Freelancing has it’s ups and downs… you’ll meet a great contact, you’ll lose a great contact, you’ll get a high-paying job, you’ll have jobs that never pay, you’ll have $800 days, you’ll have $20 days, you’ll have freedom like you’ve never believed, you’ll have days where your computer is the only thing you see…

While I love my career and don’t foresee changing it in any time soon…there are a number of things I didn’t know when I got started. Here are 13 reasons why you should NOT become a freelance writer: Read the rest of this entry »

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Today was the first day I have ever turned down a job because I felt it would be unethical to complete. I have been freelance writing for eight months now and have had to pass on some jobs because of time constraints, but never because I disagreed with the morals of it.

Today was different.

The crazy thing is, I was going out of my way to help somebody out. A young man posted a link to his sales letter on the Digital Point message board about two weeks ago asking for a critique. I looked over it and noticed spelling errors, poor structure, and overall lousy writing. So I sent him an email offering to re-write the letter for half my regular rate, since he mentioned he was low on money.

Well, we talked back and forth and I ended up agreeing to complete the letter for FREE with a payment plan set up once he was selling his eCourse. I had him fill out my 5 page questionnaire, send me loads of info, and even send me the eCourse itself.

The project was low on my list of priorities, so I never got around to it until this morning.

I sat down and started going through all the information. “Ugh,” I thought to myself, “I don’t know how he expects to sell this course - I could find this information for free on the internet.”

Click…the light switch in my head turned on. Read the rest of this entry »

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How many times have people given you weird looks when you said you’re a freelance writer? There are a number of reasons for this reaction:

1. People don’t know what that means.
2. People think it’s a fancy term for unemployed.
3. People didn’t realize that could be a full-time job.

So how do you turn the tables and teach people to treat you as a professional? You need to build credibility and establish professionalism. Here are 10 tips that I’ve used to build my reputation and earn people’s trust and respect:

1. Make it a Business: I’m not just a writer, I’m a business owner offering writing services.
2. Have a Schedule: I make sure to be working from 8 in the morning until 5 in the afternoon with the slight exception of playing an hour of basketball on Tuesday and Thursday each week.
3. Promote Your Website: I’ve found that a static website with a list of my services and a portfolio has done wonders for building credibility with local clients.
4. Create a Blog: My blog has helped me connect with fellow freelancers and attracted a number of jobs as well.
5. Smile: Yes…a simple smile can make people think the world of you. Use it!
6. Dress for Success: I don’t care what people say about wearing a suit and tie…I feel much more presentable when I’m dressed comfortably and believe others notice as well. I wear nice jeans and a good sweatshirt or button-up when I meet with clients or representing my business.
7. Say Cheese: Get your face out there! Don’t hide away in your office at all ties. Instead, try to take advantage of networking opportunities and social events.
8. Prioritize: Work comes before play. Friends, family members, and others will see that freelancing is a real job when you skip a movie to get things done.
9. Don’t Write for Free: Just because I’m a writer doesn’t mean I’ll help friends with their essays or web content for free. While I don’t mind being helpful here and there, it’s certainly not a habit that is worth developing.
10. More Than a Job: If you treat freelancing like a job, you’ll fail. It has to be a career and a business. If people can’t tell that your heart is in it, then you’ll always struggle to earn respect.

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Freelancing is a wonderful life, isn’t it? You get to wake up when you want to wake up, wear what you want to wear, work the hours you want to work, and make the money you want to make. Total freedom…right?

Wrong.

While freelancing definitely has it’s benefits, you also need to be extremely disciplined if you want to make it a career. You shouldn’t wake up whenever you want to wake up, you can’t sit around in your PJ’s all day, and you need an organized work schedule if you intend on getting things done. By creating structure within your freedom, you’ll find you have much more freedom at the end of the day.

Here are three tips for staying on task during the day so that you don’t have to work long into the evening and night…

1. Minimize Email: Okay, I might sound a bit too much like Timothy Ferriss here…but seriously, you need to stop checking your email 20 times a day. I’ve done it, you’ve done it, and it hasn’t helped either of us with our productivity. Sure, there are exceptions when you’re expecting a certain message to come through the funnel, but for the most part you’re just wasting time. If you learn to check your email only a couple times each day instead of making it a constant distraction, you’ll be able to get much more done.
2. Stop Browsing the Internet: It happens all the time when I’m not paying attention. I’ll be writing an article or a sales letter and need to search for something in Google…I’ll find what I need and then wander over to check the sports pages to see if anything has happened, then I check out my blog’s statistics, then I say hello to my pal’s on FaceBook, and then I realize that I’ve wasted 45 minutes doing absolutely nothing! It takes discipline to avoid random internet browsing throughout the day, but it pays off in the end…when you’ve finished your work and can spend time with family and friends in the evening instead of acting like you need to put in another “12 hour day” at the office.
3. Ten Minute Rule: Harry from Men with Pens teaches a 10 minute approach to staying on task. It’s simple really, if you find yourself wandering and unable to finish an assignment, just promise yourself 10 minutes of hard work. Seriously, a mere 10 minutes can make a HUGE impact on your productivity. Why? Because if you focus for 10 and get into what you need to accomplish, you’re bound to spend much more time that what you expected. To get work done you need to be focussed on what you’re doing. It’s nearly impossible to schedule a 2 hour session where you’ll be completely focussed…it just won’t happen. But if you’re willing to put in 10 you’ll be surprised with the results.

