Tag Archives: Self-employed

How to Become a Successful Freelancer

June 15, 2017 By in Freelancing/Self-employed Tags: , , , , , , , , 58 Comments

Transitioning into freelancing was one the best decisions I’ve ever made in my life.  I exchanged my 9-5 for a life of freedom where I can earn and still be there for my family. I’m not limited to space and I work anywhere I want to, whenever I want to.

 

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With a 9-5 job, I was dependent on my boss for how much I take home every month. But freelancing empowered me to determine my income. Thanks to freelancing I am my own boss. Many freelancers get to this point and coast. However, there are greater opportunities freelancing can give you when you push the bar.

Even though I’ve been really successful as a freelancer, I know there’s so much more for me. There is so much more I can achieve and want to achieve. And that should be your mindset if you want to succeed as a freelancer.

 

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Here are 10 tips you can use to raise the bar and very a successful freelancer.

Treat freelancing like a real business

Just because you work from home doesn’t make freelancing less than a business. You need to plan, strategize and track your progress. Your freelance business is a business and you need to treat it as one. Wake up early. Do the work. Make the calls. Send the emails. Do your taxes. Invest and budget for the next month. Until you take your work seriously, no one will take you seriously.

Maintain good relationship work your clients

It’s so much easier to get your current clients to keep coming back than it is for you to get new clients. So whenever a client wants to hire your service, keep it at the back of your mind that it has be on the long term. Be polite and helpful at all times. Keeping in touch with your clients and asking of their welfare is a great way to go about it.

Put your work out there

Don’t slow down your efforts of showcasing your work. Use social media as a means of letting your audience know about your latest projects. That way you are increasing publicity. Word of mouth is a powerful means of marketing. So the more you put your work out there for people to appreciate your talent the more people will know and want to hire you.

Continuously improve your skills

There is a lot of competition and one of the best ways to stand out is to have outstanding skills. Invest in courses or programmes when you can learn about the latest techniques and develop yourself at your craft. You need to always stay on top of your game.

Pitch, pitch, pitch

I am the pitch QUEEN! I am forever sending a pitch. Waiting for clients doesn’t make the clients come knocking on your door. You have to go out there and take your business to them. Search for potential clients and pitch your services to them. Pitch from the angle of adding value or solving a problem and not with a desperate tone of “Please hire me”. Always maintain the upper hand.

 

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Network

You’re not an island of knowledge. Attend meet-ups, masterminds or conferences if you can. Join Facebook groups and Twitter chats. Socialize and meet with people in your industry. Learn from them. Rub minds together. Share your problems. This will give you a fresh perspective in your freelancing business.

Set up systems to simplify your work

Automation is the order of the day. With automation tools you get to do more in less time. Since time is your biggest investment you need to. Find a way to save as much time as you can. Schedule your social media posts, email sequences and batch up content where you have to.

Move towards generating passive income

Raise your income through programs, packages, ebooks and courses. Passive income allows you to make money even in your sleep. It is an avenue to diversify your income and move from only being a service-based entrepreneur to a product-based entrepreneur. Let’s be realistic, you can only handle a certain number of people at a time.

Hire extra hands

If you want to be successful as a freelancer then you need to have the mindset of expansion. As more people get to know you and want to hire you, you’ll have so much work on your plate. Hire people who can join your team. That way you can accept more jobs and still be able to deliver on time with good quality intact.

Give value in your community

There are so many people looking for solution to problems that you can solve. Although it’s great to be paid as a problem-solver, it’s also good to share your expertise with people who desire to learn. Don’t ever think that this will reduce your workload or patronage. This is one of the most effective ways of showing people in your community that you’re an expert and a go to person in your niche.

 

Do you have any freelance tips to share?

Prince Charming Isn’t Coming

May 22, 2017 By in Lifestyle Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , 53 Comments

I have been reading a lot of personal finance and general business related books on my Kindle for the last month, and I have found majority of the books very informative. I am currently reading “Prince Charming Isn’t Coming: How Women Get Smart About Money” by the talented Barbara Stanny – popular motivational speaker, financial educator, former journalist, and career counsellor, and I am loving it!

