Many blogs write about the benefits that go hand in hand with freelancing, such as enjoying a flexible schedule, total freedom, the ability to wear what you feel like to work and doing what you love every day.
There are many other important advantages, though, and they’re often overlooked or simply forgotten. These freelancing advantages can help you increase your client base, enjoy greater success and build up a stunning resume if you decide to become a company employee.
Let’s revisit some of the reasons why freelance writing is a fantastic, interesting and adventurous career to pursue, and some of the business advantages you’ll gain:
Time management, scheduling and discipline.
Yes, it’s true. Freelancers don’t really have the tra-la-la life of no obligations or responsibilities. You’ll quickly learn that scheduling effectively and managing your time properly become a must to avoid overbooking or missing deadlines. That also means you’ll learn discipline – you’re the only person responsible for making sure you get the work done. Too much time off, and you don’t make any money.
A great writer books a normal-sized workload into a decent schedule and sticks to it.
Bonus advantage: When you learn how to schedule well and manage your workload in the available time you have, you’ll benefit from more satisfied customers who see you as reliable, responsible and time. You’ll also develop good skills that make you attractive to potential employers.
Money management, investing and budgeting
Most writers aren’t amongst the elite or the rich, and it takes some time to feel safe with your income stream. Freelancing often involves peaks of great times and valleys of huge lows. You’ll need to learn how to budget for those dry spells and sock money away during peak times. You’ll also learn how to analyze expenses, cut back on luxury spending and waste and become savvy about business improvements that offer the best returns.
Bonus advantage: When you start to monitor income and spending, you’ll realize how much money goes into the wrong places. You’ll learn how to redirect funds to other areas where the money is better spent and invest wisely in your business for smart improvements.
Effective, efficient project management
When you first start out as a freelance writer, you don’t have many processes or systems in place to have smooth operations. Getting the work done might even happen haphazardly and you might feel sloppy and scattered until you settle in. You’ll develop a nice routine that flows work through a systematic process, developing strategies that save time and help you do a better job.
Bonus advantage: Developing good work habits that follow a set pattern and that have a stable routine mean you’ll increase your profit margin on the projects you take on. Time is money, and the more you save, the more income you keep. You’ll even produce higher quality work, and that means more happy customers.
Expanding knowledge in related fields of business
Freelance writing isn’t just about writing. You’ll need to learn how to find jobs, attract clients and promote your services or else you won’t have any customers. That means you’ll become familiar with marketing, accounting, sales, branding and all sorts of other fields of business. This new knowledge can help you offer new services, add-on extras and build a better business on a good foundation for growth.
Bonus advantage: The more knowledge you have in business, the more attractive you become to potential clients and employers. You may even decide to change career paths or expand your business beyond writing alone.
Can you think of other advantages gained from becoming a freelance writer? Which advantages have you found to be winning ones for your own success? Which are you working on achieving right now?
If you want to learn how to develop smart systems and increase your client base for a better freelance business, check out The Unlimited Freelancer. It’ll teach you the tricks you need to know to take freelancing to the next level.
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