What is freelance success to you? How do you measure freelance success?
If you’re a freelance writer, chances are that you may never have considered concepts such as KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) before you started. Perhaps your inspiration for this career first sprouted from reading Shakespeare’s Othello in high school, or maybe you saw how a well-written speech could change hearts and minds.
For most of the Freelance Writing Jobs community, it’s not enough to be a freelance writer. You want to be a successful freelance writer. However, freelance writing success isn’t found on a job board or even a blog. You can find your success by cultivating good habits and working hard to get ahead.
The most successful freelance writers know what it takes to be the very best:
The ability to complete projects without succumbing to distractions is important. When you’re constantly stepping way from your work space to check on kids, see what’s to eat or watch the news, you’re not getting much done. It will take more effort to finish a piece if you have to break your focus every ten minutes. The most successful freelance writers find times to work undisturbed. This might mean finding times to work when no one is home, or working at a place such as the library where there aren’t as many distractions. Focus enables writers to stay on task, work without as many mistakes, and finish each project sooner than if they had to stop every 30 minutes to handle home matters.
What motivates you to stay on task and continue to find work? Successful freelance writers don’t stop at one project or client and they have more than one gig. They’re driven to land new clients and achieve higher rates of success and pay. If you’re driven you won’t stop at anything to achieve your goals. You won’t settle for only low paying gigs, but will instead use all your experiences as stepping stones to take it to the next level. Drive is what keeps us going. It gets us out of bed and through our day. We don’t procrastinate because we’re driven. We’ll stop at nothing to get what we want.
Successful freelance writers are confident. They don’t hope and they don’t wish … they know they can get the job done. Their confidence shows through in every query letter, every job application and every writing project. Their confidence doesn’t keep them from applying for or accepting jobs, nor does it keep them from raising their rates and landing lucrative projects.
Successful freelancers know the importance of keeping the channels of communication open with their clients. They ask lots of questions and encourage questions from those they work for. They regularly inform their clients of a project’s progress and don’t let questions go unanswered for days. They know the onus is on them and if they don’t hear back from a client in a reasonable amount of time, they will make contact again. In short, successful freelancers don’t leave anything up to chance.
Perseverance goes hand in hand with the second item on our list, drive. Successful freelancers are where they are today because they don’t give up. Even when the going gets tough they continue. They don’t let rejection or famine stop them from their goals. They’re not spooked by the competition. They’re successful freelancers because they’re not quitters.
For successful freelancers it’s not enough to write and earn a living. They have goals. There’s a clear picture in their minds about what they want to achieve and how they will get there. They know what they want to earn, the types of writing they want to do, and what they hope to achieve with their writing. Each day is a carefully planned step in achieving their goals.
Successful freelancers work well with others. They don’t see other freelancers as competitors but more as collaborators. They find others to work with on book, blog, and ebook projects and outsource work when there’s overflow. Successful freelancers know they can’t fly solo all the time.
Successful freelancers follow up. They follow up on queries and letters of interest, and they contact their clients after a project is completed to ensure satisfaction. Successful freelancers ask clients if there’s anything else that’s needed and to be kept on file for future projects. Successful writers know how to give value with their experience.
Successful freelancers ask for and appreciate feedback. They enjoy hearing when a job is done to a client’s satisfaction, but also, they want to know when clients aren’t satisfied. Both positive and negative feedback are given the same consideration and all are opportunities for improvement.
Successful freelance writers don’t wait for business to come to them. They promote and market their work and their business. They network online and offline in hopes of building brand awareness and a client base. They share online and attend networking events. They know promotion is key to success.
What are your successful habits?
If you’re a newbie to freelance writing, you’re no doubt looking forward to getting down to the writing. I’m here to tell you most of running a successful freelance writing business has nothing to do with writing. We all spend a huge bulk of our day handling a bunch of time sucking tasks which doesn’t always make freelance writing seem like that attractive a career choice. Still, they’re necessary for success.
Here are my Top 10 Freelance Writing Time Suck Tasks.
I’m sure I’m not the only blogger who receives hundreds of pieces of email each day. I enjoy answering questions from readers and nothing makes me happier than to find gig or advertising inquiries in my mailbox each day, but answering each and every piece of mail in a timely manner is next to impossible. It would take several hours at a time to respond to all the questions and comments coming in each day. Freelance writers who don’t blog also have to deal with email from clients, potential clients and others in their community. On Twitter, I asked freelance writers how much time they spend on email each day and most spend an average of an hour. Much of this is due to freelancers not wanting to deal with clients via phone or Skype. However, they would probably save more time with quick phone calls to clients rather than a bunch of back and forth emails.
