Employment has its share of issues, but it also has a ton of lessons for freelancers. This is especially true on the communication front, since you’re likely working with people who are employed themselves and/or working in an employed environment. Learning how to shape our styles and habits to meld with the employment standard can […]
Are Toxic Employer Habits Leaking Into Your Freelance Business?
This post will help you with Phase 1 of the BlackFreelance Foundations Workbook…if you haven’t started yours yet, download it now! Low pay. No work-life balance. Leadership with no vision. Unreasonable production expectations. Pressure to do unpaid work. If most of us heard all that about a traditional job we’d label it “toxic” without a […]
It’s Time to Reset Your Freelance Expectations — With Some Numbers
What do you expect from freelancing? Low pay? Consistent income? Long hours? A quick start? I know when I got going, I had ZERO idea of what this life would be like. I had to cobble together my ideas of what ‘normal’ and ‘possible’ looked like from podcasts, Facebook groups, and random conversations online. I […]
How to Be a More Resilient Freelancer
Updated 1/17/2020 Over the years, I’ve changed my mind about a few things around here at BlackFreelance. Things like working in multiple niches and goal setting. The latest is freelancing as a lifestyle. I used to use the term “freelance lifestyle” but I let it go. I’ve just met too many different freelancers with […]
6 Reasons You’re Struggling to Price your Freelance Services (and What to do Next)
We had a really good talk over on Twitter about marketing struggles the other day. A few topics popped up, but one really stood out, and that’s pricing issues. And you know what? Everybody has a hard time with pricing. Go to any platform that supports freelancers and you’ll find posts on the topic. Here’s […]
Older Freelancer? Here’s 6 Things You Should be Taking Advantage Of.
Between established bills and shorter time to retirement, older freelancers (I’m talking early to mid-30s and older) have some challenges, but honestly, we’ve got a lot more opportunity. That might be easy to forget with all the social and traditional media focus on teens and 20-somethings, but if you take a step back, you’ll see […]
Protect Ya Neck: 4 Ways to Prevent Freelancer Non-Payment (and Underpayment)
I’m a big believer in defensive freelancing — handling problems before they become a problem. Tactics like using contracts, expectation management (which we’re covering in the Academy this month), and even using your website to communicate your price ranges and processes can go a long way in preventing freelance issues…and if there’s one area where […]
How to Become Your Own Mini-Marketing Department
This post will help you with Phase 3 of the BlackFreelance Foundations Workbook…if you haven’t started yours yet, download it now! Marketing is the hardest part of freelancing. No, really. That’s why so many freelancers stay at the mercy of platforms like Upwork or shouting into the void of social media, hoping […]
What is “Strategic Freelancing” Anyway?
I’m a big believer that most of our freelance “failures” eventually point back to not being able to state why we’re freelancing in the first place, and then not having a plan that’s grounded in that ‘why’. If you follow me over on Twitter you’ve probably seen me mention “Strategic Freelancing”. It’s a concept […]
Short, Mid, Long — Which Marketing Level are You Missing?
Last updated: 11/8/2019 This post will help you with Phase 3 of the BlackFreelance Foundations Workbook…if you haven’t started yours yet, download it now! I just had broccoli greens for dinner (did you know they’re a cousin to collards? I didn’t). That’s a direct result of being a freelancer. Back when I was employed, I […]