One thing I do related to this is I always carry around a notebook to jot down ideas. As the project is brewing in my head the ideas come unexpectedly, so I need to write something down to jog my memory when I sit back down to put together the next steps. Sometimes the ideas are words or phrases, sometimes I write half a page. I would say ideas like this come to me most often while driving. It’s not at all uncommon for me to pull over and take 5 to write before I forget the thought. Unfortunately, while “concepting “/ “incubating” behind the wheel, I’ve also been known to miss a turn or an exit ramp.

slr

For my clients, this part of the process is transparent. I don’t tell them about it; I simply work it into my timelines. Not that I’m trying to hide it; I just think it’s something like getting snacks while I work, or whether or not I have the window open–it’s irrelevant from their perspective, as long as I meet agreed-upon quality standards and deadlines.

Leave the outline and some notes lying somewhere for anything from 2 days to 2 weeks and hey presto, that layer of problems is solved when you come back (or the ideas jump out at you while driving – I found the M40 particularly inspiring!). Of course that just reveals the next layer lying in wait, but when writing a more simple document, more often than not there is no other layer.

I definitely endorse this. With just one downside – you start to dream about your projects. Constructive but you can begin to feel there is nowhere to hide!

Lindsay

All of that said – I’d be interested in knowing what some journalists (current or former) might think about incubation? Often times, there just isn’t time to let a story sit an incubate, especially if you’re a staff journalist with a hostile editor! I wonder if a journalist would see this incubation time as necessity, luxury, or frivolity?

In terms of what the client perceives… even if I got off the phone with a client and did happen to churn out their press release 2 hours after speaking with them, I’d never let them know that. I think that kind of turnaround can create the perception you’re not good enough to have an existing workload, and that you rush through the work that does come in. If I am asked to turn something in so quickly (very rare, most know I work from home and have a special needs toddler) I charge a rush rate. I always tell my clients I will “schedule them into my project calendar” – I think it gives them confidence their document is getting the attention it deserves, and tells them I’ve got other work, which means I’m trusted by other businesses (in my market, that means other people they know personally) . This client scheduling method… to come around the original point… allows me the brew time necessary to do a good job.

If a client wants a press release done, do you really get it finished two hours later? If so, that’s a rush job — a totally different animal.

For regular project work, I’m suggesting that you build in incubation time into your schedule. For example, do a rough draft of the press release Monday morning, switch to some other project work while that draft “cooks”, then return to finish the release Wednesday morning.

A three day turnaround for a press release job is reasonable for most clients.

Steve

Take the Marcia Yudkin case as an example: “I gather all the information I need,” she says, “then wait a day or two [incubation] until I feel like the press release is itching to come out of me. And that’s when I write it, quickly and easily.”

The client will most likely compare this with “most other professionals take at least two hours or more”.

So, what you as a client are getting is a) press release in 2 days, b) press release in 2 hours. Guess which I would choose. As a client, I couldn’t care less about whether you sweat or not.