Ah, yes. The money. Keeping track of what goes in and what goes out isn’t a favorite task of freelancers but it’s certainly one of the most necessary. Whether we’re invoicing, receiving funds or balancing the books, we’d much rather view the bottom line than take all the steps to get there.
Many freelancers don’t like client phone calls because they’re such a time suck. Sometimes, it seems as if our phones are ringing all day. Phone calls can actually create more time for us as we can ask and receive answers to so many questions at once rather than via several back and forth emails. My clients tell me they trust freelancers more when they can speak to them on the phone. They like hearing voices, they can tell from tone whether or not a freelancer is down with a project, and they can also tell if the freelancer is a true professional or someone just going through the motions. Save time by setting aside a certain hour of each day specifically to respond to client phone calls.. Both you and your clients will find it to be more expeditious than email.
Social media can be a huge time suck mostly because it’s so much fun chatting with others online. Many freelance writers set aside a certain amount of time each day for social media but end up going over despite good intentions. Freelancers debate the necessity of social media. Those who use it often swear by its merits, the only down side is that it can be time consuming. Social media isn’t only tweeting links. It can involve forum conversations, commenting on blogs, friending on Facebook, reaching out via LinkedIn and so much more. Most freelancers don’t spend everyday on all the social networks, but many spend time on at least a couple of these sites each day.
Whether you search the job boards, cold call clients or use other methods to find freelance writing jobs, chances are you spend more than a few minutes a day at it. Search for jobs involves several different steps including isolating desirable clients, sending queries and cover letters and making appointments to speak. Many freelancers take anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours each day to look for work.
Filing. The bane of our existence. Clips, contracts, letters, invoices and more require some sort of organization. Our online files also require everything in its place. Not being able to locate key details or files can cause us to waste even more time. Spending time each week to get all our affairs in order is a time suck, for sure. If you procrastinate about those things like I do and they pile up, it even takes more time. It’s a necessity though. It takes less time to organize both online and offline files than it does to hunt around for stuff later.
When clients aren’t happy or they need some extra guidance, we have to get on Skype or the phone and make the situation right. Customer service is an important part of freelance writing. If our clients aren’t happy, they won’t bring us their business or refer other business our way. Taking time to receive and respond to feedback bodes favorably but takes us away from our writing.
Quarterly taxes are a quarterly time suck. Estimating and paying take time. Freelancers who can afford to do so hire accountants in order to save time and headaches. However, not every freelance writer can afford this. Quarterly tax filing can take anywhere from one to three hours to complete. Though it only happens once every few months, we feel it’s a big enough time suck to warrant a place on this list.
Managing client projects takes time. Many times there’s planning, scheduling the editorial calendar, arranging interviews, research and more. Whether you use a whiteboard, your outlook calendar, or a Filofax, it takes time to plan, schedule and juggle. Freelancers with more than one client generally take a day at the beginning of the week or month to schedule in all projects and tasks. Time suck.
How will clients know about you if you don’t market your business? Today’s freelancers have so many options. However, attending networking events, speaking at conferences, writing guest blog posts, and cold calling all take time. Many freelancers allot a portion of each day to marketing tasks because without them there would be no clients. The marketing thing isn’t only a sit down and talk online thing, either. Many marketing and promotion events require freelancers to leave the home to meet with others. Marketing and promotional event can steal an entire day (or more) from freelancers.
Now that you have my top 10 freelance writing time sucks, what are yours? What are some of the tasks taking up the most time, and what do you do to save time?
As I was writing 40 Lessons Learned Over Ten Years of Blogging yesterday, I was inspired to also note my lessons learned as a freelance writer. 2010 marks my tenth anniversary as freelancer and while I may not have taken a traditional approach to my career, I still believe there are some important lessons to share.
What are your thoughts? Are there any lessons you’d like to share? Do you disagree with anything posted above? Discuss…
Every now and then it’s suggested I’m doing this wrong, that my approach to freelance writing isn’t traditional and that the tips shared here are incorrect. It’s even been hinted that perhaps I don’t look out for a writer’s best interests because I don’t follow the old-school rules of journalism or insist you follow the same path as all the other freelance writers. Those insinuations don’t bother me at all. I admit I don’t necessarily do things the right way – if there is a right way. I kind of like marching to my own drummer.
There’s a reason the rumors don’t upset me. It may seem like a big stinking pile of ego to say this, but I don’t mind the criticism because I’m successful. I don’t feel as if I’m going about this the wrong way because my bank account and my list of satisfied customers are convincing me otherwise.
So there it is. I found success as a freelance writer even if I didn’t necessarily follow a well-worn, traditional path.
Should it matter?
I don’t think so. To me, there’s something to be said about breaking the mold and finding your own way even if others might not approve. It doesn’t matter what others feel I should do if it doesn’t match my vision for achieving success. For me it means taking a less flexible approach to a freelancing schedule and using a cocktail of opportunities to maximize my earning potential. For someone else it may mean taking two hours out of each day to seek out and query $1 per word writing markets.
