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According to the 2006 hit movie, The Secret, attraction marketing is an extremely simple process. There are three easy steps for chasing down your greatest dreams:

1. Ask - Know what you want and ask for it - by creating a clear image of your dreams and visualizing them as being real, the universe will give you everything you could ever wish for.
2. Believe- Act as though your dreams are about to come true, even if you have to trick yourself in order to do so.
3. Receive - Be open and ready to receive - if you align yourself with the Universe then your dreams will come true.

Unfortunately, this system is utterly useless for freelance writers! You could sit on your butt thinking you’re the king of the world and it will never happen. You could ask to be the richest writer in your city, believe it to be true, and prepare yourself to accept - but nothing will happen unless you actually do something about your situation.

While The Secret was an inspiring movie, it doesn’t provide the tangible answers that can help you today. In the movie, even Jack Canfield talked about “imagining riches” before his book caught the eye of a publisher and went into print - but nothing would have happened if he didn’t take the previous action of actually writing a book!

In my experience, the harder you work the luckier you get! The more you put yourself out there as a freelance writer with marketing and networking, the more success you’ll see in the end.

Instead of following the ask, believe, and receive principles of The Secret - I’d recommend following a different set of rules.

Here are the Freelance Writer’s 5 Laws of Attraction - the five actions you can take right away to attract more projects, more clients, and more money…

1) Create a Website and Blog

If you’re a freelance writer and you don’t have a website and blog (or at least one), then you need to take action immediately.

Hundreds of thousands of prospects exist on the internet, it’s not good enough to have a Facebook account or Elance profile page. You need more!

In order to come across as a professional, you need to set yourself up like one. Your blog will show off your personality while also showcasing your writing ability and your website will provide prospects with a place to find out more about your services. These are must-haves for any freelance writer.

2) Participate on Bidding Sites

The easiest kind of writing project to obtain comes from people that are already looking for a writer.

If you know local companies that actively use freelance writers, submit a proposal or request an interview. If not - hit up the bidding sites (click here for a list - look under “job postings”).

Bidding sites provide a valuable opportunity to establish new relationships with people that hire freelance writers. However, if you take yourself seriously and want to make it in this business, do not try to win on price…it won’t pay off in the end.

3) Create a Sales Letter For Your Services

You’re a writer, so why don’t you use your skills to convince prospects to work with you? As writers, we use our strengths every day to help our clients make a fortune - but how often do we use our writing for ourselves?

By creating a sales letter that can be distributed to key prospects by direct mail or online landing pages, you can attract a lot of work. For a complete blueprint for creating a successful direct-mail package, see Pete Savage’s eBook, $64,000 Direct Mail Self-Promotion Package.

4) Network Online

Before people buy your services, they want to know, like, and trust you. So how does this happen? By building relationships!

You don’t need to meet people face-to-face to get to know them - the internet has plenty of venues for interaction. Blogs and forums are two of the biggest online hangouts for freelance writers, marketers, and prospects!

You already know the blogs I recommend…so here are a few forums to add to that list: Digital Point, The Warrior Forum, CopywritersBoard, and SitePoint.

5) Network Locally

One mistake many web-based freelancers make far too often is to hide behind their keyboards. While I don’t recommend convincing local businesses to use your services if they don’t outsource or even understand the idea, I do recommend building local relationships.

I’ve chosen to have 20% of my clientele based locally; not only do they provide a consistent flow of work, but they also provide me with a chance to get out of the house during my work day.

Instead of sitting around and begging for the universe to give you what you want, get off your butt and chase your dreams! By constantly dedicating yourself to meeting new people, providing quality work, and developing your expertise you’ll discover that success isn’t a secret after all.

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If you want more great tips on growing your freelance career, sign up for my RSS feed or have my articles delivered directly to you via email.

Photo by Matthew Fang

“Greater purpose is essential for lifetime growth. Many people start off their careers thinking that money is the goal. Money can be a useful measure of success or progress in certain circumstances, and it’s a resource we can use to realize greater possibilities, but at some point money without purpose loses its meaning. Money as an end becomes a growth stopper. Having a purpose that is greater than yourself will give you a constant impetus to strive.”

-Dan Sullivan, The Laws of Lifetime Growth.

Not too many people I know become freelancer writers for the money. You may have started freelancing for the flexibility, the freedom, or simply because you hated your job. Perhaps there were other reasons. I became a freelancer because I was fresh out of university and I wanted to see if I could build a career doing what I enjoy - writing.

Unfortunately, too many freelancer writers quit because of a lack of money and head right back into the vicious 9-5 without ever giving the career of their dreams a chance.

Being a freelance writer is much more than writing. It’s marketing to prospects, researching companies and projects, communicating with customers, invoicing clients, and constantly battling with your schedule so you can balance work and play. It’s not always easy, but it certainly has it’s perks.

In the end, it’s important for you to find a purpose in your career so you can build on it long into the future. Money will come and go - sometimes shrink and other times grown - but true happiness is found when you do what you love. (more…)

1. Write to Done

2. Men With Pens

3. The Golden Pencil

4. Writing Forward

5. PoeWar

6. Inkwell Editorial

7. ChrisBlogging

8. Get Paid to Write Online

9. Fab Freelance Writing Blog

10. Freelance Writing Jobs

(more…)

Photo by Carf

How would you like it if you had no control over your daily decisions? You want Vector cereal but you get Shreddies, you want a hot shower but the water comes out cold, and you want to watch playoff hockey but you’re stuck with Dancing with the Stars instead. It would be a pain!

