What I’m listening to: Fast As You by Dwight Yoakam
What a gorgeous couple of days! Yesterday was near 80 degrees, so all the windows were open. It’s tough to work under those conditions, so I took full advantage of my freelance writing status — I played hooky.
Okay, not entirely. I had a great phone conversation in the morning with Jenn Mattern. We were recording for one of her upcoming podcasts. The topic is one I’ve been known to rail on about at length — working for free or for ridiculously low rates. While that wasn’t the main focus (I’ll let Jenn reveal that when she’s ready), it was a side conversation that I found particularly interesting. At one point, I may have referred to it as self-sabotage, though that could have been in a subsequent conversation with another writer.
Then I got to thinking of how many ways freelance writers tend to sabotage their careers. Maybe it’s lousy advice they heard from lord-knows-who, or maybe they dreamed it up on their own. But here are some common ways writers are botching it.
Writing to please the search engines. I saw another one of those lists the other day — top things you can blog about to get oodles of traffic. It was a pretty healthy list, too. And every one of those topics, while thought-provoking, seemed done to death. While initially you may see an uptick in your traffic, few readers stick around when the topics feel more like pieced-together keywords and loose thoughts than carefully planned posts.
Why that sucks: You show much more regard for the almighty search engine gods than you do for your readers.
Embrace controversy the wrong way. I love a good argument. However, one of the suggestions on that previously mentioned list of blog topics was to take a hot topic and argue the opposing viewpoint.
Why that sucks: Unless you really believe that viewpoint, you’re just lying. In public.
Avoid the trade magazine market. I put this on the list because it’s a wrong that’s just so easy to remedy. Please don’t tell me how little trade pubs pay. I write regularly for a number of them. The minimum I get is $1/word because guess what? You can say no if the rate is too low.
Why that sucks: You’re missing out on lucrative work and a potential specialty area.
You take it personally. I openly criticize places like content mills and lately Huffington Post (which if you haven’t heard, doesn’t pay their freelance writers). You get defensive because you work for one or more of these places. (Psst: it’s not about you.)
Why that sucks: You’re reacting with emotion to information that could help you transform your writing career.
Defining the wrong business model. This came up in conversation with Jenn Mattern yesterday as we recorded her latest podcast. Some writers, particularly those who are new to the business, are so eager to build a portfolio that they stick with working for the wrong clients. That in turn attracts more clients just like them.
Why that sucks: You control completely how your business will evolve. Why not choose a lucrative one filled with quality clients?
Believing your own bullshit. You make a bad choice, a questionable choice, or no choice at all (which is a choice — you’re choosing inertia). You justify that choice with excuses, defensive statements, sweeping generalizations, or shoddy math when what you should be doing is reviewing your options for moving forward.
Why that sucks: You’re basically giving yourself permission to do nothing to improve your business.
Writers, what ways do you see fellow freelancers sabotaging their careers?
What habits of your own did you overcome? How did that improve your business?
7 responses to “6 Ways You Might Be Sabotaging Your Freelance Writing Career”
Great topic Lori. And it's fine to talk about the podcast. I was tweeting about it yesterday anyway, so it's hardly a secret. (For everyone else, the first episode back will focus on The Huffington Post BS in the news lately, and the misguided notion that freelancers should just shut up about it already — hint from those of us who have actually been around the industry for a while: you shouldn't.)
Just to add to your last point… I've noticed lately there's another reason newer freelancers cite for believing absolute BS. They're latching onto some "mentor" who spews misinformation.
Remember that your career is yours to build. Trying to emulate someone else exactly, or parroting everything they tell you, just makes you look incompetent.
The latest, as you know, was the notion that "entrepreneurs" aren't worth targeting because they supposedly don't pay professional rates (newsflash: they pay my "get out of bed" rate of $150 an hour every day; and most projects from them work out to significantly more, like $300+ an hour for typical press releases and even more for other types of copy, depending on the client). So to that I say "they don't pay professional rates only if you're incapable of targeting them properly."
Just because someone else failed miserably at something and spouted generalizations based on their failure, it doesn't mean you shouldn't try to target those markets if it's who you really want to work with. If any "mentor" tells you that huge market segments aren't worth pursuing (entrepreneurs, small businesses, trade publications, blogs, etc.), run. They don't know what the hell they're talking about, and you're being taken for a ride.
Jenn, I wish you'd not be so shy about what you think. LOL
Agreed on all points. I'm working with two entrepreneurs right now — one-man shops — and they're paying my rate without question. Plus they're happy about it because they're getting what they want and they're investing in their business.
LOL Now you of all people know that's mild for me. 😉
I've overcome the habit of not following up with a phone call when I get no reply from a cold email. I have been absolutely shocked at how frequently the person I'm targeting answers his or her own phone on my first try. (I think it's because so few people call anymore.) I've had some great conversations that may lead to work in the future. I think it helps cement me in their memory as a go-getter. I use advice from the EFA list and typically call in the early to mid-afternoon, when productivity is low, but if you're on a call you're still "working."
I also now end my cold emails with a line I adapted from you, Lori: Can we set up a 10-minute call to discuss how I can help achieve your communications goal? I had someone email me right back and invite me to call then.
Thanks, Lori!
To follow up on Jenn's last line – those mentors probably claim certain markets aren't viable because they've been unable to break into them.
It's amazing to me how many people these days are either too scared or too lazy to do the research needed to make their own decisions. In life, in food, in business, and especially in politics. They skim the surface to see what other people think instead of thinking for themselves. I might be wrong half the time, but at least I do my own thinking.
Joy, you're doing such a fantastic job, too! My lord, your monthly earnings are phenomenal! Something to be proud of. Again, it takes no more than changing one thing…
There you go, Paula. Half the time, you're right (I'm a glass-half-full person)! You can't learn if you don't try. I think the successful freelancer is the one who finally does his/her own research into what marketing might fit with the type of client they're targeting. The minute you realize your marketing is a moving target (and YOURS to define), you start to see real results.
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