Hi friend,
Before I became a writer, I wanted to go into law (true story, I took the LSATs and did pretty well at them!). But before I seriously looked at applying to law schools, I came across a writing program that intrigued me much more.
Growing up, I had always wanted to be either a writer or a lawyer. I had also wanted to be the first female jockey to win the Triple Crown, but I rarely rode horses growing up, and riding horses is a fairly basic requirement for being a jockey.
Although I loved the law, being a lawyer seemed like a recipe for long stressful days with little control over my time, nights spent intensely staring at paperwork while drinking wine and eating take-out, and holidays spent frantically emailing and fielding phone calls from panicked clients (or so I was lead to believe by television).
Wanting more control over my time — and maybe less stress — I went into freelancing. That was one of my initial “whys” (as in, “why did I want to be a freelancer?”).
The question for you is, what is your why?
Why do you want to freelance?
It’s an important question, but not because there’s a right answer. In fact, there is no right answer. You could want to be a freelancer for the unlimited earning potential, the flexible hours, the ability to choose your own projects, the desire for creativity, wanting to work from anywhere in the world.
There are a million reasons to become a freelancer, and none is more correct than the next. Some might be more realistic than others, but that’s a discussion for a different issue.
While your answer isn’t important, what is vital is whether or not you keep it in mind as you build your business.
People get into freelancing for many (typically) romanticized reasons: they envision a life where they’re in control of their time, work the hours they want, and only take on the projects that interest them.
They see themselves working from 10 am - 2 pm on the deck of their cabin overlooking the ocean, while they craft a perfect article for their very wealthy client who approves their work without question or comment and pays them vast sums of money.
The thing is, while that view of freelancing is fantastic, it’s typically opposite of what happens when we start our business. When we’re scrambling to find clients. When every project feels like it could be the last.
When we’re worried about paying for bills.
The start of our career is when we set patterns and habits that can — if we’re not careful — stay with us throughout the life of our business.
When you start your business, you want to take on as many clients as you can, because you’re terrified you won’t make enough money, the few clients you have will hate you and wind up firing you, your business will fail, your dog will hate you for your failure, and the world will fall apart, sending you into a shame and regret spiral that even triple chocolate ice cream can’t pull you out of.
In the panic of starting a business, it’s tempting to charge well below what you’re worth, take on any projects that come your way—even if they’re boring or the client comes with a gigantic neon sign that flashes “red flag” every time they speak—and forgo weekends and holidays to squeeze in one more project.
You become a massive people pleaser because, bills.
But…if you get into freelancing for the flexible hours, working 7 days a week 16 hours a day with no holidays isn’t flexible. If you want unlimited earning potential but you’re only charging $10 an hour, you’re definitely limiting your income. If you want control over the projects you take on but you say yes to every client who meets with you, no matter how tedious or toxic they seem, you have no control.
You can tell yourself you’ll break those habits as you grow in your career, but once they’re set they’re hard to break.
I remember meeting one freelancer who was 20 years into her career. She bragged that she earned close to $100,000 the previous year, but she had worked every weekday and weekend, and hadn’t even taken a day off for Christmas. She was exhausted from all the hours she put in.
To earn $100,000, she gave up control over her time. Working that many hours, she is almost certainly not charging enough for her work. At that point, she probably could have had a decent in-house communications job and most likely would have at least had Christmas off.
What to do
Take the time to get to know your why. Revisit it sometimes. Ask if the decisions you’re making reflect it. If not, it might be time to make some adjustments. Maybe revisit how much you’re charging or who you choose to work with. Maybe it’s time to consider an in-house job or a hybrid position.
Write down your why and keep it at your work station, so you can reflect on it when it comes time to make hard decisions about your business. (“Do I really want to work for that client who insists on arguing with me over every word I write but will only pay me $15 an hour? Does that help me live my “why?”)
Don’t be alarmed if your why changes as you evolve. Your reasons for starting out as a freelancer might not be the reasons you stay. That’s okay. It’s still important to reevaluate what drew you to freelancing and whether you’re actually living the life you dreamed of.
Here’s to your freelance happiness
Heidi