Let me guess. You’re creative, talented, and, not that long ago, you made the switch to freelance work.
You had a dream to choose your projects, control your hours, and do what you love to do all the time.
It sounds like the perfect life, and that’s why you made the switch. But now that you’re there, it’s not all it was cracked up to be.
Trying to get your timesheets and billing completed — correctly — stresses you out so much that you fret over it for a week; then, you do it at the last minute.
Trying to get new clients and projects makes you feel like a hungry caveman running around with a club in your hand. When you happen to conk something over the head, you chow down for a few days, but sit empty-bellied the following two weeks.
You’re constantly browsing the Web. You’re making money, but it’s not enough to justify the hassle. Even worse, you don’t feel creative anymore.
You don’t want to acknowledge that little voice that suggests it may be time to get a j-o-b.
What Separates the Successful
I have spent the better part of the last five years studying the coaching profession to understand what the most successful coaches do to separate themselves from the rest.
Like freelance writers, illustrators, graphic designers, and developers, life coaches don’t suffer from a lack of skill in their chosen profession. Life coaches know how to coach. Sure, some are better at the skill of coaching than others, but coaches who make $100,000 are not 10 times more skilled than those that make $10,000.
To live the abundant, creative life you dream about, consider how you can apply these habits of the top life coaches to the way you do business:
1. Think Like a Business
A lot of people try building a business as a side project. It’s a good approach unless you have a long runway (i.e., money in the bank to support your growth).
But whether you’re freelancing on the side or you’ve made this your full-time business, you need to approach your work like a professional. The best coaches invest in business cards, a separate phone line, a professional-looking website, a customer relationship management system, some business training, and other setup.
When they get up each day, they have structure. They set aside time for business development, client attraction, and administration. And most of all, they understand that a business requires all of these aspects and smart financial investments to grow.
2. Stop Trying to Help Everyone
When you don’t have many clients, it’s very compelling to cast your net as wide as possible. But by trying to appeal to everyone, you end up appealing to no one.
The market is competitive — especially online. Stop trying to please everyone. Figure out who your ideal client is so when he finds you, he’ll whip out his credit card and hire you on the spot.
3. Understand Your Ideal Customers
The kiss of death in the startup world is to operate in stealth mode, building the next best widget and doing a massive launch under the critical eye of the media. Few companies can successfully pull that off.
In response, the lean startup movement is sweeping across the business world. It urges anyone operating in an environment where there is uncertainty to get feedback and iterate a service offering as soon and as frequently as possible.
Don’t assume you know exactly what your ideal customers want and need. Don’t assume you know how to package and deliver your services. Interact with your ideal customers, find out what their main challenges are, offer them a service that matches their needs, and keep improving. You won’t get it right the first time, so keep working to close the gap between what you do and what your ideal clients really want and need.
4. Offload the Stuff You Suck At
As a freelancer and solopreneur, there are parts of the business that sap you of your creative juices. Maybe you can get them done, but they come at a real price.
When you dread doing certain activities or put them off for weeks, you know you need to hire someone to do them for you. Yes, there’s a cost to hiring other people, but there’s usually a higher opportunity cost. For every hour of crappy admin work you do, you’re losing an hour on high-return, business-building activities.
5. Create 12 Raving Fans
The cheapest way to get more clients is through word-of-mouth referrals. How do you do that? Make your existing customers rave about you.
While you may be expending a lot of energy getting new clients, have you thought about ways you can make your existing customers happy? Maybe you need to put in an extra hour each week producing a report. Perhaps you send a birthday card.
However you do it, show your customers you are constantly there for them and are going the extra mile to build the relationship. They’ll stick their heads out and recommend you to colleagues and friends.
All it takes is 12 raving fans. How many do you have?
6. Be Held Accountable
Few people have the discipline to operate at full capacity on their own with no reporting structure. CEOs report to a board of directors. Vice presidents report to the CEO. Frontline staff report to managers.
Who do you report to? Most likely, the answer is no one, which means you’re probably underperforming. No one sees when you fail or waste an hour on Facebook. You have the capacity to be more successful, creative, and strategic. Sometimes, you need someone else to help you get there. Find a mentor or an accountability partner or start a mastermind group. Find or hire a person who can help you stay on track or even realize a better, more fulfilled life.
Going out on your own can give you the freedom to work on the projects you truly care about, create your own schedule, and rediscover your passion. But if you can’t successfully run and manage your business, your foray into entrepreneurship will become more stifling than any cubicle.
via Business 2 Community http://www.business2community.com/strategy/make-100k-freelancer-0631932?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=make-100k-freelancer
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