What I’m reading: The Loved One by Evelyn Waugh
What’s on the iPod: Tenth Avenue Freezeout by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
Quick note: Anne Wayman and I will be hosting a free Twitter “tweet up” this Thursday at 9 am PT/ noon ET. To join us, just use the #writingsquared hashtag and follow along! Bring your questions, concerns, and conversation!
Busy Monday. I loved it since I spent Thursday and Friday doing very little. I tweaked my new website, worked out a link problem (not satisfactorily, which makes me less happy with my web development site host), and got some client work started. Also, Anne and I were busy with some Webinar technical stuff. Today a continuation of the same.
I do a lot of writing for insurance agent audiences. One of the messages I send them is how even in the toughest economic market, they can grow their businesses and increase revenue. And they do. Plenty of insurance agents right now are well ahead of their colleagues because they’ve invested time and energy into marketing and creating new opportunities.
You know where I’m going with this, don’t you? We’re a lot like insurance agents. Our careers are dependent on our ability to increase our client base and grow business opportunities for ourselves. Yet too many times I hear (and I bet you do, too) writers lamenting the market, the competition, the pricing, even the peripherals as excuses why they can’t make it. One of the weirdest I’ve heard was someone blaming the passage of the healthcare bill. Really? That’s why you can’t freelance?
Here are charges freelancers make that will kill their careers:
You successful freelancers aren’t telling us how to do it! Sure we are. Are you paying any attention? I know several blogs – this one included – that are loaded with free advice and guidance. And if you ask nicely, someone will reach out and help you with specific info. But one thing you can’t do is think any writer owes you anything. We don’t. If you have an attitude of entitlement, you’ll find more closed doors than open ones.
There’s a recession! No work exists. Au contraire, mes amies. It is precisely because of the recession that I had the best year of my working career. Companies lay off staff. Now they’re short-handed. They hire freelancers. Voila! The recession is no longer your excuse.
No one is paying good rates. And why exactly are you letting other people – strangers – decide what you’re going to charge? You own the business. You set the rates. If you can’t find it in yourself to do that, perhaps you aren’t meant to be a business owner.
All my clients disappeared! That’s why you should be marketing every single day, busy or not. For the banquet you’re feasting on today will soon run out of food, so to speak. Clients don’t always have an unlimited supply of projects. If you rely on a small number of clients to keep you employed, you’ll soon find yourself unemployed. I market when I’m busy. It reduces greatly the number of idle days I have.
No one will hire me because I don’t have enough experience/was rejected/am too old/young/fat/thin… First, your experience doesn’t matter to every client. We all had to start at zero. Make good choices at the outset and you’ll have no problem finding clients. As for being rejected, welcome to the club. Happens to me every week. You simply move on, because wallowing in the whys and what-ifs will freeze you. And it’s unnecessary. Your proposal may have been perfect, but the clients had no time/money/need… And your age and appearance are moot points. No one cares. If they do, they’re dinosaurs and not the client for you.
What excuses do you see writers making? Whom are they blaming and how would you advise them to overcome that?
The recession is the biggest excuse that I come across. Companies have cut their communications budgets, some people have said to me. Maybe so. But that means that they can no longer splash on big agencies that offer them bells and whistles and would rather than go with a smaller company/freelancer who'll just give them content that works.
I love the way you take away the excuses because in most cases that's what really holds us back from having a successful freelance writing career.
Most of them make excuses because they want it to be easy. They don't want to take the responsibility for their own careers. Same as if they worked for a corporation — they're not responsible, they can hide behind company policy.
Not everyone is cut out to be a freelancer, and that's where excuses come in. Those who continue making them sink to the bottom, and those of us suited to the life thrive.
Devon said it. The whiners would still be whining if they had cushy corporate jobs. You know the type, the ones who avoid doing actual work, or doing anything remotely outside of their job description. They'll be losers no matter what industry they're in.
