Four Tips for Working with a Professional

I recently worked with a professional and I’ve garnered a few suggestions for others in my position.

In my case, I sought help from a freelance editor, but these points are just as germane to anyone you pay to help you: doctor, lawyer, real estate agent, counselor, home decorator, and so forth.

Preparing ahead of time and really listening are key.

Four tips for working with a professional (writing or otherwise):

1. Ask around and find an appropriate professional for your particular need.

I needed someone to assist me with a project I’ve worked on for some time.

A freelance editor I knew had an opening just when I had a need. She’s co-written award winning books and is a long time fiction writer. She coaches writers and has strengths where my writing needs improvement.

I didn’t hire someone who specialized in children’s books, even though I knew another freelance editor who takes clients and who has written children’s books.

An English teacher couldn’t help because I needed a publishing professional. I did not hire an editor whose work I do not care for. I didn’t hire a friend I know is overbooked.

2. Treat the professional like a professional and pay them a fair rate commiserate with their skills.

The Bible is very clear: “a workman is worthy of his hire,” or in other words, a person you employ is worth being paid appropriately.

My husband likes to tell the story of a retired engineer called in to fix a machine:

 He examines the machine and draws a circle around the screw that needs to be tightened.

He presents the owner with a bill for $5,000.

“But all you did was draw a circle around a screw!”

So the engineer writes  a new bill:
– drawing a circle around a screw: $1.
– knowing where to draw it: $4999.

Don’t insult a professional by telling them their time isn’t worth much.

Feel free to negotiate, but make sure they’re making enough money to spend adequate time on your project and earn a fair wage.

3. Do your homework before the meeting.

I always brush my teeth before I go to the dentist, even if I’m getting a cleaning. The night before, I think about what’s going on in my mouth and if I have any questions.

We respect the professional when we prepare for the appointment, even if it’s just a routine meeting. Bring what what’s needed to the appointment. Don’t waste the professional’s time, particularly if you’re paying for it.

Prior to meeting with my freelance editor, I reviewed my project, gave thought to what I wanted from her, and wrote out questions.  I thought through what I wanted to say and took notes.

Thinking it through enabled me to recogniz what I needed and what I didn’t.

It was hard to reign myself in, but I refused to tell her any stories that had nothing to do with the project.

In addition, I sent her an email detailing what I wanted ahead of time.

We worked through those points during our appointment.

3. Listen to what the professional says about your project.

Be humble, this is what you’re paying them to do.

It’s tempting as a writer to argue and try to explain, but with a manuscript, the work has to show itself.

I won’t be sitting next to a reader pointing out all the details they’re missing because my writing isn’t clear.

Chances are excellent the professional will see things you don’t realize and will know things you don’t know.

You’re paying them for their experience, remember?

This is not a contest about which one of you is smarter. This is an opportunity to be ignorant, to admit you need help.

Isn’t that why you’re paying for this service?

The professional doesn’t expect you to have answers. You’re presenting a need. They’re meeting it.

Take notes if possible and ask the professional for any notes they have taken.

Consider having a  friend join you to take notes and with whom you discuss the meeting afterwards.

(It’s amazing how much more someone can take in if they’re not as emotionally invested in the project as you are).

4. Do what you’re told and follow through.

My freelance editor friend gave me handouts to work through. The questions looked difficult. I had to rethink my entire manuscript.

It was hard.

I sat up until 1 one night thinking through my story line.

I used one of the handouts as a worksheet and applied it to my manuscript–wherein I saw all sorts of unexpected insights.

Because the editor asked questions in a way different from what I expected, I viewed my story from a different perspective and improved it.

If you doctor tells you to lose ten pounds and get more exercise and you’ve paid him to tell you that, shouldn’t you follow through and do it?

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