How to Quit Your Freelance Writing Career

Look online right now — Twitter, LinkedIn, Reddit, you name it. I guarantee you you’ll find at least five articles telling you how to start a freelance writing career. Or if freelance writing is for you.

But no one has told you how to quit one. Until now.

Say what?

That’s right — I’m about to tell you how to quit your freelance writing career. But wait — there’s more….

I’m going to tell you how to restart it, too.

Come again?

No, while I was out last week (didn’t know about that, did you?), I didn’t hit my head or use any hallucinogenic. But what I did do:

I considered my career — as I knew it — as over.

Here’s what I mean:

While I was away, I worked. I’d had a few vacations already and simply couldn’t, with the projects I had in front of me, let it wait until I returned. So I “quit” my normal way of working and did this instead —

• I worked from a moving car (he was driving, obviously)
• I worked from my cell phone, checking and answering emails
• I scheduled time during my time off to work on client projects
• I communicated as regularly as I would normally do with current clients

Okay, not such a big deal, but I used my time wisely. I knew when he was driving, I had two hours for my work. So I answered emails, sent files, and outlined projects. That’s two hours I wouldn’t have had if I’d stared out the window and watched the trees go by.

But since returning, I’ve done other things to “quit” my current freelance writing career and create a new one. Maybe you can benefit from some of these methods, like:

Refocusing attention.

Have you exhausted your interest or your avenues in your current line of work? For instance, do you focus on healthcare writing, but you’re so tired of it or the clients are all but tapped out? (The latter is unlikely, but the former is an issue.) Shift gears. I did it by reaching out to client prospects who have projects that are similar to what I’ve done, but with a slightly different focus. It expands your capabilities to do that, particularly if you’re now looking to write about health insurance or health savings plans for industries other than those in your current circle. No matter what you’re wanting to do next, ask yourself this – How can I make that more of a focus going forward?

Assess the current career.

What do you like about it? What don’t you like? I did this a while ago — I loathe doing resumes. Oh, I liked them fine for a while. But there comes a breaking point, and I’ve surpassed it. I won’t. Do. Resumes. Any. Longer. So what did I put in place of it? Blog work. Ghostwriting work. What doesn’t work for you right now? What makes you cringe? Smile? Reassess what you have going on, and make changes where things no longer fit with who you are.

Acquire new skills.

That doesn’t mean go out and spend money on courses. But do some keyword searches for things that interest you. Then read. Get books from the library on what you’d like to learn. Take those free Coursera courses. Learn something that will improve your marketability.

Review negative feedback.

All of the feedback you’ve had throughout your career matters, but none is more important than the negative feedback. Each negative response is a lesson to be learned. Maybe you’ll learn to listen more closely. Maybe you’ll learn to repeat back to the client what they want so that you both are on the same page. Or maybe you’ll learn not to work with difficult people (sometimes the negativity is the person you’re working for and not your work). Every bit of information is helpful to your business. Right now, write down some of the worst feedback you’ve gotten. Remove your emotional response. Now, what is that saying about that particular situation and how you handled it?

Act on your dreams.

You’ve decided not to continue with resume writing? Congratulations! Er, I mean what else would you rather be doing? Take that one thing (and please don’t try to change everything at the same time — you’ll frustrate yourself and fail at most or all of it) and make a plan — a schedule for what you’ll do and when. Don’t be too aggressive with it, meaning don’t expect to be publishing books next month if you’re a blogger today. But do the research to find out what a typical timeframe is for what you’re wanting to do. Or set small goals so you can see the incremental progress.

Review. Repeat.

Remember that this new career — just like your old one –needs nurturing. Build it like you did your current career. Market it, learn it, market it some more, and hey, market it.

Writers, what areas have you always wanted to explore?
Are there project types or clients getting in the way of that? How can you change that?
What do you perceive to be your biggest challenge to reinventing your career?