I just want to share a little something I learned today. While reading a book on copywriting I came across an idea to make me a better copywriter. The section of the book told me I could become a great copywriter in 5 hours or less. Now this intrigued me.
Here is the ideal…
Take someone’s sales copy and write it down in its entirety in your own handwriting. Don’t cheat and type it out because it won’t work. One reason is probably because when you type something you don’t actually read it or remember it. I know I’m just typing what I see, nothing more, nothing less. I don’t remember anything about the article I am typing.
Write this sales copy out 2 or 3 times this week. This will take time and discipline, but by the end of the week you “will start internalizing the wording, the phraseology, the rhythm, even the mindset of the person who wrote the copy.”
When I read that I immediately thought of the scriptures. How cool would that be to do parts of scriptures I wanted to memorize?
Sometimes, it’s hard to take scripture and commit it to memory, but writing it down may actually work. Here are two examples of why I believe this method works.
(1) Be Quiet!
Remember when you were younger and the children who got caught doing something bad had to write on the blackboard 100 times what they wouldn’t do again. I remember because I was one of those children.
When I was in grade school I got caught talking in class. This wasn’t hard to do since I could never shut-up. My report cards always read A5, A for the grade and 5 for the worst citizenship with a note about my excessive talking. Like I said I couldn’t be quiet.
Anyway, I had to write “I will be quiet in class” 1000 times, which came to about ten sheets of paper, front and back and turn it in on Monday morning. My whole weekend was spent writing that dog-done sentence. My fingers cramped up, my shoulders ached from hunching over that paper all day, and I had the nerve to be a neat freak about it. You better believe that stuck with me more than just telling me to be quiet ever did. I now understood the mindset of my teacher. He really meant “BE QUIET!” This teacher pretty much cured my talking habit for the rest of my education.
(2) In the Beginning
When I began to study the Old Testament I wanted to know what it said in Hebrew to see if the translation I was reading was close to what the Hebrew was saying. I had read some commentaries on Genesis 1:1 and I didn’t understand how the authors came to their particular viewpoint so I started translating Genesis 1:1-3 for myself. I kept writing it down in Hebrew and looking up each word for its meaning. I kept going over the first sentence and without realizing it I had memorized it in Hebrew. I can’t say the same for the rest of the scripture because I was stuck on understanding the first sentence. (Side note: I encourage you to study the beginning of creation for yourself. You will be amazed at what you find out.)
This one verse began to open up several verses in the scriptures for me. Every time I read something in another part of the Bible I saw Genesis 1:1 in it. It was amazing.
It Works
So I know this technique works. I started looking at scripture differently after this. I started asking more questions about the passages I was reading. I wanted to know what Elohim said verses what I have been taught all of my life. It has been a wonderful journey for me. Now I am going to apply this to bigger sections of scripture in Hebrew and English. I figure this way I’ll learn to speak Hebrew better also. (I have the Old Testament on audio in Hebrew.)
What Do You Think?
I know the process seems like it will take a lot of your time, but it will be worth it in the end. Maybe you can’t devote 10-15 hours a week to this, after all, you do have to work, raise children, and tend to your spouse and other everyday living arrangements.
Perhaps, maybe you can start with a verse or two and write for 15 minutes, two times a week. See how that goes and how it affects your life. Then let me know how it worked for you.
Did it cause you to meditate more on the Word of Elohim? Did it open up more of your understanding? Or did it just make you feel good because you can now quote more scripture? Whatever you got out of it, whether good or bad, I would love to hear about it.