If it’s alright with you, I’d like to toss out a few suggestions for approaching your own freelance writing success. When I’m done, I’d love it if you can add some of your own methods into the mix as well.
Figure out what you want early on. That doesn’t mean you can’t change your approach later or redefine your goals and visions. However, having an idea in your mind of what it means to be a success will give you a starting point. Success might be a monetary goal, seeing your name in a particular publication, or achieving a certain status. Define success first, and the rest will follow.
You know what you want, now how will you get it? If your goal is to write the great American novel, you know you have to start with an outline, research facts and figures, develop characters, write a certain amount of pages each day, and eventually create a kickass proposal and shop it around. Create your path to success by plotting obtainable goals and milestones.
In 2010 opportunities for freelance writers abound. One doesn’t only need to rely on magazines or newspapers. Depending on expertise and experience, the same writers who create web content can become copywriters, article writers for magazines, newsletters and newspapers, ebook and traditional authors, bloggers and more. Creating a cocktail of opportunities might prove to be more beneficial than sticking with one tried and true form of writing. You don’t have to accept any opportunities you’re not feeling, but looking around at what else is out there couldn’t hurt.
I don’t know about you, but if it’s not in front of my face it doesn’t get done. After plotting out my goals I write them down. I put them on my calendar and work them into my daily, weekly or monthly agendas. Now I have no excuse for not achieving my goals.
It’s easy to talk about defining, scheduling and plotting but it’s all meaningless if I don’t take action. All the freelance bloggers can offer tips and advice until the earth stops moving, but we can’t force you to take the first – or any steps. So now it’s your turn. How will you take action?
That’s it – that’s my non-traditional approach to freelance writing success, now tell us about yours. What are your goals and what steps are you taking to achieve those goals?
Would you like to know why I looked for freelance writing work for two years before actually applying for a gig? It’s because I doubted myself. I was very shy and to apply for something out of the blue took me out of my element. That’s also why I stayed with a couple of jobs I didn’t like for so long. I doubted my ability to land another job. In the real world and in the freelance world, I let negativity get the best of me.
I was afraid of rejection. I thought there were better writers applying. Finally, I saw a job for a humor columnist that was right up my alley. I applied and got the gig. The first freelance writing job I ever applied for, and I was accepted. I can’t tell you what that did for my confidence.
Not too many people I meet nowadays would consider me shy, because I’ve learned to overcome many of my insecurities in order to succeed outside the salaried workforce. Freelancing and working at home may look perfect for introverts, but I’m here to tell you it’s not for the meek. If there’s one thing I learned over the past decade, it’s that the right attitude makes such an big difference.
We’ve talked about confidence on many occasions in the past. Today’s let’s look at why positivity matters.
Enthusiasm is contagious. Have you ever noticed how people with a certain effervescence attract others? It’s contagious. Confidence is a turn on. Think about who you would rather hang out with. The upbeat, positive person, the shy wallflower, or the ranty malcontent who always has a gripe. Clients feel this way too. They can sense confidence. A writer who knows she can do a job to the best of her ability is always more likely to land the gig over someone who exudes doubt. Potential clients can read body language and they can hear hesitation in your voice. Confidence even comes through in the written word via email – but when your positive it shines through.
To say you can’t do something won’t get you anywhere. “Can’ts” keep us from finding gigs or getting out of our home offices and meeting the people who pay the big bucks. “Can’ts” keep us from stepping outside our comfort zone and applying for more prestigious opportunities. Say you can…and then try. I won’t lie. You may receive rejection at first, but perserverance pays off. If you say you can’t, you won’t. Think positive. Say you can. See if it makes a difference.
Being confident is terrific, it means we have faith in our ability. Being arrogant and pushy is a whole other story. People who are positive display confidence because they absolutely know they can get the job done. Arrogant or pushy people aren’t confident, they use aggressive, almost bullying behavior to get their way. This may land them some great gigs, but it also keeps people away. By all means, go out and get what you want but be mindful of how you’re doing it. Think about how others see you. You’ll see there’s a difference.
My theme for 2010 is positivity. I wrote the word in big block letters and have it taped over my desk. Every time I doubt myself, every time I want to fire back at someone in anger, every time I make a quick judgment or say I can’t, I look up and see “POSITIVITY” staring me back in the face. It may sound simple, but having a mantra and creating a new positive goal is making a big difference in how I see myself, and how others see me.
Can’t isn’t part of my vocabulary. If I’m not sure of a situation, I analyze the reasons why and act.
Positivity does make a difference. Don’t believe me? Try it and see what happens. I’m confident you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
How has positivity changed your life?
