Why you should stop apologizing for your work. Yesterday.

I want to share something very personal with you.

In addition to the YouTube videos I watch about how to rid my computer of malware or how to set up a portable air conditioner, I also watch videos on health and beauty stuff, like how to bump out my hair (yep, that's a thing) or to create a natural-looking full eyebrow.

I've noticed a particular theme in the beauty videos. Many of the narrators serve as effective demonstrators and some have developed a cult following. People watch them, trust them and do what they say. Judging from the high number of views these videos get, I'd guess that their content is useful to hundreds, if not thousands.

Yet, so many of these narrators feel the need to begin their videos with, or interject with, and apology.

As in, "I'm sorry the video quality is so poor today" or, "I'm sorry I look so tired today" or, "Sorry my voice sounds so ______ (choose one: raspy, quiet, loud) today" followed by an explanation.

I've been guilty of the exact same thing.

In the past, when handing in an assignment, I've caught myself beginning the accompanying email with something that goes like this:

Dear ________,

Here's the latest draft of the _________ story. As you can see, it's a bit long, and the tone might be a bit too heavy ...

We must do ourselves, our readers / watchers / listeners and our clients a favor and stop apologizing for our work. Yesterday.

Here are two ways to kick this nasty habit:

1. Revise, don't apologize.

It has taken me a long time to realize that, if my work warrants an apology or disclaimer of some sort, it means it wasn't ready to be packaged and sent off to begin with. The word count may indeed still be too high or the tone might very well be missing the mark. Whatever it is, it's not my client's job to fix, it's mine. After all, they're paying me to do the work as specified. So, my advice to you is, if you ever find yourself apologizing for your work on submission, hold back. Re-work it until it no longer needs an apology. Then, it will be worth your asking fee.

2. Ask yourself: What if this work were food?

I'm serious! Say you're at a restaurant and you're about to shell out for an expensive meal. Hey, any meal. You order, the food comes to you, and as the server hands it over, she says, "Sorry, this smoothie may not taste like it should. I used way too much agave." Or, "I know you wanted that steak medium, but mid-well is the best I could do. Let me know how it tastes though, ok? [smile] I'll remake it if you want me to." It would be a total career killer for a chef or restaurant proprietor to deliver her creations with a smile and an "I'm sorry." No one would take the time to taste the supposedly subpar stuff and wait (and then pay!) for the better stuff to appear. Don't diminish your own work's value before others have the chance to draw their own conclusions.

You must first create quality work worthy of no apologies. Then, be confident enough in its effectiveness to serve it straight up.