When people consider a freelance career, they first tend to think of the difficulties: not enough time to do it; other, more important, commitments; trouble finding work, not earning enough, etc.
But before you spend too much time thinking about what might get in the way of a successful freelance career, know that these obstacles can be overcome with a good plan.
It’s the sneaky distractions that most likely get in the way of your success. Here’s a rundown of some of those distractions and how to prevail over them.
Spending time and energy on things that don’t matter.
When you’re first getting started in your freelance career, it can be hard to tell what does and doesn’t matter.
For example, you might spend hours thinking about how to incorporate your business. (Start an LLC? Register as an S-Corp?) The truth is that 99.9% of people who work as a freelancer in the U.S. should just be a sole proprietor, which requires little to no paperwork. You don’t even need an EIN, or Employer Identification Number. You can just use your Social Security number.
Here’s another one: What should you name your business? You could spend weeks trying to come up with the most innovative and creative name when, in reality, you can just use your own name.
If something is not moving your freelance business forward, then chances are it doesn’t matter.
Spending too much time and energy on things that DO matter.
There are things you do need to address to ensure you have a successful career.
For one, you need a website. But you shouldn’t spend dozens of hours teaching yourself design skills and how to use WordPress. In just a few hours on Squarespace you can create a sophisticated-looking site with their easy-to-use templates.
You should always be looking to make progress and not to achieve perfection. Perfection doesn’t exist and chasing it is a waste of time.
Your time is better spent getting things like your website up and running so you can build your freelance business.
Spending too much time and energy deciding.
Smart decision-making requires a little bit of time. But you need to know when you’re spending too much time getting to a decision.
For example, choosing between buying the domain name “sallyworks.com” or “sallyfreelancer.com” is a valid decision you will need to make before your website goes live. But it’s a one-hour decision, not a multi-day decision. Ultimately, there’s not much impact on your career by choosing one over the other, so pick one and move on.
Even with bigger decisions like how much to charge a client, you can’t spend days deciding. Gather all the information you need and then decide. And know that over time, decisions like these become easier the more you make them.
Don’t get stalled in the “decision-making” phase instead of the “action” phase.
Spending time and energy worrying about things you can’t control.
It’s natural to be concerned with our business. And it’s easy to fall into the worry trap. But worrying is not productive. It only expends energy you could be using toward building your business.
For example, let’s say you’re worrying about pitching a new client. If you’ve learned all about their business and your pitch includes a benefit to them (like how you can solve a problem they have or how to help them earn more money) then you’re prepared to make the pitch.
What you can’t worry about is the outcome, which is out of your control. If the client doesn’t hire you at the time you pitch them, there could be lots of factors. Try to get the answer for why now is not the right time for them to hire you. Is it a budget issue? Will more funds be available in a few months? Does your rate need adjusting?
All you can do is your best going into every situation and fight the tendency to waste time and energy worrying about things you can’t control.
Spending time and energy worrying about things that aren’t an issue yet.
Along those same lines, it’s also a waste to worry about things before they happen—even things that may never happen!
For example, you must pay taxes on your freelance income. That’s why you should create a separate savings account and put aside a percentage of each payment you receive that you can use come tax time.
Ask your tax preparer or CPA for the right percentage you should be setting aside. If you secure these funds in a separate account that you use only to pay your taxes, then you won’t have to worry about paying your tax bill on April 15th—or spend the time worrying about them all year long!
Spending time worrying about taxes (versus doing something about them) is a waste of time. Let yourself worry for a few minutes and then analyze the worry itself. Is it something you can control? If so, do something about it. If not, do some yoga, meditation, or listen to some calming music until the worry subsides.
Why do people fail in freelancing? The simple truth is that the biggest deterrent of most people’s freelance business success isn’t the economy—it’s themselves. It’s wasting time and energy instead of taking decisive action.
Your Turn!
Did any of this especially resonate with you? Let me know in the comments below!
