Entries Tagged 'Freelance Writing' ↓

It doesn’t happen very often, but it has happened to me twice in ten days.

Last week, I had a client kick a project back to me. The client didn’t ask me to revise the project; instead, he said “I’ve already paid you for this half, don’t bother with the other half. This just isn’t what I was looking for.” Upon reflection, I realized that he was right; I’d written the material with a fever of 101.6, and it wasn’t my best work. Not by a long shot.

I had another client, just today, email me saying that she was dissatisfied with my product. In her case, I bit off more than I could chew. Because of that, I didn’t produce the deliverable in a timely fashion.

Now, I’ll gladly take my licks here. In both of these cases, I made mistakes. In the first, I let a product go out, not realizing that it didn’t meet client specs. The fever, well, that’s incidental. I should have known better than to try to write in that condition.

In the second case, I just overestimated how many hours were in a day, and how much time I’d have to meet the client’s expectations.

So, what do I do?

I’m going to do what I’ve always done.

I’m going to admit my mistakes.

I’ve done that, right here. Confession is good for the soul and, while those two clients likely won’t read this, I’ve already contacted them, offering my apologies and trying to set things right. I hate for there to be bad blood between me and anyone, for any reason.

I’m going to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

This was a tough lesson to learn. My instinct is to become indignant. “I was sick! You have to give me another shot!” is what I want to say. But I realize something: as a freelancer, I alone am responsible for what I deliver to clients. If it’s not my best work, every time, then it’s not good enough. If I’m sick, I need to ask for an extension. Better yet, I’ve decided to push out my editorial calendar a bit, just to get a little bit of extra wiggle room for emergencies. So, rather than offering a turnaround time of a week on a project, from now on I might ask for ten days, or even two weeks.

In the other case, I’m learning to let my assistant handle more and more tasks. She’s amazing at what she does, and when I’m overwhelmed she helps me sort it all out. I’m learning to let her help prioritize tasks, figure out which ones can wait, which ones can be outsourced, and which ones I have to jump on right away.

I’m going to focus on the positives.

it’s easy, when a client drops you or when a project gets kicked back, to start dragging yourself through the mud. You start telling yourself you aren’t good enough, that you have no business writing for a living, that you suck at business. But those are damn dirty lies, folks.

I’ve worked with more than a dozen clients in the past month. The overwhelming majority are thrilled with my work. If I extend those numbers out to the past year, I’ve only had three incidents where clients didn’t like what I provided, out of more than a hundred. Those aren’t bad odds.

So, I’m going to dig through some old emails. You know the ones I’m talking about. The ones that put you on top of the world for a full day after you get them. The ones you print out and tape to your desk, just like my kids do when they bring home a test with an “A.”

So, what about you? What do you do when you have a setback of your own making?

photo credit: Dawn Ashley

For the third year in a row, Michael Stelzner over at Writing White Papers has offered his readers a list of the top 10 Blogs for Writers. I’m proud to say that, out of 300 entries, The Writing Journey scored 8th. Thank you, readers, for your support, and thank you Michael for your consideration. I’m proud and humbled all at once to be in such great company.

If you’ve arrived at The Writing Journey today for the first time, be sure to check out some of my most popular posts, over in the sidebar. There you’ll find plenty of solid writing advice, both practical and inspirational.

Here’s the full list, along with Michael’s comments on each:

1. Copyblogger: As the undefeated champ, this blog has held the number-one spot for three straight years!  The baby of Brian Clark, this blog keeps winning because of its excellent and educational articles.
2. Men With Pens: James Chartrand and Harry McLeod are the dynamic duo who continue to deliver rich content and community discussion.
3. Freelance Writing Jobs: Founded by Deb Ng, this site is the first stop for freelance writers seeking new work and great articles (and it remains a top winner since this contest began).
4. Write to Done: This blog delivers a steady stream of excellent articles for all writers and is the product of top blogger Leo Babauta.
5. Confident Writing: Looking for encouragement? Joanna Young will help you take your writing to the next level.
6. The Renegade Writer: Linda Formichelli and Diana Burell, authors of a book by the same name, help freelance journalists find inspiration.
7. Remarkable Communication: One part writing, one part marketing and one part selling, this excellent blog by Sonia Simone will help any writer succeed.
8. Writing Journey: Looking for a great stop on your writing journey? Bob Younce’s blog will refresh and energize you.
9. Freelance Parent: Two moms, Lorna Doone Brewer and Tamara Berry, provide excellent perspective on writing while balancing time with little ones.
10. Urban Muse: Susan Johnston covers a wide range of excellent topics that all writers will enjoy.

Congratulations to everyone!

One of the most amazing things about being a freelance writer is that I don’t have to do any work I don’t want to do. If I’m not comfortable with the subject matter, I don’t have to take the gig. I can pick and choose my work based on my own moral code and comfort level. Unlike my former life as a cubicle dweller, I’ll never have to make a choice between conscience and my boss’ demands.

On top of that, though, the work I do can make a difference in my world. Sure, not every gig is world changing. But some are. And what I do right here is, too. The fact that my work can have a purpose beyond just earning a paycheck is one of the things that sustains me on a daily basis.

