I’m in the middle of a long run of constant work. I’ve met my March earnings goal with the projects I have on hand already, and it’s only the 4th of the month.
You want that too, right?
Look, there are precious few “secrets” to making a living freelance writing. Most of what you’ll do all day is what any small business owner will do.
- Market
- Market some more
- Market even more
- Repeat
Okay, there’s a bit more to it than that, like understanding how to deal with difficult situations, difficult people, unpaid invoices, lack of work, dwindling bank funds …
Oh, and you’ll have to write like you were born to do it. And you were, so that’s already taken care of.
So why do some writers make so much more than their counterparts? If you took two writers working in the same specialty but making widely disparate earnings, you’re probably going to find the one thing that separates them financially.
And fortunately, that one thing is an easy fix.
And it’s the one secret that isn’t really secret. Or tough to do.
I came upon two articles yesterday when I was browsing Twitter.
The first:
How to Make $300 in Your First Month of Freelancing
You and I have been there. We’ve been that beginner, we’ve wondered where that first check was coming from — and the next, and the next and ….. It took months, maybe longer, to get it together. So that promise of $300 when the bills are due? That sounds pretty sweet. If you can replicate that times 12 ….
Wait. That’s only $3,600 a year. Why are you freelancing exactly?
Because you don’t think like the writer who wrote the second article we’re going to talk about.
Jennifer Gregory, who is a pretty phenomenal force in the freelance writing world, put up a post with this headline:
How to Create a Marketing Plan for Your Freelance Content Writing Business
That doesn’t promise any monetary payout up front, but damn, she delivers a head-spinning moment in the post. Here’s what Jennifer includes in her marketing plan:
-
Earn between $120K and $160K
Oh yes, she did. And that was last year’s goal. I’m eager to see what she’s put forth for 2020.
And in that one bullet point, Jennifer hits us all with why some writers make more than others.
[bctt tweet=”Successful writers aim higher. Always. #freelancewriting” username=”LoriWidmer”]
The author of the first article (who meant well) did something that Jennifer and writers like her have not done — limited your perception of what you can make.
Would you be happy making $300 your first month? Probably. It’s a sign you can do this, and I think the author is trying to tell you his/her experience and how to make that a springboard for more. But what if you could make more than that in your first month? What if you didn’t realize it because the first article was the only one you’d read? What if you were starting out by setting that earnings bar really, really low?
That’s the trap, right there. You start out aiming for hundreds a month, not thousands a month. You start out thinking “If I could just get $300, I’m doing okay.”
And you’re skipping the step that successful writers take every month:
[bctt tweet=”Successful writers set earnings goals. #freelancewriting ” username=”LoriWidmer”]
Don’t believe me? Ask a writer you think is successful. If you can find one successful freelancer who makes a fairly consistent income year over year who doesn’t set goals, I’ll give you an Amazon gift card.
What Jennifer did in her post — what I do here pretty regularly — is show the readers that the goal is part of the job. It’s primary to the job, in my opinion. The goal helps you find your personal success.
The first article will not get you there. It will get you moving. But is it in the direction you want to be going?
Quick story that could help some of you who are established, but not earning what you’d like to be earning: About 14 years ago, I was taking just about any job that would cross the desk. I had goals, but I wasn’t being discerning enough in my choice of clients. And then two checks arrived in the mail on the same day. Ironically, they were for the same amount of work — one article was 1,500 words and paid $600. The other was 1,100 words and paid $1,100.
Light bulb moment. Why would I work a little more for less? It was at that moment I realized that taking just any job was the wrong approach.
I aimed higher.
Writers, when was your earnings epiphany? What did it look like?
How did it change your business?
What advice would you give to writers who aren’t aiming high enough?
5 responses to “The #1 Way to Earn More at Freelance Writing”
Ironically, my epiphany came when I cut back to part-time work after my son was born. Before that, I took basically anything I was offered. My thinking was simple: work more hours, make more money. Honestly there were many times I was working 18 hours a day and staying up all night to get things done.
After he came along, I put him in childcare part time and gave myself 25 hours a week to work. I turned down the lower paying stuff because there was only so much room in my schedule. I was also hyper focused for the hours I was in the office. And guess what? My income went up by about 10 thousand a year while I was working about half of what I did before. I still can hardly believe it. And these days I don’t have all that much trouble politely telling potential clients their rates aren’t in line with what I typically earn.
Yep, sometimes it’s the back-to-the-wall moments that push us to stand up for ourselves. Way to go, Krista! It probably didn’t hurt that you had to pay for daycare, either. That in itself would have motivated me to charge more.
My husband is often my source of sensible advice. He told me once as I was complaining how I had way too much to do that I should just charge more. That way, I’d make the same amount without killing myself.
I took that advice right to the bank.
Yes, it’s a different situation when you’re paying someone so you can work! I love your husband’s advice. It really does make sense but I think a lot of us get caught up in the idea that busier is better.
I had a couple of aha moments, Lori. The first, after an insane 100-article project early in my freelancing career that had me working long hours for not much pay. I realized then that that approach wasn’t sustainable in the long term. The second, when I realized there *were* people willing to pay for good quality writing. From that time on, that’s where my market was.
Those light bulb moments are so life-altering, aren’t they? 🙂
It’s what you said, Sharon — that lower rate is not sustainable. We hang on to clients too long out of some misguided sense of loyalty, duty, fear. But seeing for yourself that others do value your skills is so enlightening!