As a freelance writer the last thing you want to do is waste a lot of time. It is important to stay busy, no matter what hours you are working. If you continue to waste time you will find it difficult to pace yourself, while completing all of the necessary work.
Here are three time wasters that all freelance writers need to avoid:
1. Personal conversations. When you work at home this is a big problem. In addition to in person conversations, beware of too many phone calls, text messages, and emails. The more time you spend speaking with friends and family the less work you are going to get done.
2. Too many breaks. I am the first one to admit that taking breaks throughout the day is very important. That being said, you have to be careful that you do not go overboard. At times, you may find yourself slacking off. Do you have what it takes to pull yourself together and get back on track?
3. Checking your email too often. As a freelance writer you need to stay in touch with clients via email and phone. That being said, you don’t want to waste a lot of time everyday checking your email. Believe it or not, many people stalk their account and check for new emails several times per hour. You should realize just how much time you are wasting when you do this.
The three time wasters above are very common. As a freelance writer you should do what you can to avoid them. By doing so you will find that you are much more efficient in terms of how you spend your time.
Starting out as a freelance writer can be frustrating for many reasons. Many find themselves in the difficult spot of needing samples to gain new clients, but not having any because they are just getting started. In this situation, it is easy for you to spin your wheels day in and day out. This leads to one very important question: should I write for free?
There are many arguments for and against this. Rather than attempt to sway you in one direction or the next, I am going to lay out a few facts and let you decide on your own.
Let’s start with the negatives. When you write for free you are not getting paid. Obviously, if you are trying to support yourself as a freelance writer this does not bode well.
Another detail to consider is the time that you will spend writing for free. The more time you spend writing for free the less time you have to work on paid gigs. Along with this, you are also cutting time out of your day that you could be spending on marketing.
On the plus side, writing for free will put more samples in your portfolio. With these, it will be easier to land gigs in the near future.
Additionally, writing for free is a great way to improve your skills. Since you are not getting paid, your main focus should be listening to the client and making sure that you give them what they want. Learn as much as you can about the writer-client relationship as you complete these free jobs.
I could go on and on about why you should or should not write for free. But rather than do that, I will leave you with the information above. If you have a stance on this subject, feel free to leave a comment.
This is a subject that comes up time and time again. Should I spend time speaking with freelance writing clients on the phone? While I have no problem with this, others would much rather use email the majority of the time. No matter where you stand on this subject, one thing is for sure: if you have a client phone call scheduled you need to be 100 percent prepared for anything that may come your way.
Here are three steps I always take to ensure that I am prepared:
1. What does the client want to talk about? The more you know before the call the easier it is to prepare yourself. If you can ask questions of the client via email, go for it. This will put you in position to better prepare yourself, and allow the call to go more smoothly.
2. Be ready to take notes. No matter if I am taking notes on my computer or on a piece of paper, I have something in front of me while the client is speaking. The longer a call goes on the more chance there is that you will forget some of the details. I make it a habit of writing down as much as I can, without losing focus of what the client is saying.
3. Have questions of your own. It is easy to get so caught up listening that you forget to ask your own questions. This has happened to me many times in the past. For this reason, I always write down any potential questions in advance. This way, I can take notes and mark them off as the conversation moves forward.
Even though this is a topic that I have discussed before, it is one that many of you continue to ask about. Hopefully this helps to clear the air, and give you a better idea of how to prepare for client phone calls.
It has been a while since I have had any openings in my freelance writing course. Fortunately for those who are interested, this recently changed. A couple members decided to leave after three and four months of working with me. With this, there are now two openings.
Why should I get involved with your freelance writing course? Every time I make a post like this, I receive several questions about the potential benefits of the course. If you are looking for guidance and need somebody to show you the ropes, joining the course is a great idea. My goal, with every member, is to guide them towards their freelance writing related goals – no matter what they may be.
If you want to snatch up one of the last two spots, send me an email without delay. As always, I expect both spots to be gone within a day or so at the most.
I hope to be working with a couple of you very soon!
Over the years I have worked with hundreds of freelance writing clients. Some were great to do business with; others not so much. No matter who you are, at some point you will strike up a relationship with a needy client. While this may not seem like a big deal early on, soon enough it can begin to bog you down.
Here are three tips for dealing with needy freelance writing clients:
1. Find out what they need, and try to get it to them as soon as possible. A needy client is one who will call or email, day after day, to talk about the same things. If you can give them what they want before they ask for it, you are putting yourself in a better position while also making the client happy. It may take some time to learn exactly what the client wants, but soon enough you should have a very good idea.
2. Explain your situation. If you are spending entirely too much time with a client you may need to explain your situation and why you are going to have to cut back. I don’t suggest doing this often, but there may come a time when you have no choice. You do not want to come across as rude. Instead, tell them that you have a full schedule and that you will only be able to speak with them at certain times. You may be surprised at how much this can better your relationship.
3. Charge them more. The more time you spend with a particular client the more money you should charge. This holds true no matter if you are spending time writing, or on the phone as a “consultant.”
The next time you are dealing with a needy freelance writing client, consider using the three tips above.
Is something holding you back from becoming a successful freelance writer? Is there a reason why you are not making as much progress as you would like? If so, you need to pinpoint the roadblock and then determine how you are going to get around it.