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This is the second book of hers I  am reading this month. I just finished reading “Overcoming Underearning(TM): A Simple Guide to a Richer Life”, which was also an amazing read. I learnt so much from the book, and I am implementing her tips already. I can’t wait to finish this current book and find more of Barbara Stanny books to read. Her writing style is right up my street, so easy to read, she is the real deal!

As a self-employed business person, I enjoy reading finance and business related books in my leisure time to keep myself informed. You would easily catch me reading a book on my Kindle, while on a train, in a car, before I sleep, or whenever I get the chance. Reading and writing is like food and water to me. I can’t do without them.

Reading these finance books have made me pay more attention to the health of my finances, which is not where it should be, but it is a work in progress, and I am happy it is nowhere where it was some years ago. And I am sure that is the case for many of us.

The reality for many of us is leaving from pay check to pay check, a never ending credit card bill, various store card bills, and online loans. Now there is nothing wrong with any of these if you do have them, life is hard as it is already, so being judged is the last thing we need from anyone, especially strangers. But the one thing I have learnt from these finance books, is that as long as you are on top of our finances, you are a step ahead. I have learnt to stay up to date with every bill and bank statement, and I working towards increasing my income streams, and spending less.

Have you read any of Barbara Stanny books? Do you enjoy reading about finance and business?

Speaking of books, have you read my book – How to Cash In as a Blogger?

 

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If you have, please leave me a review on Amazon, if you haven’t read it, please do and leave me a review once you are done. Thanking you.

*Collaborative post.

My Experience of Mobile Working

April 7, 2017 By in Blogging Tips, Freelancing/Self-employed Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , 36 Comments

I started Fashion and Style Police in 2012, but I still held my full-time job working as a customer service advisor for a big multinational in Manchester. The job looked liked the best thing ever but the reality of it was that I hated it and I hated working there, so I focused on building my blog alongside a regular paycheck. This was a good idea because I made less than £100 in my first blogging year. Leaving the security of a regular paycheck then because I was frustrated with my job would have been very stupid.

 

 

After blogging for a year, I went on maternity leave and I never looked back. I knew I was never going to step into that office as an employee again. I knew there was something bigger and better for me, but I just didn’t know what it would be. Definitely didn’t think it was going to be blogging or working as a freelancer. I didn’t honestly believe I could start earning a full-time wage from my online hustle, but then I started to eventually.

While on maternity, I put all my leftover energy from caring for my twins into my blog. So while they slept in the day, I ignored the books that told me to sleep too (this is not advisable), and hustled like mad. My twins are over 3 years old now, and Fashion and Style Police has grown and it is still growing like weed. I have also gone into freelance writing and outreach for companies, and it has been a great experience so far!

Working for myself has its pros and cons as expected. I written about this a few times already; I even had a proper moan about it some days ago in The Ugly Side of Freelancing post. But 1 thing is for sure, I would not change my mobile working conditions for anything! The fact that I can decide to work 1am or 1pm from my sofa or bed is amazing. Mobile working is the best thing ever since WiFi!

 

 

 

However, one of the main issues that concerns me as a freelancer is the fact that I could lose all my work if anything ever happened to my laptop, camera or mobile phone. I carry my iPhone with me everywhere, and I am usually with my camera and laptop when we go on holiday, so I need to ensure my work stays stay. Also, we all know how easy it is to have gadgets stolen when we are out and about, and how easy it is to have our laptop or phone flooded with coffee. Well, this is where InMyBag comes in. This company is like the Messiah for us mobile people.

InMyBag can cover your mobile devices from loss, theft and damage so you can carry as normal. They guarantee same day resolution which is fantastic, and you can enjoy the same service abroad as you would do at home for up to three months a year.

This is 1 service I see myself forever having as a freelancer. I think it is smart to have a cover like this as a freelancer because you never know.

Do you have your mobile devices insured?

 

*Collaborative Post.

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