When I first started this blog, my main goal was to reach out to the freelance writing industry in an attempt to give something back. After only one year, I feel that I have reached a few of my goals. Traffic is currently growing, my RSS readership is hovering around 350, and my freelance writing course has taken off.
This past weekend I was surprised to receive an email from somebody who is interested in purchasing ChrisBlogging. Over the past few months I began to move away from personal posts and more into freelance writing information in general. That being said, I never thought that somebody would make an offer to purchase the blog; especially since it is not listed for sale.
I was not sure what to make of this offer, so I asked the potential buyer to contact me via phone; which he did. While I believe that the buyer is serious, I immediately turned down the deal. Simply put, I am not ready to give up the blog at this time. It has become a big part of my freelance writing career, and is beginning to generate more revenue than I ever thought possible; this is probably why the offer was extended to me.
This leads me to the question of whether or not you would ever sell your blog? The offer for my blog was not huge, but at the same time, enough to get me thinking. Of course, a lot of this has to do with the increasing RSS count as well as the $1,000 monthly income from my course.
Are you like me? Or would you jump at the opportunity to sell your blog if a solid offer was made?
Being self-employed as a freelance writer offers many benefits. And while most people think that it is easy for a self-employed professional to take a vacation, this is not always the case. In fact, I think it is more difficult for freelancers to vacation than those who work for a company.
As a freelance writer, you only get paid when you work. To go along with this, you are not given a set amount of vacation days at the beginning of the year. Sure, you can take off when you feel like it, but if you do, you can be rest assured that you are not going to get paid. This is much different than somebody who works for a company and gets paid when they take a vacation.
Of course, this does not mean that you should never take a vacation from freelance writing. If you are ready to take a few days off, there are several tips that you can use in order to ensure that you do not get behind:
1. Make sure that your clients know that you are leaving. You do not have to go into detail, but if you regularly communicate with a client, tell them that you will be out of the office. This way, they do not think that you are avoiding them or putting them off.
2. Get caught up before you leave. There is nothing worse than taking a vacation when you are already behind on your work. Remember, the work will still be there when you get back. And by that time, it has probably doubled!
3. Check your email when you are gone. I know, this is a big no-no. Most people believe that a vacation is a vacation, and this means no work. And while I agree with this to a certain extent, I like to stay connected no matter if I am on vacation or not. This helps to ensure that no fires break out, and that my clients are getting taken care of to the best of my ability.
There is nothing wrong with taking a vacation from your freelance writing workload. In fact, I encourage that you do so. If you decide to take some time off, use the three tips above to help you along the way.
As a freelance writer, do you ever think about adding another income stream? If you are like me, this is something that you are always looking into. Sure, freelance writing is my main gig and probably always will be. But that being said, there is nothing wrong with expanding into other areas that may be able to bring in some extra cash each month.
For many freelance writers, a natural addition is income through blogging. Although I do not earn a lot of money through this blog, it does help to pay some bills each month. To go along with this blog, I have several others which bring in extra money. Since I enjoy writing, I do not have any problems updating these blogs on a regular basis. And as you probably know, the more that you update the more traffic you will receive. From there, the only thing you have to do is decide how you are going to convert your traffic into profits.
As you probably know, I decided to start a freelance writing course last month. This was a great way for me to add another stream of income while also helping others. After a day or so I had sold out 10 slots at $100 each. While this is only an extra $1k per month, it is a good start. This was an easy addition for me because I enjoy teaching freelance writing and connecting with others who have similar interests.
By adding new income streams, you will find that you are earning more money than ever before. As a freelance writer, you should be able to find time for other money making activities such as blogging, etc.Â