Here are three things that may be getting in your way, as well as some tips for getting past them:
1. Your lack of knowledge. No matter what career path you choose, a lack of knowledge is going to slow you down sooner rather than later. If there is something you do not understand about becoming a freelance writer and the path you are going to take, now is the time to search for an answer. The longer you go without finding the right answer the more trouble you are going to run into.
2. A lack of time. Many people are interested in becoming a freelance writer, but are not able to find enough time to realize this dream. Does this sound familiar? The best advice I can give is this: make time, no matter what it takes. If you are working as a part-time freelance writer, get up in the morning before your 9 – 5 job and put in some work. If this doesn’t work, spend some hours in the evening getting your career on the right track.
3. Doubts about the future. Every freelance writer has doubts from time to time. Some begin to think they made a bad choice. Others believe that they are never going to earn enough money to be comfortable. Even though doubts are sure to creep into your head, you cannot let them get you down. In most cases, you will find that they are unsubstantiated.
Are any of the above roadblocks standing in your way?
Freelance writers love big projects that pay a lot of money! If you don’t, something is wrong. That in mind, there may come a time when you are presented with a project that is too big. While you may find this hard to believe, it has happened to me a few times. Fortunately, there are some things you can do to ensure that both parties are satisfied.
First things first, why do you think the project is too big? Is the client asking for something that you have never done before? Are they in need of a lot of content in a short period of time? Once you know the details of the job you can then begin to search for a mutually beneficial way of doing things.
For example, if you are being asked to complete several hundred web articles within two weeks you may be worried about how much stress this will add to your regular workload. Rather than put yourself in a bad position, maybe you can negotiate a longer delivery time. This will allow you to take on the job without stressing out.
Are you thinking about turning down a big job? While this may be something you have to do, don’t jump the gun. As noted above, you should first discuss the details with the client. They may be able to change some things around in order to better accommodate you and your current schedule. At the very least, you should open up the lines of communication and see where you get. You may be surprised to find that the client is more than willing to change things around for you.
In short, some projects are going to seem so big that you will not want to get involved. Before you make a final decision, consider all your options and be open to negotiating.
When you sit down at your computer do you have any idea of how long you are going to work? While most freelance writers have a set schedule, others simply work until they can no longer take it. Before we go any further, keep this in mind: every freelance writer is different in terms of the number of hours they work, as well as how they approach their career.
Even if you do not believe it right now, there may come a time when you are working too many hours. This may sound like an impossibility, but it rings true soon enough for many freelance writers. Even though I try to avoid it, from time to time I begin to feel burnt out. This is usually directly attributed to working entirely too many hours.
How long is too long? Again, this is up to each individual writer. Most of the time I do not have any problem working eight hours a day – or more in many cases. Of course, this is just an average. If I work 10+ hour days for a couple weeks in a row, it goes without saying that taking some time off becomes very important.
As you work longer as a freelance writer you will get a better feel for how many hours you are comfortable with. Once you have an idea, it is easier to stay on track without going overboard.
Only you know how many hours are too many. Do your best to stay the course and avoid going overboard.
When you first start working with a new client you are sure to be excited. Not only are you ready to take on a new project, but you are making some money as well. Does it get any better than that? While this is definitely an exciting time, you may find out soon enough that you don’t know all the answers. In other words, your new client may stump you from time to time.
If a client asks a question of you and you do not know the answer, you can do one of two things:
1. Make something up, and hope that you can get away with it. Believe it or not, this is very common.
2. Admit that you are stumped, but immediately go out and find the right answer.
As you can imagine, I opt for number two time and time again. The last thing you want to do is lie to a client. If you make something up and it ends up being wrong in the end, you are jeopardizing your relationship.
Your clients do not expect you to know everything. In fact, there are going to be times when you are downright lost. Rather than act like everything is okay, communicate your position to the client and let them know what you plan on doing next. There is nothing better than researching a client question, and coming back with the right answer in the near future. Not only will this make the client happy, but it will make you feel good inside at the same time.
I have been freelance writing for many years, and still get stumped by clients – this is part of the industry. Don’t expect to know the answer of every question that comes your way.
As long as you are willing to find the answer for your client, admitting that you don’t know should never be a problem.
No matter if you work as a freelance writer or in some other line of work, there is a very real possibility that you will begin to burnout at some point in time. While this may sound silly to you right now, it is anything but a joke when it happens. This can quickly drag you down, and force you into taking some time away from your computer.
Simply put, burnout is the result of working day after day without taking enough time off. Some freelance writers don’t experience this very often. Others, it seems, run into this issue on a more regular basis.
If this is becoming a reality within your career you will know it soon enough. Not only will you feel mentally exhausted, but your interest in freelance writing will wane as well.
Is this something that will keep me down for the long term? How long it takes you to recover from burnout depends on several factors. For instance, are you willing to take some time off? Believe it or not, a day or two away from the computer can do wonders for you. If you are the type to forge ahead, no matter how you are feeling, you may eventually run into a brick wall. Often times, burnout can lead to a feeling of downright exhaustion. In turn, you will have no choice but to take some time off in an attempt to recover.
Just because you experience burnout does not mean that you need to change careers. That being said, you do need to think about the schedule you are working and any changes that you may be able to make.
Don’t let freelance writing burnout become a bigger problem than what it really is.