The recession did impact periodical markets, and for a while many of the laid off staffers started freelancing. Apparently a lot of them weren't cut out for freelancing, either.
One thing I hear now and then from newbies is that no one ever replied to their query/LOI/e-mail. Not getting a reply isn't the same as a rejection. Unsolicited e-mail often ends up in spam filters, so following up is important. Yes, it's more work. But isn't that sort of the point?
It's sad to say but there is a huge segment of society that assumes just because they exist they're entitled to everything they want. I with the "You want it? Earn it!" mindset would return.
Damaria, that's why I believe it's the very best time to be a freelancer. Money is tight, so they look for cheaper alternatives. Instead of paying a marketing firm $250 an hour or more, why not pay a qualified, experienced freelancer $100-125 an hour to do the same job? Mind you, not all writers are great marketers, but there are those who specialize in various areas who can do just as good a job (if not better).
Kim, we all have excuses. To me, it starts with that writer's block excuse. And that's all it is. No one runs out of ideas – they run out of interest, courage, faith, whatever.
Devon, I agree. Easy isn't how anything of value is built. It's built on taking chances, falling a few times, and learning how to get back up and go forward stronger.
The recession does make an impact on certain segments Paula, I agree. That's when we amend what we're doing and whom we're targeting. And an LOI/query/email that isn't followed up on is a waste of time. We have to work at it – includings sending that second note!
Great post Lori.
Like Damaria, I most often see the economy used as an excuse. It's always "but clients are cutting back!" No, in the grand scheme of things, they're not. If anything we seem to have more start-ups than ever that are willing to pay for professionals to get them off on the right foot (people leaving the corporate world). And as we see in any recession freelancers replace many full-timers. Even though we might charge more per hour than a salaried employee, all other things equal we're far more affordable (no benefits, no worker's comp insurance, no portion of our taxes, and only paying for us when they actually need us).
The healthcare one was laughable. Sometimes people forget that as a business owner (what freelancers are), it's their responsibility to set rates and attract clients that will bring in enough revenue to cover all expenses. That includes any kind of insurance you personally want — just as it's a business expense for employers paying a portion of it. If you claim you can't afford it, can't afford sick days, can't afford vacation time, etc., you're doing something wrong because you didn't properly plan for it. No better time to fix that through your rate structure and marketing plan than right now.
I totally agree, Jenn. I just had an email conversation with someone from LinkedIn who didn't waver when he heard my rate. I refuse to work for peanuts and he needs quality writing. For us, it was a good match.
There are plenty of clients like him out there. You may have to knock on their virtual door to let them know you exist, but why wouldn't you if it netted you a great ongoing relationship?
You saw the same healthcare-is-holding-me-back post. 🙂 I don't understand it, either. If I didn't have healthcare through my spouse, I'd have to come up with it myself. And you bet I would find a way IF I wanted to stay in freelancing.
Ooo la la, I love it when you speak French 🙂
Maybe I'm a weird combination of extroverted and very private, but it's never occurred to me to complain out loud about any of those things — even during times when business crawled to a halt. Even my wife knows only when business is good, not when it's slow (though tax time is a tell). I'll whine to her about the occasional high-maintenance client, but that's about it.
I've always figured that A) no one would feel sorry for me and B) it's my problem to solve, since there ain't no way I'm going back to Cubeville.
I agree with Devon that there's a Darwin factor at work, with Paula about the entitlement mentality, and with Jenn that healthcare/vacation excuses are just plain silly. No sympathy from this corner of the peanut gallery.
Jake, don't get too excited – that's all I remember from two years of French class. That and "Je ne comprends pas." LOL
My husband rarely hears my issues, either. He sees it when I'm not able to hand him a check for half the bills, but in general I just go silent (no small feat for me) and work it out in my head.
You're right – the threat of Cubeville would stir anyone into action!