So why do you let other people control who you work with?

As freelance writers, we tend to sit around and wait our clients to find us. Much like allowing somebody else to choose what you eat in the morning, this practice is completely backwards!

Instead of taking on whatever work you’re presented with you need to identify your ideal client profile and actively seek prospects that fit that description.

If you really enjoy writing for alternative health websites, the best way to ensure more work in that field is to market yourself to alternative health companies. If you aren’t able to choose your clients, then you’ll likely be presented with a wide range of work - much of it that you don’t particularly enjoy.

Doing too much of the wrong work makes you feel like you’re in the wrong job, even when you’re not! And there’s nothing that leads to a faster burnout in our industry. You need to find out how to stop the madness and start on your way to true freedom… (more…)

A few weeks ago, I received an email from Alex Andrei saying he followed my blog and wanted to send me his wife’s new book, Escape from Corporate America. I don’t get too many compliments as kind as his and I was ecstatic when I received a copy in the mail soon after. I mean c’mon, it wasn’t even going to be released to the public for another couple of weeks! How cool is that?

Well, it was very cool…but it was nothing compared to the material inside the book!

With her captivating and witty style, Pamela Skillings has put together the ultimate escape guide for anybody struggling with life in the cubicle.

She helps the reader decide whether or not there’s a problem with their career before providing a number of valuable solutions. There are worksheets, case studies, checklists, questionnaires and other tools that will prepare you for the career of your dreams.

While there are a number of blogs (and other resources) that can help you make the decision to ditch the 9-5 and find the freedom you deserve, I have NEVER found a tool as valuable as this one. In fact, I wish I had read this book before I started my own freelance writing career - because I am now able to see that I made the transition more difficult than it had to be.

I highly recommend this book to anybody who is bummed about their job or career and considering a switch. By reading Escape from Corporate America, you’ll find out how you can make your dream job a reality.

Buy the Book: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Chapters.

View the Website: EscapeFromCorporate.com

Read the Blog: Ready to Plan Your Escape?

Photo by Timothy K. Hamilton

I recently attended the Speed Money Seminar and had the opportunity to listen to great speakers such as Alex Mandossian, Armand Morin, Michel and Sylvie Fortin, Matt Bacak, Eric Graham, Ray Edwards, Kirt Christensen, and Stu McLaren.

Throughout the weekend I had hundreds of business ideas and blog posts running through my head. The article that I’ve been most excited to share with you, however, is based on Alex Mandossian’s presentation “How to Get MORE Done…Faster, Better and with Less Human Effort.”

If you’re interested in propelling your freelance writing career to the next level, regardless of what level that might be, read on. If not, you should probably spend your time doing something else. (more…)

Photo by MarkyBon

As a freelance copywriter, you’ll come across a lot of people interested in your writing - but only a small percentage of them will actually use your services. While this can seem frustrating at times, it shouldn’t be. You’re not in this business to make quick business with many - you’re in it to forge strong relationships with a few.

If you’re wondering why so many people show interest in your work but so few buy, consider all the variables that have a role in “buying”. (more…)

Photo by Jamelah

It’s that time of year again - college and university graduates are tossing their caps in their air and celebrating. But over the next few weeks, when the dust settles, many will be asking themselves “what next?”

I graduated last April and started out in a door-to-door sales job, then quit that job and relocated, then worked for a couple months as an Account Manager at a printer cartridge remanufacturing company, and eventually quit and decided it was time to take a chance. I couldn’t continue working in a job I didn’t like. I wanted to write, I wanted to chase my dreams, and I wanted to break free from the 9-5.

If you’re considering freelancing then you probably know what I mean. I hated asking for time off, I hated not being able to set my own schedule, and I hated knowing that I wasn’t following my passion - only a few months after graduation.

I had enough money in the bank to survive for three months…so I figured it was now or never. I would see if I could make money as a writer. (more…)

Personally, I’ve never had that kind of experience. When I ask somebody the big question - “what do you do?” - I don’t really care, I’m just trying to be polite. In fact, even if their career fits one of my specific needs, I’m not going to buy from them.

Why? Because elevator speeches are useless! They don’t tell me whether or not somebody is actually good at what they do, they don’t show me whether or not I can trust them, and they aren’t a proper foundation for a healthy relationship.

Bob Burg, the author of Endless Referrals, famously said: “All things being equal, people will do business with, and refer business to, those people they know, like and trust.”

If you want to be successful then you need to ditch the pitch and get real - hang out for the sake of hanging out and get to know others for the sake of getting to know others. Leave your prospecting glasses at home! (more…)

“They work long hours, often to exhaustion. Many are paid by the piece — not garments, but blog posts. This is the digital-era sweatshop. You may know it by a different name: home.”

Does this hit home for you? Perhaps you’re not a blogger, but you’re a freelance writer and an independent business owner. You’ve given up on the 9-5 for a career that is much more exhausting…

…but it doesn’t have to be this way. (more…)