Long before I was born my grandfather hired a writer and it cost him his life. His son (my uncle) had relocated abroad and the only means of communication at the time was letter writing. My grandfather, who couldn't read or write, employed the services of his younger brother who was quite proficient in writing.
Everything went well initially until his brother betrayed him. He stopped writing and sending the letters along with the package that accompanied those letters, meanwhile, he lied to my grandfather that he had sent them. My uncle who was on another continent thousands of miles away from home felt abandoned, betrayed, hurt, and worse yet suffered many hardships.
Many months later, the truth came out but things were never the same again. My uncle couldn't forget the trauma he had experienced during those months when he was alone with neither support from his family nor the comforting letters from his father, so he chose to keep his distance.
My grandfather had to live with the pain of the betrayal and the heart-wrenching feeling of disappointing his son and losing him. After a few years, those thoughts consumed him. He passed away.
All of this happened because of the wrong decision of hiring a writer who could write well but lacked an intricate quality that is essential for all writers, that quality is empathy.
Why is empathy essential for writers? And why should you hire an empathetic writer?
What is empathy?
Empathy is defined as the identification with and understanding of another’s situation, feelings, and motives. It is also the ability to put oneself in another person’s shoes.
To do this, you’d have to fully comprehend the other person’s feelings, pain, and thoughts. If you need to inspire empathy in yourself, you might ask yourself questions like, what is this person’s situation? How do they feel in this position? What is it like to live like them daily? How would they react in various situations?
The goal of these questions is to help you get a holistic overview of the person’s circumstance and see how you can help. By being empathetic you are invariably saying, “Hey, I feel your pain but you don't have to deal with it alone!”
Why is empathy essential for writers?
Empathy makes your writing relatable. It helps you write content and copy that resonates with your readers and leaves an indelible impression on their minds.
Empathy helps you build a powerful connection with your audience. Our aim in writing is to appeal to our readers. We want to write material that they’d be interested in, evoke emotions and, make them yearn for more. The method to achieve this is empathy.
Empathy makes your writing convincing. Your readers will find it easy to believe and trust you because you’ve presented the material as authentically as possible.
Empathy makes you a better writer. When you can feel, see, smell, hear, and taste like your audience, you’d be better able to put all of it in words.
Why hire an empathetic writer?
This is hands-down one of the best decisions you could make. Here are some reasons why:
An empathetic writer is more concerned about delivering the job than the financial rewards that come with it.
An empathetic writer understands your situation as well as the purpose of writing and presents this in your voice.
They save you time, energy, money, and stress.
An empathetic writer prioritizes your satisfaction and guarantees your happiness with the project.
You can never go wrong when you hire an empathetic writer. You’d only be incredibly happy with the process.
Don’t make the mistake my grandfather made.
The next time you want to hire a writer make sure you look for one who is not only skilled, but empathetic. Someone who uses their own words but writes in your voice, and watch how seamless the process can be.
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This is an excellent write-up and heartfelt story. Thank you for sharing Loretta!