About Joshua Aaron Stanley
Former ‘Composer-Turned-Marketing Director’
Discovers The Secret “Spiritual” Power Of Words
As 2007 came to a close, I decided to leave the comfort and security of a “real job” with the respectable title of “Marketing Director”, and start my own business as a freelance marketing consultant and copywriter.
I didn’t know it at the time, but I wasn’t even close to being ready for the challenge of entrepreneurship. But then again, who is?
Sometimes, you just gotta do it, and learn as you go along… which is exactly what I did.
No one is born a successful marketer or entrepreneur. Each person has their own unique journey. Mine began as a classically trained musician…
Back in my college days, I earned a B.M. degree in Trumpet Performance… then went to graduate school to study Music Composition.
It was my dream to be like John Williams, and write big orchestral scores for exciting action-adventure films… at least until I moved to L.A., and was faced with the practical reality of having to pay the rent!
(What do you call a musician without a wife or girlfriend? Homeless!)
That’s when I entered the “real world” and got a “real job”. (You gotta keep the rent paid somehow.)
But I wasn’t happy. I tried several careers—computer technician, accounting, even pre-med school—but there was no creativity in any of them.
Finally, after becoming exhausted and burnt out, I knew I had to find something I could be truly passionate about… but would also allow me to support my habit of living indoors.
That’s when I discovered copywriting… and I soon realized
It’s a whole lot like composing…
Because a composer must be both creative and analytical. There is no such thing as being one without the other. Without creativity, music lacks life and energy. But without the logical mind, it lacks form and structure.
It is the same with writing a persuasive sales message.
There is an underlying structure to every sales argument that requires a logical mind to understand and create it. Yet at the same time, it takes creativity and sensitivity to write a rhythmic, flowing—even hypnotic—message over this structure that keeps your reader engaged.
I attribute my musical training as a key influence in my writing style. But more than that, I’ve spent enormous amounts of time studying the old direct response masters. Marketing legends such as…
Claude Hopkins — Robert Collier — John Caples — Vic Schwab —
David Ogilvy — Eugene Schwartz — Gary Halbert —
even many of today’s living legends.
It was because of my burgeoning interest and passion in direct marketing that I was given the chance to take a job as Marketing Director for a manufacturing company in Torrance, CA.
That’s where I continued to learn and hone my skill as I completely rewrote all of their marketing materials. Here’s what the President of the company says about my work…
“Consistently Delivered Excellent Results”
“Aaron’s witty and friendly writing style has been a big hit with our customers and has consistently delivered excellent results. We’ve gotten so many positive comments from our customers.
“He has even helped define our unique selling proposition and made sure all of our marketing materials communicate it.
“I don’t know how he does it but he always manages to quickly grasp our message with minimal input on our part, and effectively communicate it to our customers in a fun, easy to read fashion.
“I would not hesitate to recommend him to anyone!”
John Berardi, President
Wildfire Lighting & Visual Effects
As much as I enjoyed having the title of “Marketing Director”, it didn’t take long to realize I much prefer writing copy than being a manager.
I live for the analytical and creative challenge of positioning and promoting different products and services. Each new challenge is a problem to be solved… a piece to be composed… a victory to be won.
Which is exactly why I struck out on my own at the dawn of 2008 to offer my skills and talents to the world. And…
My life changed forever.
You see, there is nothing like giving up the security of a steady paycheck for the “wild and dangerous” life of an entrepreneur. It can either destroy you… or force you to change and become who you were always meant to be.
It is a journey of transformation—like going through a “refiner’s fire” that forges a new and better person out of you. It has been—and will continue to be—an epic journey.
Let me give you just one example of how my life has “shifted” forever…
A few months ago, I began to get flooded with work. Project after project was coming in the door, and it looked like I was going to be booked for at least 2 solid months straight.
Then it happened.
In an odd act of synchronicity—and due to circumstances completely beyond my control—every last sale I thought I had made evaporated before my very eyes. Suddenly, I went from being booked solid for the next 2 months to having virtually nothing on my plate.
I was dumbfounded. The only thing I could do was get back to work promoting my business.
Only problem was… I was exhausted.
I’d been working days, nights, and weekends for months doing the “entrepreneur thing”. (If you’re an entrepreneur, you know exactly what I’m talking about.) There’s nothing wrong with hard work, but everyone needs a break from time to time.
And that’s exactly what I did. I took a “spiritual hiatus” to reconnect with my inner spirit.
I spent as much time as I could in a state of meditation and prayer. I laid everything down before God and the Universe—my business… my life path… my core beliefs… even life itself.
Rev. Michael Beckwith once said, “So you want a resurrection? Well, something has to die!”
So… like the Great Master before me—though not quite so dramatically—I placed the totality of myself and my experience on the cross of sacrifice.
That’s when my life changed. Again.
I “resurrected” an entirely different person.
I had a profound new realization of who I am, what my mission is, and the kind of force for good I can bring to those around me.
It is my mission to use my talents and gifts in the service of others, and help other people get what they want.
That’s how “Spiritual Copy” was born.
This experience awakened me to a wider world of spirituality. It helped me realize the spiritual power of words. It has allowed me to “feel” the power and impact each word has… and therefore choose words very carefully like an artist chooses just the right color for a particular brush stroke.
Spiritual Copy is a mindset… a philosophy… and technique all rolled up into one. It is an elevation of consciousness that goes beyond “selling” and into “serving”… it is about persuading with Empathy, Integrity, & Authenticity.
To continue exploring Spiritual Copy…
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