Midyear Checkup: Are You Thriving or Just Surviving?

Taking stock of your freelancing business.

If you are reading this article on the date that I published it, we are exactly at the half-way point of the year. Yes, I killed the “evergreen writing” component once I wrote the title, but what I am going to say here can be applied any time of the year.

As freelancers we should take stock of “how are you doing?” at various points of the year. If you do not, then you risk missing the mark and whatever goals you set for yourself at the beginning of the year, perhaps even when you set out to freelance in the first place.

Freelancing Life

One thing about a personal review is that you can make adjustments to help you get back on track. To that end I have pulled out some of the concerns we self-employed workers have, identifying those areas and how you and I can make improvements. Oh, yeah, I am not about to harp on the “tough economy” angle either—if you are still in business for yourself, you already understand that challenge.

Time Management – Are you making good use of your time? Easily, we can become distracted by the Internet as we do our work. There are freelancer forums, blogs, social media and networking sites and email to woo us away from what we do. Be honest with yourself: are you spending too much time socializing and not enough time writing for pay?

Equipment Upgrade – I finally tossed my Windows-based personal laptop and bought a Mac. Yes, I am now a Mac snob. Seriously, I made the decision to switch when it became evident that registry errors and the usual PC slowness was a major drag on what I do. No more anti-virus and crapware to deal with. I spent more time in the past month writing for pay and less time trying to coax broken Microsoft Windows to work.

Pay Scales – I have been working with a few clients for several years and still charge them the same rate. That is good for them, but not for me as my own costs have increased since then. Are your freelancing rates frozen? Is it time for you to begin raising them? You should be able to pass along a modest five-percent increase without a problem, but if you are aiming for ten percent or more, then be prepared to explain why. Perhaps there is an added benefit such as tweeting and stumbling published work that needs to be mentioned.

New Vistas – I am not going to say that print magazines are dead, but if you are spending an extraordinary amount of time sending out queries with very little to show for it, then it may be time for you to explore other options. I get more queries from potential clients than those I send out, which allows me to cherry-pick the ones I want. Still, if things are a bit slow I will swallow my pride and take on a gig just to keep my writing flow going and my income stream flowing. I still write for two print publications, but the lion’s share of my income is derived from on-line work.

Tax Management – Yes, I am still doing my own taxes. I cannot see that changing unless my tax picture suddenly becomes very complicated. I do not think that it will, but I am not taking any chances. I know when my quarterly federal taxes, corporate state filing and local privilege licenses are due or up for renewal, I can tap a separate bank account I fund for those payments. No more panicking in advance of a tax deadline to pull together monies owed.

Long Term – Funding for my personal retirement has taken a back seat to everything else in recent years, but that is about to change. I will still put money in my children’s education accounts and set aside other cash and finally get serious about a period in my life when work will not be the priority it is today. Honestly, I do not believe I will ever retire—I love to write—but, my flesh and bones may not be so cooperative in my latter years. Plus, it would be nice not to be so deadline-focused, writing just enough to make some money, but without the ever-present calendar with important dates circled in red in front of me.

Your Passion

Six months from now I will be taking a look at a year completed and laying the groundwork for the year to come. One point I did not mention is your personal passion for what you do. If it is gone, can you get it back? If not, might it be time for you to move on?

How To Unwind Unfavorable Client Agreements

Feeling trapped? Don't allow the big cat client keep you caged!

One of the advantages of having a lengthy track record as a freelance writer is that you have many more assignments under your belt than the person who is just starting out.

We’ve all been there: sending out queries, bidding on freelance sites, responding to client requests and more. Days, weeks, months, perhaps years of slogging for work, handling your share of rejections and putting up with assignments you’d rather not take but for the simple fact that you have bills that must be paid, clothes to put on your children’s backs and food needed for the dinner table.

Your Tipping Point

At some point in your freelancing career you should reach a favorable tipping point – a place in your life where you can pick and choose your customers, perhaps finally saying “enough” to the handful of clients who really aren’t contributing to your bottom-line.

Sure, you’re getting paid and you may be fairly well compensated for your work. But, you’ve also have had it with bending to the whims of the moment, coming to the realization that a few of your client agreements should simply be unwound, allowing both parties to pursue a fresh direction.

Now I’m saying this to you assuming one thing: you have more than enough work on your plate or prospective work in waiting to keep you busy without one or more of your current clients. If not, you need to begin working on lining up new customers or tapping your active client base for additional assignments. And don’t worry about today’s economy – lots of us are working at overcapacity right now; if you’re good at what you do, then the work is certainly there.

Letting Go

But what is holding you back? I think I know, because I’ve been there myself: certain thoughts or feelings which may be keeping you from making a move that may seem difficult for you to execute, but offering long term and far reaching benefits.

Please read on to see if one or more of the following concerns resonate with you:

I won’t get a recommendation – We’ve been trained to supply references for our clients and some freelancers have detailed information about their previous assignments on their websites and/or LinkedIn profiles. While having a strong LinkedIn profile is smart business, that doesn’t mean you have to list every client or give an account for every moment you worked.

Until recently, I hadn’t provided a resume to anyone for more than three years. And why is that? Because no one asked. The same can be said about a recommendation: if you’re worried that an angry or vindictive client won’t supply a positive recommendation for you, then why list them in the first place? There is no rule saying that you must mention them by name — after all you work for yourself and you don’t have to list every single client you’ve ever had.

I want this client, but not for financial reasons – I’m certainly not telling you to get rid of every difficult client nor am I advising you to dismiss those customers who on occasion present an out of the ordinary demand. Hopefully, you’ve developed needed thick skin to repel every day slights and short term insults as you reach for your goals.

What I am saying is that you may be keeping a customer on for some other reasons, perhaps as a favorite to them or as a feather in your cap (look ma, I am published!) or for some sort of personal validation. I don’t know your reasons for keeping them on, but you probably do. Envision yourself one, three or five years or more out…can you see yourself writing for this client at some future date? If not, why not cut the strings sooner, rather than later?

I need this client for networking – Some clients are so huge that they seem larger than life. In 2005 to early 2006, I was working for one such customer. He provided what amounted to be as much as 90% of my income while indirectly allowing me to get my foot in the door in the automotive industry. Needless to say I lost the client when they decided to move in another direction (selling several websites), putting my family in a disastrous position that took me many months to recover from.

What I should have done was to reduce my dependency early on by limiting my work for this one client while pursuing other opportunities. Needless to say, I now manage two of the larger independent automotive blogs and and am an automotive columnist for other two publications. Yes, it was those articles I wrote for this client that caught the attention of people in the industry, but I still could have gotten their attention by writing fewer articles for this one client. Live and learn!

Moving On

Naturally, the moving on process can take time, perhaps the better part of the year especially if signed contracts weigh in. Yet, if you’re unhappy with a client and there is other work available which can replace what would soon be lost, then what have you got to lose? A huge burden, perhaps.

Photo Credit: Daniel Heitz

See Also — How To Write Your Op-Ed Piece