- By Yuwanda Black
- Published 02/11/2012
- Writing
I’ve been a freelance writer since 1993. For the first probably five to eight years of my career, I didn’t have concrete goals for my writing career. This was reflected in my income. While I did ok, it wasn’t until I learned how to freelance that I started increasing my income year after year. The most important thing I did was set goals. Setting the goals was the easy part, keeping them was another story altogether. Following is how I manage to set – and reach – almost all of the freelance writing goals I set, which has increased my income and allowed me to make a living completely online since 2007. I. Public Declaration: Part of learning how to freelance is not only setting goals, but being accountable for them. One of the ways I stay accountable is to publicly declare my goals in an annual blog post. The first year I did this was 2012. When I made my freelance writing goals in 2010 for the next year, 2011, I I declared it not only on my blog, but in my newsletter and via my Twitter account. This helps me to keep my feet to the fire. There is nothing like risking public failure to keep you motivated and on track. II. Time-Block Days: Another skill all freelance writers should do when learning how to freelance is to Time-blocking. This helps you to see – in black and white – what you should be doing every minute of every work day.
One of the main benefits of time-blocking is that i
t gets you to become aware of bad habits – so that you can actively start breaking them. III. Have a Life Plan: When learning how to freelance, having a life plan should be at the top of the list. Why? Because it keeps you focused on where you want to be a year from now, three years from now, five years from now, etc. Your freelance writing goals list is just a year at a time, time-blocked schedule of getting where you want to be in life. This is why it’s extremely important to know where “that” is. IV. Visualize: When you’re in the “life planning” stage of learning how to freelance, this is probably where this step will come in. It’s extremely important for all freelance writers – especially as self-employed individuals – to have a mental picture in their head of what it’s going to look and feel like when they, for example, start earning five figures a month, when they’re able to hire help to grow their freelance business, when they can comfortably pay all their bills every month, etc. This keeps you motivated. V. Work Hard: I found this the easiest part of learning how to freelance. One of my freelance writing goals for 2011 was to publish 50 ebooks on Amazon by year end. You see, an overall life goal (part of my life plan) is to eventually retire from freelance writing and just write and sell ebooks online. Every time I wanted to give up, I thought about my enslaved ancestors and how hard they had to work – for no pay; in deplorable conditions; for their entire lives.
And, I got back to work.
Yuwanda Black is a freelance writer and author who’s published over 50 ebooks. She’s made her living completely online since 2007. Learn how she works — and lives internationally part-time (in Jamaica) – in the ebook, Living the Freelance Life. It’s free when you subscribe from any page of InkwellEditorial.com, her freelance writing website. Learn more about how to freelance successfully.
by Yuwanda Black
