I had an email conversation with a writer friend last week when one of those “a-ha!” moments occurred.
In conversation with someone on LinkedIn, she was delving into why places like Upwork, Fiverr and other bidding sites are not a great starting point for anyone looking to make a living freelance writing, how they don’t really teach writers valuable marketing and networking skills.
The other person in the conversation, someone who had a startup freelance platform (and clearly had some skin in the game), tried to make the case that these sorts of places were necessary for all freelancers wanting to get their foot in the door of major companies. In his experience, he goes on, that is the only way to hire freelancers who want to make big bucks.
I’m sure you can hear my snarky snort from where you are.
His experience must be extremely limited. For here I am, there you are, having made plenty of inroads without a single bidding site to be found.
For every kid fresh out of college, every laid-off, fired or retired professional wanting to be a freelance writer, the bidding sites look mighty attractive.
What doesn’t look attractive is what they should be doing:
- Creating a business plan
- Researching potential clients
- Deciding on marketing strategies
- Working like hell to get a business going
- Forgetting that they’re not employees anymore
That last one trips up a lot of freelancers, especially at negotiation time. Oh, and at collaboration time. And contract time. And work process time.
But there was another side to this conversation that holds the key to why so many freelancers are not able to achieve those goals — yes, even the six-figure freelance writing career one.
It was when the platform owner used the term “freelance economy.”
It suggests we are separate from the mainstream economy. We aren’t. We’re very much part of the economy. We are not “freelancers” or the “gig economy” workforce (I truly hate that term altogether because it cheapens what we accomplish). We are small businesses. We are startups at the beginning, but we are running businesses. We may not have employees, but we have services we’re selling.
We are consultants. We help clients get through some thorny issues with their content. We are trusted to know what we’re doing. Because we’ve developed those skills.
And yet, freelance writers get into this business not realizing that. And what happens next is predictable — they say something like “I don’t want to be a business owner.”
To which I say “Isn’t that too bad that you are, then?”
And there’s the disconnect between writers and their six-figure freelancing career.
It’s the question all writers and would-be writers should ask themselves:
[bctt tweet=”Do you want to be a gig worker or a successful #freelancer?” username=”LoriWidmer”]
If you want to live hand-to-mouth, a gig worker could fit you quite well. It comes with the starving-artist persona built in. Plus, you’ll be working about as much as a six-figure freelancer will (maybe more) for less money.
As my freelance friend put it, “It’s putting yourself in the freelance equivalent of the retail dollar store.”
Yes, it is. Only I’d argue that your particular dollar store might not be that posh.
So if you’re wanting that carefree, freelance writing lifestyle, then being selective probably won’t ever appeal to you. “Selective” means work on your part, including learning how to run a freelance writing business, educating yourself on how to find freelance writing clients, and doing the heavy lifting.
“Selective” also means higher earning potential, and more opportunities to expand beyond your current client list. It means you’ve learned how to market and invoice and negotiate and collaborate and all those things that business owners do. It’s the keyword for those higher fees and larger paydays. It means joining other successful freelancers who have figured out that running a business, once you put the foundation in place, is the best way to make a living freelance writing.
And the whole thing can change for you right now if you’re willing to put the work into it. Starting is that simple.
Writers, when did your mindset change from “get a gig” to “run a business”?
Any advice for writers who still aren’t sure about making the switch?
7 responses to “The Six-figure Freelance Mindset Gap”
“If you want it done right,” build your writing career yourself. I was growing my writing business when there was not an Upwork to be found. As soon as I found out the pay was so low, I stopped looking into work at those sites.
There is one exception. If a client agrees to pay my rate and says they administrate everything through one of these sites for payment, that’s OK. I’ve done that, and it was fine.
That’s how I started too, David. Not a bidding site to be found. Not that there weren’t lower-paying sites that needed articles on a particular topic, but they didn’t bid the work out. And they operated like any other client of mine. And I knew when to pull the plug (as I scored higher-paying stuff).
Very interesting, Lori. You got me thinking way back to when I began my own business, in 2005. I’d been in publishing, left to practice law, then came back to combine the two. I’d contacted all my previous co-workers, but that was just a start, so I didn’t immediately launch into having work to keep me busy full time.
I remember one of my friends saying, “You could supplement your income with a part-time job at Starbucks or something.” And I remember internally looking at her like she had two heads (I hope I didn’t show her how crazy I thought that was.) I remember saying, “But I think my time is better spent marketing, networking, and reaching out to build my writing business rather than earning $7.50 an hour….”
Somehow, I knew from the start this wasn’t going to be a gig and it wasn’t going to be handed to me. I had to build it. I’m so grateful I knew that, and I’m grateful I found your blog early on.
On another note, I recently created a trend line of my income from 2005, and that first year, I started in August and didn’t make much money from Q4 writing. But I’m happy to say that my trend line has gone up every year, except for a weird drop in 2011. I can’t remember what happened in 2011, but my guess is that my business didn’t suffer. I believe that was the year I sold a property at a big loss, so I had more losses to push down my gross income.
Anyway, I found that helpful in understanding where my business came from and where I am today. I recommend it for all writers as a way to further think of yourself as a business owner.
Gabriella, you had the right mindset from the start. That’s a gift!
I love the idea of a trend line. I know I was scraping bottom at the outset — I’d lost my job and had to piece together an existence. And I made the mistake of relying on temp jobs. Once you give yourself a safety net like that, you ease up too much.
But another writer told me something that sticks with me still; “Treat freelancing like it’s your only option.”
Once I removed my palm from my forehead, I never looked back.
Amen, Gabriella.
Your reaction to the friend saying you could supplement your income with a part-time job is the same thing I feel when I come across low pay rates. Why take an assignment that pays 5-cents/word or maybe $15/hour when it will take your time and focus away from INVESTING the same time in seeking out better clients?
It’s always better to invest in yourself than to help a low-paying client profit off your skills.
Had to comment about this post tonight after catching up today on a discussion list from a “professional” organization I belong to. Where several members have spent four days—4!!—discussing how they make these sites “work for” them. While a couple do use them basically for the easy payment/escrow process, more than one poster is thrilled they don’t have to market or do other administrative tasks. Hey, I don’t love marketing either, but I do like to eat and eating requires marketing, so …
I’d been debating letting my membership expire. I think this discussion just made my decision.
Liz, it sounds like you have a strong work ethic. And I love that you know these sites are big sinkholes.
I don’t think I’d be too eager to remain in a professional group that has that mindset present and is doing little to quash it.