Welcome to the 5th edition of The Essence!
From my observations, many people fall for the freelance dream. And I don’t mean it in the sense of escape the 9—5, live and work from anywhere, and pick your own hours. I’m talking—or technically, writing—about the idea or the belief that freelancing is somewhat easy.
You quit your 9—5 job with a smirk. You go home, open up your laptop, hustle a bit, and bam! You got your first freelancing client. A week later, another company hires you. Now you got two high-paying clients, and in the first month, both paid you on time.
Your freelance business took off, and in only six months, you’re making much more than your old miserable job! You’re finally out of the rat race!
That’s the delusional freelance dream. Those who believe it’s that easy aren’t really paying attention.
While there are freelancers who succeeded so smoothly and so fast, it’s not the rule, but the exception. If you’ve been freelancing for some time now, you’ll be well aware of that. You’ll know how hard it is to build a freelance business that generates a good income.
Here’s why with some tips to help with your freelance journey:
Why Going Freelance Is Not a Walk in the Park
Tom Ewer wrote an interesting post about the tough realities freelancers face in their journeys. Here’s what I got from his post, adding thoughts and tips from my own experience:
1. It’s easy to get delusional
Building a freelance business takes a lot of grit and hard work.
Many of us, especially beginners, think that with only a little effort, we can get things going. We get delusional and think that without strongly promoting our business, opportunities will present themselves.
2. The rate dilemma
Finding the best rate to charge can get frustrating, especially when you’re new.
Many freelancers get overconfident and overcharge. I was one of those. In my early days, when prospects asked about my rates, I gave them bold rates. It wasn’t too much. But it also wasn’t something I deserved, since I didn’t have the experience nor the skills, at the time. It got me turned down, without even further negotiation or anything and ghosted by prospects more than once.
At the same time, don’t undercharge yourself—unless you really need the money and you’re quite new.
Know what other freelance writers charge, preferably those in your niche. Study your market and decide on a minimum amount. Don’t charge less and don’t charge three times as much.
3. Defining your skillset can be a struggle
It can also be hard to define your relevant skillset.
“A skillset is simply that existing knowledge and expertise that you bring with you, from every source.” Tom Ewer wrote in his post.
I worked as a telemarketer before, which helped me learn about selling and marketing. So I mentioned this experience on my website because it’s relevant. If you have any relevant expertise, as Ewer wrote, make sure you let potential clients know. Your website would be the best place to do that.
4. Burnout is no joke
When you go freelance, you might feel like working every minute of your day.
Sleep? Who cares? five or six hours are enough. Exercise? Well, I walk from the desk to the bathroom every hour or so. That’s enough exercise for me.
I did that week after week until I found myself unable to even get up in the morning. It took me long unproductive weeks to recover from burnout.
When you go freelance, it’s easy to dismiss other areas of your life and turn into a robot. I still struggle with this today.
Only recently, I slept for barely five hours. I woke up and worked another five with my eyes twitching. Then, I allowed myself a 30-minute nap. But even though the alarm did wake me up, I couldn’t get up until more than two hours went by. Why? My body forced me to rest.
I was pissed that I slept this long but I felt well-rested and energized. Then I was able to knock off the rest of the day’s tasks in much less time. That two extra hours of rest helped me tackle the rest of the day successfully. The lesson is: don’t sacrifice sleep or family time for work unless you’ll go homeless otherwise.
And when possible, take time to rest and recover. I’m not talking about a trip to the Bahamas. Just a few hours on a Wednesday evening every now and then where you relax and read to save yourself from burnout, and frankly, going nuts too.
5. Work can dry up
When you go freelance, finding consistent work can be difficult. And, unless you’re super good at your craft and at marketing yourself, work can dry up sometimes.
You need to be ready when that happens. Have enough savings to not end up homeless—enough to get you by for at least 6—12 months. You also need to be ready by having the skills required to deal with such situations. Here are some of the most crucial ones:
Marketing know-how: Learn as much as you can about marketing.
Mastery of craft: If you become so good at what you do, people in your industry can’t ignore you. Build your reputation in the market. And as the saying goes, work so hard that you no longer need to introduce yourself.
Resilience: You need the ability to pivot. Good freelancers have resilience and are highly adaptable.
6. The dip can be too long
Here’s the truth: most freelancers don’t make a decent living in their first year. It can take anywhere from 3—5 years for your freelance business to really take off.
That’s why it’s always a good idea to freelance on the side while working your regular job. And then, when the dip for your freelancing business is over, you can quit and go full-time.
Always keep that in mind and don’t frustrate yourself early because you’re not making six figures yet. And don’t quit because you didn’t get good results in your first year of freelancing. I like to remind myself of Seth Godin’s quote from The Dip:
“Never quit something with great long-term potential just because you can’t deal with the stress of the moment.”
Freelancers Have to Face Many Big Challenges
Carol Tice, the founder of the Make a Living Writing blog, wrote an article about some of the biggest challenges freelancers face. Here are some of them:
Family and friends may not support or understand your decision to go freelance. (This is an underrated topic and can take a toll on your mental health.)
The marketplace is very diverse, highly fragmented, and confusing. (It’s incredibly frustrating when you’re new.)
There are so many different starting points and it can feel overwhelming. (Study well and start where you think is best for you and your freelance business.)
Marketing your services is no simple task. (I know freelancers who spend at least a third of their time marketing.)
It’s not easy to find your niche and define who your targeted clients are.
Rejection is a regular thing. (Get used to it.)
Impostor syndrome can be hard to beat. (Confidence in your craft is not easy to develop.)
The amount of information you need to learn is massive. (And also, there’s no clear way to do so. There are tons of books, articles, and courses you can take.)
Dealing with clients can be hard, annoying, and frustrating.
You have no boss. (There’s no one looking over your shoulder. You need to hold both the carrot and the stick.)
You need the abilities, the skills, the knowledge, and the discipline to run a one-man business. (You can learn all that only through practice and experimentation.)
Reading all these challenges may have made you a little doubtful about freelancing. But that’s not my intent. I want you to be aware and to prepare well for them. Change your perspective and rise to the challenge.
Carol Tice reminded us of an important positive point we can get from this:
“So that cuts the herd a bit for those of us who have the cunning, the tenacity, and the gumption to make freelance writing our living.”
Do you have the cunning, the tenacity, and the gumption to make a living freelancing?
I hope the answer is yes.
Until next time,
Mohammed