I used to have an ego. Then I became a writer. That was the end of that.
As a writer for Corporate America, I quickly learned that if I led with my ego, it was going to be crushed. Not because I couldn't write, but because when you are writing for someone else, they have very specific ideas about what they want. Or, perhaps more accurately, they have very specific ideas about what they don't want. And usually they don't know they don't want it until you've written it.
Writing for others is a collaborative process. And I quickly discovered that how I view that process is key to my success. There were two ways I can go about it. I can lead with my ego and spend a lot of time being frustrated, or I can open myself up to the collaboration and do my best to give my co-collaborator what they want.
Guess which one I chose? No. Not the ego. That went away a long time ago, and I am a happier and more peaceful writer as a result.
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