Ah, yes, there are also lots of folks like Jake who don't complain, who ask questions and want the advice. It's those of my readers I simply adore!
And you and Jenn too of course Lori.
Same here, Anne. 🙂
I don't mind a little complaining if it's attached to a good solid question. Everyone needs to vent. What I don't like is complaining that I'M not doing something for this stranger or that stranger because it's my JOB to do so. I've been fortunate – I've never experienced this personally. However, I know writers who have. I don't know how I'd handle it, but I hope I'd explain calmly that unless there's money involved, I'm not obligated to anyone beyond my family.
On occasion, I'll get an email from a wanna-be writer with questions that are easily answered with a little search engine help or even in my own blog.
I admit it that I emailed a couple of writers earlier on in my career. I don't remember the questions, but I'm disappointed in myself for having done it.
Because of that, I reply nicely and point to a couple of resources including one post that I created in response to a wanna-be writer emailing me.
Rejection is only a perception. Imagine where you, Anne, Jenn and all the other great writers here, would be, if you took a No as the answer to your whole career. Yes, you’d be disappointed in some cases, but that’s not rejection. Disappointments are signs that something better is coming along down the road.
What I’m seeing more of, lately, is when people reject themselves before a client/editor has a chance to decide whether they’ll take the person on. I see statements from those who say they can’t write a piece good enough to go into a magazine. From what I gather, they’ve never tried to pitch a piece anywhere. I was there, too, in the beginning and every so often I get in this mood. If you don’t have enough confidence in yourself, you can’t convince anyone else that you have what it takes.
Meryl, I have no problem with any writer sending a note asking a question. I answer a lot of them every week. It's only when the writer becomes nasty – upset because someone didn't answer fast enough or didn't have time to really delve into the answer, or provided helpful links when the writer was expecting a full-scale explanation…. that's when it becomes ridiculous.
I'm sure your questions were welcomed. 🙂 No writer I know minds a question now and then. It's the "easily answered" ones that make me pause (laziness on their part showing), but I still don't mind helping.
Wendy, I'm seeing that, too. On one forum, I saw someone jump to the conclusion that no response from an editor meant the editor had reassigned her idea to someone else. That's like assuming your spouse is unfaithful because someone called the house and hung up before you could get to the phone.
I didn't have healthcare for several years in New York. Couldn't afford it, even as a union member on Broadway.
It didn't stop me from freelancing. I did it anyway, and was without health care. Why take a job I hate that will kill me in order to have health care and wind up dead anyway?
Now, I'm in a state that has affordable health care.
The health-care excuse did not stop me from making the leap. I was healthier and less in need of doctors once I was freelancing. And, on the rare occasions I got sick, I found treatments that worked BETTER than the traditional medical establishment.
PS — Half the time, health insurance doesn't cover what it's supposed to anyway. When I had health care, I had to fight with them to cover the treatment of a brain tumor. They argued it wasn't really such a big deal, and, initially, did not approve treatment of something I was initially told I had a 95% chance NOT to recover from.
Um, huh?
That was in 1985. I'm still kicking — no thanks to the health care system.
Devon, you underscore how freelancers without healthcare make it – they learn how to take better care of themselves and they seek treatment that won't bankrupt them.
You're right – if the job will kill you and it gives you healthcare benefits, what exactly are you gaining?
That's an interesting point Devon — being healthier as a freelancer. I hadn't really thought about it before, but that's been true in my case too. While there's stress, there's less of it and I'm always empowered to do something about it (unlike many employees who simply have to do what they're told). I'm around fewer people who spread their germs my way. And when I'm burned out I can take time to recharge my batteries — whether it's a half day or a vacation — without needing permission from a boss weeks ahead of time. I can just clear up projects and do what I need to do for myself. Excellent point, and thanks for bringing that side of it up. 🙂
Jenn, great point. I've had maybe one cold in five years. No flu. No stomach ailments. If you're not around it, you can't catch it.