When I began my career as an in-house copywriter, I was kind of a pain to work with. I suffered from the notion that everyone should implicitly trust my judgement because I was a professional who wrote for a living. Now, if you had asked if this was how I really felt, I would have denied it. My actions, however, told another story.
With the exception of glaring typos or factual errors, I would contest almost any change made to my draft copy no matter how big or small. Rather than try and understand what prompted someone to request a wording change I would try to convince that person that the change was unnecessary.
Fortunately for my coworkers, and my career, my eyes were opened to the error of my ways. I came to realize that the role of a creative professional is essentially that of a servant. This in no way means I’m to keep my opinions to myself or simply go along with what a client wants to do, especially if it’s off-message. All it means is I need to make sure I’m putting their needs before those of my ego or portfolio.
Do I still chafe at what I feel are needless copy changes? Yes. Do I still think I should be able to say something better than the client can? I ought to. You’re paying for a copywriter, not a typist. The big difference between me then and me now is that now I know mere talent is not enough to merit trust. I could be the most talented writer in the room but if I’m difficult to work with or incapable of truly hearing what a client needs, my skills are of little use to anyone.