I have a guest post today over at Freelance folder calledFreelancers: 3 Principles That Can Change Your World. Go give it a look, and let me know what you think over there, and let me know how you use your career as a freelancer to change your world.

If you’ve been freelancing for any amount of time, you’ve probably had one of those days.

You know the days I’m talking about. You sit down in front of your computer with your morning coffee, and you feel empty. You’ve got nothing. No inspiration, no motivation, no desire to be sitting there. For a brief moment, even the thought of a cubicle is appealing. At least in a cubicle you could blow off some of your day doing something nonconstructive, if you really worked at it.

Of course, it doesn’t take long thinking about that cubicle before you start to snap to your senses. No, you’ve got the best job in the world. You wouldn’t trade it for anything.

You just don’t want to be doing it today.

Words start flowing, but then they all start flowing together. One article seems to read just like another, and every time you finish a page you count how many more you’ve got to do before you can be done for the day.

You’ve got a touch of freelance burnout.

I get to feeling like this about once a month or so. I’ve learned, however, some techniques that help me to get past it, refocus my efforts, and start loving what I do again. While I can’t promise these techniques will work for everyone, they do pretty well for me:

Switch up your editorial calendar

When you’re writing an ebook or a series of articles, you can get so focused on one topic that it becomes utterly boring. Take an hour in the middle of that ebook to work on something else. If you don’t have any other client projects, write a blog post, or work on your novel for a little while. Sometimes just letting the creative juices flow in a different direction is enough to rebuild your steam.

Take a day off

I know, I know. We’re freelancers. We don’t get days off. Well, I’m here to tell you that if you don’t take a day off from time to time, you’re going to crash and burn. Don’t worry about the work; it will be there tomorrow. So will your bills. Give yourself a day, or an afternoon, to refocus. It’s likely that when you return to work tomorrow, your productivity will skyrocket, making up for much of your “lost” day.

Read something inspiring

Whether it’s a Dilbert cartoon or whether it’s an inspiring post from your favorite freelance blogger, sometimes you need someone else to remind you why you’re a freelancer. Go back to a favorite post from days gone by and really read it. Visit some writing blogs, or try to find a new writing blog out there. Read a passage from Stephen King’s On Writing, or even just sit down with a good novel.

There are plent of other ways to refocus your freelancing efforts. What have you tried? What works for you, and what doesn’t?

It feels darn good to be back.

I can honestly say, my little blogging break has done me a world of good. It’s allowed me to focus on the things in my freelance business that really matter, sort out some priorities, and hone in on my core competencies and primary objectives.

Thank you all for your patience, and thank you for coming back today. You’ve been missed, truly.

__________

photo credit: shioshvili

When I first met married my wife back in December of 1996, I loved her and her 2 year-old daughter with everything that was in my being. I thought, as we drove away from the courthouse in downtown Indianapolis on that cold day, that there was no way in the world I would ever lover her more.

I was wrong.

You see, in March of 1998, our daughter Elisabeth was born. It was a rough pregnancy, and it was a bit tenuous right after Ellie was born, but we came through it all right. In fact, we came through it stronger than ever. By December of 1998, I realized that my love for Angie was bigger than ever. I loved her more than I ever thought I could.

When I left the IT field to get my Master’s degree, things were hard. I was struggling with depression and anxiety, and there were days where I was barely functional. Angie saw me through those times, and by the time my freelance writing career began to kick off, I realized that my love for her was, yet again, bigger than it was before.

I was thinking last week about my college days. I recall a particular professor, Wilbur Williams, who was in his 60s when I first met him. He often talked lovingly about his wife, Ardelia. He told how, in their decades of marriage, they had continued to grow more and more in love with each other. My wife and I were very much the same.

Professor Williams used to describe love as a cup. When you first meet and fall in love, your little cup fills up pretty quickly. As time goes on, though, you replace that little cup with a mug. If you don’t continually work to fill up your mug, you’ll feel less and less in love. By the time you hit one, and then two, and then three decades of marriage, you’ve got a giant bowl, and it’s either full of love for your spouse, or it’s not.

That’s why so many relationships fail. As we grow older, our capacity for love grows. If we fill that with something other than love for the other person, it mucks everything up.

———-

What does this have to do with writing?

Well, a writing business , if you’re doing it right, will continue to expand in its possibilities. You’ll find new ways to sell your writing, new clients, new types of writing, and even other sorts of related business. If you don’t give your business the nourishment it needs as it grows, everything gets mucked up.

My successful little writing business, which was once a little bitty espresso cup, is now a full-fledged Starbucks Venti. If it gets any bigger, it’ll become a bucket.

To keep things going, to keep things from getting mucked up, I’ve had to find new ways to fill my cup. I’m working with some other writers to see just how much qaulity content we can produce. I’ve brought on an administrative assistant to help organize our gigs and help keep all of our ducks in a row. I’m mapping out long-term plans, diving into new types of writing business, and finding creative ways to add significant value to my end product.

To be sure, I’ve made mistakes along the way. Like my marriage, my freelance career hasn’t always been a bed of roses. But also like my marriage, I am more committed to and enjoying my business today than I ever have before.

And that’s the lesson for today, folks: if you want to be successful as a freelancer, don’t fight growth. Nurture it, care for it, and do it right, but don’t fight it. If you do, you’ll find yourself less committed and less satisfied than you could be.