Why we embrace Draft Number 10

Great photo by Ketut Subiyanto.

No that’s not a brand of beer. When we refer to “Draft Number 10,” we’re talking about Word docs.
 
Oh. 
 
Which begs the question: Why embrace that? Just by its moniker, “Number 10,” it’s daunting and annoying. Who in their right mind would ever enjoy, let alone embrace, the tenth draft of anything? Wouldn’t you be automatically burned out? 
 
Let’s answer that “in their right mind” question first. 
 
This is business, not art
 
If you’re a painter or a poet, up in your garret, you can dream and wile away the hours, finessing your grand opus—“a hundred visions and revisions,” in the words of T.S. Eliot—and you’ve only yourself (and perhaps your muse) to answer to. 
 
But we’re not talking about art here, despite our decades of experience (not to mention lots of awards) in creative services. 
 
We’re talking about business. Money. Deadlines. ROI. 
 
Where, then, does a Draft Number 10 even come from?
 
Quick oh-now-you’ll-get-it answer: A client who’s a perfectionist. 
 
Aha. 
 
Now everything should make sense for you. We have a client—we’ve actually had lots of clients like this—who’s a perfectionist. Who will revise and revise and revise a draft until it’s almost perfect… and then decide that it’s anything but, and then trash it, and start over, and then revise and revise and revise again, taking us along for the ride. 
 
As a creative resource, you could fight this. But you know that that would get you in trouble, and perhaps fired. 
 
You could just go with the flow: “Oh, this is the way they like to work. I’ll just… endure it, without complaining.” 
 
It’s possible that you could coast along like this indefinitely. 
 
But neither of the above approaches benefits anybody. 
 
Thus our advice to you in these situations: Embrace it. Heck, enjoy it. See it for the invaluable paid education that it is: 
 
Our fastidious client in this story—like most of the clients we’re lucky to work with, whether they’re fastidious or not—is quite brilliant. We would pay to learn their thought processes. To try and osmose just a tiny bit of that genius. Why do they toss Draft 5 and do a wholesale rework for Draft 6? 
 
Incidentally, the method behind the madness reveals—if you pay attention—that overall, these drafts get better as they go. It’s not a simple straight slope, were you to graph it. But the trend would be positive. Put it this way: Wouldn’t you love to see Einstein’s notes en route to e = mc2? 
 
We get paid for our services. It’s incumbent on us to remain profitable. So we don’t lose money on assignments like this—while, at the same time, we don’t take advantage of our clients’ generosity. And while we get paid in dollars, often the greater reward is the knowledge. The insight. And, frankly, the ability to help other clients like this in similar situations. 
 
As we’d said, we’re not along simply for the ride. We dive right in, on every single draft, seeing what’s changed and doing our best to make it better throughout. That’s why our clients entrust us on this journey. 
 
Need help with a client, or project, that feels unending? Contact us. We’d be happy—truly happy—to help. 

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