Running Your Freelance Writing Business Like a Boss

I’ll admit it — at times, I still get a case of the guilts.

I’ve been freelancing since 2003, so you think I’d be over that feeling of having to be at this desk at a certain time.

Yet every vacation, every day off I took (aside from weekends), I felt like I was playing hooky. Like I was letting the boss down. Like I was going to lose my job.

Crazy, right?

Last week, I decided enough with the guilt.

I went on vacation.

Those of you who have been freelancing for any length of time, and who actually take vacations on occasion, know what it takes to get work out of the way, get ahead of what you’re doing so that when you come back, you can jump right in and meet those deadlines.

You also know how that plan gets shot to hell every time. Every. Time.

This year was no exception for me. I had a few projects, and I was proud to say I had completed them all a week before the vacation, and two days before my mom arrived.

Pride goeth before the fall.

On Monday, just as I was thinking I could sign of Tuesday at noon and enjoy some time with my mom, the flood came.

Three more projects.

Could I get them done within the next week, please?

Here’s where I could have canceled a vacation (as I’ve done in the past), got the work done, and shortened the rescheduled vacation to four days, starting on a Wednesday so that no one would go without.

Except me. I’d forgotten that I would be going without.

This year, though, the answer was no. Instead, each client agreed to my proposed alternate deadline.

And I was smart — I staggered the deadlines so I wasn’t doing three things at once the first days back in the office.

And a strange thing happened:

I actually had a full week off without guilt.

That’s how it would be if I were working for an employer again. No way I’d work on a vacation or even think about work on a vacation. I’d just enjoy the time away.

Think about it. Any business owner:

• Would never allow customers to dictate their vacation time
• Would allow themselves and any employees time off without guilt

You’re a business owner. Why would you act any differently?

It’s not just vacation time, though. In many ways, we freelance writers need a refresher in how to run our businesses like an actual business person would. Doing otherwise means we’re shortchanging ourselves, not just in how much we allow our work to invade our personal space, but also in how much our patching it together is costing us in dollars.

Here are a few ways to run your business like a boss (this is the only time someone is the boss of you, and its…you):

Focus on your price: That means charging like a boss. Would your contractor apologize for charging $85 an hour? Nor should you apologize for charging what you do. Your price is yours to determine. Negotiation is optional, and when you charge like you mean it, you attract clients who see you as a serious business person. Also, make sure to have explicit late fee language, and to have a limit on how much of your time you’ll give to one client. If they’re intent on wasting your time, that comes with an additional charge.

Create multiple income streams: I love writing blog posts, but I’d hate to make it a steady diet as it’s not always the highest-paying stuff. By diversifying what I do, I can supplement with blog posts, making corporate writing a larger piece of the income stream, as well as magazine articles. A healthy mix includes some lower-paying stuff, sure, but it needn’t if you don’t want it to.

Remove the words “anchor client” from your vocabulary: Yes, I’m asking you to go against popular opinion that a few good anchor clients will propel your career into the stratosphere. Anchor clients are those tried-and-true unicorns that never disappear. In other words, they don’t exist. Today’s anchor client could be tomorrow’s distant memory. There are certainly long-term clients, but no one can rely on any guarantee that a client will be there for years. Instead, market every day, network every day, and always keep your eyes open for new opportunities.

Don’t compromise when you don’t have to: Everyone has the “I have to get some money in” panic now and then, but if you stick to your pricing and make your professional image match it, you won’t have to compromise on your rate nearly as often as you do. Market constantly to the companies you know would pay your rate without question. Think of the professional services you use in a year — how many of those businesses would take a cut in pay, particularly if you’re a new customer?

Writers, how do you run your business like a boss?
What one piece of advice would you give to newbies who want to be taken more seriously?