Freelance writing can be an exciting career for those who want to work in a free environment where they get to choose their own hours, be your own boss and don’t have to commute for long hours on day to day basis.
So freelance writing appears to be a dream job for every professional who is tired of his/her 9 to 5 job.
But the problem is, from the outside many new freelance writers get an impression that freelance writing is a very glamorous job, but in reality, nothing could be further from the truth.
So the main reason for writing this article was that I don’t want you to repeat same mistakes. From my experience, I learned 8 fundamental mistakes that an aspiring freelance writer like you should never make.
Here are they.
Never Do These 8 Mistakes
Contents
1. Freelancing Without a Contract
When I started freelancing I didn’t have a Freelance Contract. This was a major blunder on my part. Without a contract, I was milked to fullest by my clients.
In other words, every client ripped me off. Without having a contract I remained underpaid for at least first 3 years of my freelancing career. You should never do this mistake!
A contract not only prevents you from being taken advantage of but also helps you to strategize and finish your work on time without any delays.
In the beginning, even if you’re starting without a contract I guarantee, you will realize the need for one sooner than later. Once you’ve realized the importance of a contract, creating one wouldn’t be any difficult.
You don’t have to be a lawyer or a legal writer to draft a contract. Just write in a simple language including all the important clauses like pricing, payment, deadlines, copyrights etc.
If you are having a problem drafting your contract then you can find online for some of the best templates.
2. Selling Your Work Very Cheap
As I mentioned in my previous paragraph most of the new freelance writers just couldn’t save themselves from getting fleeced by their clients.
However, if you are aware of things that go around the freelancing world then you can negotiate a deal with your client on your terms.
Do you want to charge your clients on an hourly basis or by a complete project? If you are working on hourly basis then ask them about minimum and maximum work-hour rates.
But if you can write fast then avoid hourly rates. Writers who are able to complete an entire project faster are better advised not to charge by hourly basis because obviously, this will be a rip-off.
While setting rates you also need to consider other factors like your experience, length of the project, amount of effort you have put in etc.
So always bid high!
3. Not Being Able to Handle Criticism
When it comes to taking criticism, you wouldn’t believe me, I have learned the hard way. So why do clients always criticize freelance writers? Is there any reason or just they do it out of habit?
No, they aren’t doing out of habit because clients got a genuine reason to criticize every freelance writer they hire. The reason is, most of the freelance writers write content that is subpar with a lot of grammatically and spelling errors.
They often use some kind of software to rewrite a previously written article many times and submit it to different clients. So, for this reason, freelancers come under flak from their clients.
I’m not saying that you are one of such freelance writers. What I’m saying is if you fail to write to a standard set by your client then he/she is justified criticizing you. You should learn to be thick skinned and digest their criticism. In fact, take that criticism in your stride.
However, if you really believe their criticism is uncalled for then you can respond respectfully with a well thought of a response.
4. Failing to Meet the Deadline
In the freelancing world trust between you and your client is everything. Freelance writers can strengthen their relationship by submitting their work on time. It’s because most of the freelance work is time sensitive.
Once you and your client have agreed upon a deadline then you must be able to finish and submit the work before the deadline at any cost. Your future as a freelance writer will totally depend upon how often you meet your deadlines.
However, if your client demands work by a certain date and you feel that you won’t be able to meet the deadline then don’t cave in and simply refuse to agree in the first place.
One of the positive aspects of the deadline is that it allows you to schedule and streamline all of your work even before you have started working on them.
5. Failure to Build Your Own Brand
Today there are thousands upon thousands of freelance writers online who are willing to offer their services at a lower price. This makes competition very tough if you want to earn a decent living being a freelance writer.
Hence, a freelance writer has to stand apart from rest of the crowd. And the best way to do this is by creating his/her personal brand.
A personal brand will allow new freelancers to build an authority, market their services and help to distinguish their work from others present online. But unfortunately, most of the freelance writers don’t even consider building a brand.
The best way to build a personal brand is through creating a blog/website and constant presence on social media platforms like Twitter and LinkedIn.
6. Failing to Go Beyond Freelance Writing
If you want to be more than just a freelance writer then you need to write outside of your work. Freelance writing is not an end but it is a means to an end.
To put it simply, for now, you may be a freelance writer but in future, you would like to become a great writer. To keep your imagination and creativity alive you must find time to write outside your regular freelance writing.
For example, you can write about a trending topic on your blog post, writing a short story or a poem on a website. You also need to spend some time on learning new skills hence keeping abreast with current technology.
Again, just like building a personal brand most freelancers fail to go beyond freelance writing.
7. Complacency
After working for few months freelance writers become complacent. Freelance writers assume their plate is full for next few months and many clients are just dying to work with them. So why not lay back and just chill for few coming days!
Well! That’s a mistake. Never make such an assumption because it’s quite possible to lose your entire clients any given time. You need to keep hustling as a freelance writer.
So be proactive and ready to market yourself for finding new opportunities. You can’t sit idle waiting for new opportunities to come by.
8. Any Unprofessional Behavior
Last but not the least is unprofessional behavior from your side. In this line of work, there isn’t any human to human contact between freelance writers and their clients.
All the point of contact is through the Internet. So there isn’t a work environment like corporate jobs where employees have to adhere to certain rules and regulations.
Hence, new freelance writers tempted to get bit unprofessional and rude at some point in time with their clients. They shouldn’t confuse between being friendly and unprofessional.
So these were 8 things you should never do as a freelance writer. I hope you will learn from my mistakes that I committed being a freelance writer. I really don’t want you to repeat same mistakes that I did in my 10 years long freelancing career.
Get out there and Start Writing!
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