Freelancing can be a lot of fun, but only if you know how to get things done. Without discipline you’ll find yourself working more hours for less pay. But if you can stay on task and get things done…

• You’ll be able to complete more projects…which will in turn make you more money.
• You’ll be able to quit work earlier than usual…which will allow you to enjoy some free time.
• You’ll be able to improve the quality of your work…which will allow you to raise your rates.
• And you’ll be able to overcome the guilt of wondering…what did I do today?

It’s all about mindset. You aren’t a freelancer unless you’re able to enjoy the freedom that you hoped for when you started your career.

By sleeping in every day you’ll eventually develop a lazy mindset, by wearing your pajamas you’ll feel like you can lounge instead of getting things done, and by wasting work time on the little things you considered to be perks (internet, TV, video games, etc) you’ll find that you are missing out on the time freedom that you had hoped for…

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It doesn’t matter whether you’re looking to build your business with $50 or $500, you’ve got to invest if you want to make it as a freelance writer.

It can be extremely difficult to get things going early on, but the amount of money you invest in your career is almost directly related to the amount of money that you will make.

Here are the most necessary purchases and investments for growing your business and improving your skills…

Less than $50

Books: Go to a local bookstore and purchase any book that you know will help you in your career. I use a number of books as references on a day-to-day basis. Since most of my work is copywriting, here are the books that I recommend the most:

• The Adweek Copywriting Handbook - Joseph Sugarman
• Neuromarketing - Patrick Renvoise & Christophe Morin
• Unlimited Slling Power - Donald Moine & Kenneth Lloyd
• Hypnotic Writing - Joe Vitale
• The Ultimate Sales Letter - Dan Kennedy
• The 4-Hour Work week - Timothy Ferriss
• How to Win Friends & Influence People - Dale Carnegie

eBooks: There are hundreds of inexpensive eBooks out there that can help you get started as a freelancer, grow your business, and improve your writing. In fact, there are many helpful eBooks that you can find for free!

If you’re going to use eBooks to educate yourself, then you can’t just buy the book and expect the work to be done. Too many people fall short of completing the books and applying the tips to their careers. Set aside a specific amount of time each day to read your eBooks and take notes on them - this is the sure-shot way of making your investment pay off.

eBooks I recommend:

• 6 Figure Freelancer by David Drake
• How to be a Rockstar Freelancer by Cyan and Collis Ta’eed (Freelance Switch)
• Write for the Web by Men with Pens
• Guide to Becoming an Advertising Copywriter by FabJob.com

Advertising: Believe it or not, a little bit of money can go a long, long way. Locally, I’ve found an online classifieds section that has a “services for hire” area. The advertising costs me 5 bucks a month (highlighted yellow, free otherwise) and has given me approximately 1 lead per week. Is it throwing prospects through my doors at an incredible rate? No, but I wouldn’t want that anyways.

Here are a few inexpensive ways you can advertise your services:

• Use local classifieds - as explained above.
• Start a blog - as described here and here.
• Attend local networking events - Chamber of Commerce/Board of Trade meetings and other local business events.

Branding: If you’re going to look legit, then you should have business cards to hand people that are interested in working with you. A website is also a great tool for showing off your portfolio and explaining your services.

Internet: Obvious one here…high-speed wireless connection is recommended.

Cell Phone/Skype: Communication is a MUST in freelance writing. Regardless of whether or not your clients need to call you to discuss projects, it’s always nice for them to have the option of doing so. You could probably get away with a home number if you work out of your own house, but I prefer a cell phone for when I’m on the go.

Skype is a fantastic tool for working with non-local clients.

Organizer: An organizer will improve your productivity at least 200%. By planning out your goals for each day you are much more likely to accomplish them.

$50-$500

Printer: When I decided to become a full-time freelancer, this was my first big purchase. I already had a computer, Skype, internet, and a lot of books…but I was missing a printer. I prefer editing my work on paper instead of on the screen, so this was a necessary item for me.

Membership Sites: Depending on what you’re looking to accomplish in your freelancing career, there are a number of membership sites that can help you get there. The best ones are run by people that have successfully accomplished what you want to do.

You can learn a lot from others experiences - not only improving your writing ability but also avoiding costly mistakes that they’ve made in the past.

Here are a couple membership sites that I know provide incredible value for the cost:

• Teaching Sells by Brian and Tony Clark - For anybody looking to build a membership site of their own.
• Copy Doctor by Michel Fortin - For companies or copywriters looking to improve their conversion rates.

Writing Classes: Just because you’re out of school doesn’t mean there’s nothing left to learn. By attending writing classes at your local college or university you will not only stay on top of your game, but you’ll also have the opportunity to get out of the house a bit more than usual.

Aside from local classes, here are a few online writing classes that will improve your writing so you can raise your rates:

• Writing Classes by Gotham Writers’ Workshop - Arguably the best writing classes on the internet.
• Various Writing Classes by Paul Lima - He’s an instructor at the University of Toronto and really knows his stuff.

$500 or more:

Computer: If writing is going to be your career, then you better have a computer to do it on. A friends computer or library workspace isn’t good enough - you need your own!

Workshops: I have yet to invest this kind of money for a workshop, but realize that I probably will sometime down the road. If you’re going to put this kind of cash into your career, then you need to make sure that it’s going to deliver results.

Please let me know anything I may have missed and feel free to share your experiences of how investing in your career paid off.

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