Hello from the Feisty Freelancer! To celebrate my recent publication of my book The Feisty Freelancer: A Friendly Guide to Visioning, Planning, and Growing Your Writing Business, I wanted to share three of my top tips on how to keep your life running smoothly as a freelancer. In this post, I thought I’d share some tips that are great not only for writer/editors, but for freelance businesses of any kind, whether designers, photographers, or even accountants or indexers. If you’re self-employed, something you have in common with every other independent is maintaining that business mindset and setting yourself up for success with the tools you need as well as the work that you do. Here are some things that work best for me:
#1 Stay organized
They say the best system is the one that you’ll use and I’ve found that to be true. Finding tools that works for you and that you’ll keep up with can be magic for keeping track of how your business is doing at any time. I started out using simple excel spreadsheets to keep track of new client projects, as well as my income and expenses. Today I still have my spreadsheets, although I now use a project management tool (Trello) that allows me to set up columns to track project stages (in progress/ready for final review/filed/draft 2 etc.) for better visibility. I also use an invoicing program (Wave) to track my income. And I put my all-important, unmissable deadlines in more than one place, both in the Trello and my Google calendar.
#2 Find your network
In the book, I include a Q&A section with other freelancers, and a very common tip from others that I also find true is “find your people.” I’ve found my writer/editor colleagues over the years through volunteering with my professional associations. Many have become personal friends. I currently belong to The Writer’s Union of Canada, Editors Canada, the Canadian Freelance Guild, and the American Society of Journalists and Authors. To find an association that works for you, try attending their events or joining a meeting or two. Volunteering can also help you get more from your membership.
#3 Monitor your mood
Besides checking in with my business through my spreadsheets, I also like to make time for reflection on how I’m feeling about my freelance life. New year is a great time for this. The nice thing about working for yourself is that you truly can pivot when things are no longer working. Client you can’t stand? Figure out when you can gently let them go. Client you love? Look around to see if there are more in that niche you could serve. Feeling overworked? Start building in a monthly long weekend. If we’re going to work this hard to be self-employed, be sure to make sure that your freelance life is just what you wanted it to be.
Suzanne Bowness is a writer, editor, and communications consultant. Since 2002, she has written for publications and clients through her business CodeWord Communications. Suzanne is a longstanding part-time writing teacher with a PhD in English who delights in passing advice to new writers. Her book The Feisty Freelancer guides you through the practicalities of setting up a business, developing an online presence, finding clients, and creating a solid plan for success. Learn more here.