Do You Have the Balls to Be a Freelance Writer or Blogger?
I’ve been freelancing for so long that maybe I’m a little jaded. About once a week, I’ll receive an email from a wannabe freelance writer in essence saying they’re scared to start; scared to “pull the trigger” as Christine from SelfMadeChick.com says.
My response is, “Scared of what?”
Scared it might not work out? Scared you won’t be able to pay your bills? Scared you’re not talented enough? Scared clients won’t like your work? Scared you might not be able to get clients? Scared you won’t be able to make a real go of it?
My advice, “Get over yourself and get on with it!” Harsh? Maybe.
The Advantage of Poverty (and not, it’s not an oxymoron)
I grew up poor and didn’t have the luxury of fear. My parents taught me and my siblings that education and working hard was the way out. Fear never even entered the equation. I don’t wait for anyone to advise me, guide me, show me or tell me.
If I want to do something, I make up my mind, do the necessary research (the Internet is truly a Godsend) and get on with it to the best of my abilities. And, I’ve failed at plenty – probably more than most have tried. BUT, it’s never stopped me from moving forward.
How to Confront Your Fear of Starting a Freelance Writing Career
The best way to confront your fears of starting a freelance writing career, trying to make a go of blogging – or anything you’re afraid of – is to just do it. No one can hold your hand through the process. You have to have the balls to do it yourself.
Yeah, it takes balls to in essence say, “I’m taking charge of my career; I’m going to be a freelance writer.”
You can read all the books in the world, research your niche until your eyeballs pop out, and consult with experts until your bank account is dry – but if you’re not willing to get started, it’s all for nothing.
That being said, following are three things you can do to get over the “I’m afraid to make the initial leap” jitters. These are all things any half-educated shrink will tell you, but just in case you haven’t heard it before, here you go:
1. Ask yourself what you’re afraid of: You have to know what your fear is to deal with it. Write it down; don’t just say it to yourself. Writing it down will help you with the next step, which is . . .
2. What’s the worst that can happen: If your fear came true, ask yourself, “What’s the worst that can happen?” Usually, it’s not as bad as you think. And, if for some reason all your fears materialize, do the following . . .
3. Plan of Attack: If the worst comes true, come up with a plan of attack — beforehand. A Plan B, if you will. Preparation is the great equalizer when it comes to confronting any fear.
Speaking of preparation, before you start your freelance writing career journey, do as much preparation as you can, eg, target a niche, build a website, get some writing samples together, etc.
BUT, don’t let preparing be an excuse for not starting (eg, I’ll start marketing when I finish redesigning my site).
Life is short . . . extremely short. If you live it in a bubble of fear, you’re going to miss out on at least half the fun of it. In the case of starting a freelance writing career, it’s just that – freelance writing. It’s not life and death.
And if you fail, so what?
Cry, log back on and get moving again!
Written by Yuwanda Black from Inkwell EditorialPosted on December 10th, 2008 and filed under Making Money
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10 Responses to “Do You Have the Balls to Be a Freelance Writer or Blogger?”
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I think it is good advice for people to get out there, give it a go and see what happens but at the same time it would probably be advised not just to quit a job and hope for the best. Perhaps starting up whilst still in a job and see how easy or hard you find it to get work. Like the idea though of having the confidence just to get on with it though as at some point you have to make some kind of leap and hope for the best.
It isn’t advisable to just up and quit a job in order to start any business. Unless of course you’ve spent several months building up a nest egg to live on while you build your freelance career.
Most of the horror stories I hear from people who fail in business revolve around lack of funds to keep grow their business and to pay for the basic necessities (or what they believe to be necessities) of life. A person should certainly take chances on themselves, but always count the cost and weigh the risks.
I half agree. However, I think the nature (and freedom) of freelancing allows one to actually create a significant income stream *before* ever going full time. So hang onto your 9 to 5 until you have 50-75% of your goal salary already coming in. Yea you’ll essentially be working 2 jobs for a month, maybe two, hell maybe a lot more.
But it’ll be worth it.
@B. Durant & Matt: The point of the post is not to quit your job and start freelancing, but to just START if freelancing is a goal you have.
I wrote this post out of a bit of frustration, which I explain on my blog where I ranted a bit more on this subject. See the post here.
Sorry I didn’t make myself clear and thanks for your thoughts.
I jumped into this two years back when I quit my job and began my preparation for MBA.
At the end, I made as much as my old job, but not as much as I would do after I complete my MBA this year.
For me, a mix of both is a good option.
I love it! The scariest part is taking the leap. You always have the option of freelancing part-time. The point is to get started.
The biggest advantage of being a freelance over being employed is that you can have a lot more than one “boss”. If you’re employed and the company goes belly up? You’re out of a job. Freelances exist in a fluxional world of contracts that come and go. As long as you keep a few plates spinning at any one time, it’s no big deal if one or two get smashed along the way.
Yuwanda,
Thanks for the encouraging post. I think most of us are either afraid of failing or afraid of succeeding because maybe we never had real success before. And, some people just aren’t disciplined to work from home on their own without someone telling them what to do.
I took the plunge and now blog everyday on several blogs of my own. I also work as a part-time freelance writer online.
If it doesn’t work out you can always say you gave it a try. But just like Matt said, don’t quit your day job just yet.
My problem now is with my part-time freelance writing job I am finding that I have a hard time coming up with the topics to write about. In the technology field it is hard to keep on top of things because they change so fast and someone seems to have already written the article before I come up with the idea. On my own blogs I have no problem coming up with content.
Any thoughts on how to come up with ideas and topics to write about? Writing for me isn’t hard, its the initial topic or concept I have a hard time with.
Thanks,
Wendy
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Yes Yuwanda, I totally agree with you. Take the bull by the horns and do it. I always believe if you want to be a dancer, you got to dance. You don’t think you want to dance. I have been a freelancer dabbling in various fields for many years now. It’s tough, but it is the toughness which keeps me going. Well, it sounds cliched, but that’s how it goes.
Freelancing is really a very risky proposition…at least initially.
One never knows how his/her work would be accepted. Baby steps can be taken in this field while you’re already on a job. When one finds the going easy and fruitful, then a full time involvement can be considered.