to 5 job to become a copywriter?

Why did I choose to work with companies and entrepreneurs in the Outdoor and Adventure industry?

You know that itch, the one you can’t quite scratch? The thing you can’t a quite put your finger on? But you know something needs to change?

I’ve had that for years. Why?

Because I spent so much time and energy helping companies that didn’t really care about me, or anyone else for that matter.

They cared about money. Pure and simple.?

The people… were just a means to an end.

Sure, they launched initiatives, supplied training and spent time asking ‘what can we do better.’ But mostly they didn’t listen to the answer. And if they did, any improvement strategies only lasted as long as it took the manager to move on to his next promotion.

Balance was only maintained as long as the money-making machine kept churning. And if it didn’t, for whatever reason, the people became expendable, almost overnight. Just another commodity to be traded and forgotten.

But I digress. Yes, to clarity...

Recently I’ve been emailing people. Real people. People who don’t seem to run their companies like that. I email them to say “hi”, to say “here I am'', to say, “I think I can help you”, to say “this is what I stand for, and I think you do too”...

Some don’t read the message at all. Most don’t respond, and that's fine. But some do, and, even if that’s as far as it goes, those are the ones that make me think, “Yes, I’ve got you right, you’re my kind of person”.

So why did I become a copywriter?

Well, to write, of course. You can already tell that’s something I love, right?

But also, to help businesses that?

??care about their staff, their clients and the planet

??want to do the right thing

??do amazing stuff for their clients, and help their clients do amazing stuff

??make things that make things better, and

??have a positive impact on society and the environment

I became a copywriter to help those businesses get their message out there. To help them grow their audience and their reach…

..so that more of us get to work with, and buy from, the good guys.

And I chose Outdoors and Adventure, dear reader because I know that businesses like yours, whose mission is to help more people to appreciate and benefit from the outdoors, really get it. They understand what’s important…

Why did you choose to do what you do?