Invest in skills that boost your business

And earn you more money

Hi Friend,

As freelancers, we have to be our own HR departments, which means keeping up with professional development falls squarely on our shoulders. There’s no boss around to hand us a ticket to a fancy seminar or mentor us as we “learn on the job.” If we want to grow our skills, it has to be intentional. We have to decide we need to do it and then take the steps to make it happen.

Don’t have the capacity to read this article? Listen to it. You’ll hear me mess up a bunch at the very end (if you stick around that long).

Of course, let’s talk about the two giant elephants in the room when it comes to professional development: time and money. Freelancers often juggle deadlines, client calls, and the ever-present threat of burnout, so squeezing in a course or two feels like trying to adopt a pet giraffe—sounds great, but where would you even put it?

Also, you can’t have just one giraffe Photo by Juan Carlos Gomez on Unsplash

So how do you make time and budget for courses that will actually help you and your business grow? And how do you figure out which ones are worth your hard-earned cash?

Here are some tips from my personal freelancing playbook:

Money Matters

Ahhhh, money. Along with the Oxford comma, it’s one of the topics at the forefront of most freelancers’ minds (you do think about the Oxford comma, right?). When money’s a concern, it’s difficult to spend on something that doesn’t immediately bring in more revenue. But investing in your skills doesn’t have to feel like draining your savings. There are things you can do to make the money aspect more manageable (and it’s worth it when you consider that expanding your skills means you can take on new and pricier projects!).

Get yourself a bank account just for professional development. Think of it as your education piggy bank. Each month, stash a set amount specifically for courses, workshops, and seminars. It doesn’t have to be huge—start with what you can. As that account grows, start looking at courses you can afford.

Read more about my business finance mistakes in this post: I’ve been doing business finance all wrong.

Create a budget that includes learning. Just like rent or groceries, professional development deserves a spot in your budget lineup. It’s an investment in yourself, and trust me, you’re worth it.

Look for free resources. Don’t underestimate the power of free! There are tons of free webinars, YouTube channels, and blog posts from industry experts that will get you started. While you’ll want to invest in courses at some point, you can build a strong foundation without spending a dime. And a free learning opportunity can help you test out topics you’re not positive you’re interested in. Maybe you’re interested in grant writing but not positive it’s for you. Watch some free webinars on it first, before you spend big dollars on a pricy course.

Plan for tax deductions. In many countries (including Canada!), professional development expenses can be written off at tax time. If you’re spending on courses or workshops to enhance your business, keep those receipts and make sure to claim them.

Use payment plans. If a course is pricey, see if the instructor offers a payment plan. Many high-quality courses allow you to split the cost into monthly payments, making it easier to manage. A recent content strategy course I took allowed payments to be split up throughout the program, making it nine payments instead of one huge payment. That made the program a lot more affordable for me.

Invest in the right tools. Instead of signing up for multiple courses at once, choose one tool that will serve you long-term, such as a membership to a learning platform like LinkedIn Learning or Skillshare. These provide access to a variety of topics for a flat fee, making it more cost-effective.

Tie the course to a business goal. If you can look at a course and say, “When I’m done taking this course, I’ll feel comfortable offering that service and charging [insert dollar figure here],” you’ll feel more comfortable spending a bit of money on the course. When deciding whether to take a course ask what additional money you could earn from the skills you’d learn (or how much time the skill would save you, freeing you up to earn more money).

Time Troubles

Of course, the other hurdle is time. What busy, exhausted, close-to-burnt-out freelancer hits the end of a long day and thinks, “I just can’t wait to sit even longer at my computer staring at a screen?” But there’s no magic pill you can take to make you an expert at new skills. It takes time. Here’s what you can do:

Carve out dedicated time. Whether it’s an hour each morning or a few hours one afternoon a week, block off your calendar for learning. And actually honour it. (I love morning sessions because, let’s be honest, by the time afternoon rolls around, the ‘sneak off for a nap’ temptation is strong.)

Commit to micro-learning. If you can’t block out long chunks of time, break your learning into smaller sessions. Even 15-30 minutes a day can add up. Podcasts, short articles, or video tutorials can help you learn in bite-sized pieces that fit into your schedule.

Invest in books. Some great learning can be done just through reading and books (physical books) can be read anywhere, even without wi-fi. So you can learn in a different room (or in a coffee shop) without using your computer—it might not feel like work at all.

Combine learning with other tasks. Listen to industry podcasts or audiobooks during your commute, while doing chores, or on your daily walk. It’s a great way to multitask without cutting into your billable hours. I love listening to podcasts during long drives or walks with my pup.

My pup, neither walking nor developing professionally at this moment (Photo credit: Heidi Turner)

Prioritize your learning goals: Not every skill needs to be learned immediately. Focus on what will have the biggest impact on your business in the short term and save the nice-to-have skills for later. This helps you avoid overwhelm and keeps your professional development manageable.

Make it a project: Treat learning like a client project with deadlines. This way, it doesn’t feel optional. Add it to your to-do list with clear goals, such as "complete Module 1 of X course by Friday," and celebrate your progress.

Do you have any additional tips for creating the time or space for professional development? Share in the comments.

Here’s to your ongoing freelance success,

Heidi

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