For me, freelancing is about time.
Not money.
I want to spend as much time as I possibly can with my wife and kids. I want to homeschool my boys. Teach them everything I know. Create a real relationship with them so when they’re adults, we have a friendship beyond parent-child.
It’s the most important goal in my life.
That’s why I have turned down I don’t know how many “regular job” offers.
It’s also why I’m very picky about what clients I work with.
And, I why I’ve chunked running my business down to about an hour a day.
But, when I first started freelancing?
Pfft.
Time was the last thing I was getting.
I had no control of my clients.
“Can you meet right now for a ‘quick’ call?”
Sure.
“Hey, it’s Sunday night at 10pm, but I really need this thing.”
Sure.
“OMG, we have an emergency! Have you seen…”
Oh no. Sorry. Okay…
Just getting run ragged.
It took a near nervous break down for me to finally decide to take control of my clients, set some boundaries and do things MY way. It’s not easy and a big part of it is just having the guts to tell them “No”.
But, there is something that makes that a helluva lot easier.
In fact, it changes your entire mindset when it comes to clients.
And, you stop putting up with their B.S.
It also makes it easier to charge more.
And, be a lot more picky about who you work with and on what projects.
IMO, it really is the “key to sanity” as a freelancer.
And, that’s having a backlog of potential clients. Getting to the point where you’re getting so many people trying to hire you on a monthly basis that you simply can’t accept them all. And, more just keep coming in each month.
When, you reach that point…
It’s liberating.
Because you know… if a client gets mad and fires you…
Oh well.
Next!
Or, a client starts being ridiculous.
Next!
You’re no longer beholden to them.
It’s the best way to get some control as a freelancer.
Of course, the big thing for a lot of freelancers is building up that backlog. That was why I was such a “yes man” when I first started freelancing. I was desperate for any client I could get and hung onto them like a toddler with their favorite “blanky”.
It’s also what I changed when I decide to take control.
And, I got to the point where, between my own website and the freelance platforms I was on, I was getting several dozen major project invites per month. Of which, I could only do maybe 1 or 2.
The key to it is developing a system.
Doing the traditional business-building…
And online marketing…
That virtually every other online business does.
In a way, it’s about getting serious about your freelance business.
Going from doing it as a “side thing”…
Or “testing the waters”…
Committing and going all-in.
If freelancing is what you really want to do.
In any case, I teach you exact system in my Beginner’s Guide to Freelance course. If you want to just “copy/paste” what I did instead of having to figure it all out yourself, then take that course and I’ll show you what to do.
You start taking it for nothing on my free tutorial site here: https://johnsfreetuts.com/freelance
Later,
John
P.S. If you’re wondering what currents students think of the course, here’s one of the latest reviews:
“This is one of the best tutorials I have ever seen on freelancing from any tutor. I will highly recommend this course among my peers and others as well.” –Mehandi Islam
Start taking it for free: https://johnsfreetuts.com/freelance
