Freelance Foundations: Help for Freelancers

Happy Labour Day, folks. I tried something a bit different, and blogged about ways to support the Freelancer movement. Then I recorded it as a podcast. This is the result. I hope you enjoy it!

Let me know about your #freelancepledge on social or email me at [email protected]

 

TBA

Here’s the full interview I did with empath coach and educator Laura Hughes. Laura’s practice is based in Niagara, Canada.

This week’s topic is about empathy. Links to show content.

Laura Hughes, Empath Coach (FULL INTERVIEW AVAILABLE THURSDAY)

To Sell Is Human, by Dan Pink

Excerpt from an interview with Dr. Noreen Tehrani Ep1, Season 2 of  Walk the Talk podcast, hosted by Dave Thomas

In our first ever bonus episode, I had a chance to interview Hector Kolonas from Included.co about his new project FreelancersWhoCowork.com

You can contact me at [email protected]

Yes I have a newsletter. You can subscribe to it at https://trevortwining.me/subscribe

Freelancers who Cowork

You can listen to my full interview with him as a bonus episode in the feed (UPDATED. Link to the Bonus episode with interview is here! ).

You can find the web site at freelancerswhocowork.com

Four Ingredients for a successful freelance practice.

Accepting sales is a part of every freelancer’s life.

You’re not going to get as far as you want as fast as you’d like unless you make an effort to get comfortable with sales. This doesn’t mean you have to like it (although in time you will).

The best resource I can recommend for getting comfortable with sales is to read Dan Pink’s book To Sell Is Human (affiliate link)

Making sure your rate can support your best work

if you don’t set your rate correctly, you can end up working more than you have to to support yourself and your practice. Here’s a link to Season 5, Episode 1 about setting your freelancer rate

Make a habit of making habits

All the processes are used to drive habits. If you have a process and you follow it, it becomes muscle memory. Reduces the effort that it takes to do the things you do. We also talked about habits and discipline in Episode 2

It also involves breaking habits, or re-learning them if you need to change something. When you master this skill, you can accomplish build mastery over just about anything.

Our brains are not fixed objects; they constantly grow, adapt and rewire themselves. Explore more here at this TED talk. You can capitalize on that trait.

Focus on continuous improvement

This is the habit that separates the good freelancers from the great freelancers.

Building the processes, workflows and habits allows you to free up time, and that time can be used to improve your craft, or the processes that support it. That continuous sharpening of the blade is what leads to better profitability, higher earnings, and more of the specialized kinds of work you want to do as a freelancer. The really interesting, inspiring stuff.

Freelancer nonpayment is theft

Thanks for listening to this week’s episode of Freelance Foundations. This week we’re talking about freelancer’s getting paid. It’s a big problem for any freelancing practice because it hobbles our ability to do work. This week I share my own recent, personal story.  I also break down the four most essential things you need to ensure you get the money you’re owed. Plus we have our Freelancing Story of the Week and our Freelancer Question of the week.

First though, we have our….

Freelancing story of the week

FREELANCERS STRIVE TO BE EXPERTS, NOT ENTREPRENEURS – REPORT

https://www.freelanceuk.com/news/5679.shtml

I love how this speaks to the quest for excellence that drives many freelancers, including myself.

Freelancer question of the week

How can a junior web developer work as a freelancer as apparently, there is a lot in this industry and it seems impossible to work?

In this question, I dive into how a new freelancer can stand out in their industry and do so in a way that drives interest in their services.

Getting paid should be something all freelancers can expect.

From all of these articles, the main points are.

Have a contract

Have payment terms & a collections process

Take a deposit

Invoice regularly

Polite and nice but firm

Excellent resources for freelancers getting paid

Have a collections process

My friend and colleague Sandra over at Any Old Task has some great info on what your collections process should involve.

https://www.anyoldtask.ca/collections-class/

Guide to getting paid from Freelancers’ Union

https://www.freelancersunion.org/advocacy/guide-to-getting-paid/

Make sure you have these in your contract

https://www.forbes.com/sites/abdullahimuhammed/2018/07/12/gig-workers-here-are-the-rights-you-should-strive-to-negotiate-with-every-employer/#46a0dd166ee4

Horror Stories

http://www.abc.net.au/triplej/programs/hack/horror-stories-from-the-freelance-jungle-of-not-getting-paid/9573418

Small Claims court

When all else fails, small claims court could win you a judgement in your favour. But then you still have to collect.

https://www.attorneygeneral.jus.gov.on.ca/english/courts/scc/

Lots of the stories in here.

We just want to stay home in our pyjamas and make things. What a crock of BS!

Running a freelance practice is so much more than that.

Thanks for listening to episode 2 of the Freelance Foundations podcast on the OuiShare Radio Network. Today we’re talking about discipline and habits and how they relate to freelancing.

Freelancing news stories

This is a new segment for the show, so let me know if you like it. I’m sharing the information, and I’ll also offer an opinion if I have one. I’ll try to do a good job of labelling what the facts are and what my opinions are. If you’re ever unclear, get in touch! That kind of distinction is important for me so you can trust the information I’m giving you.

http://www.smallbizlabs.com/2018/07/mbo-partners-8th-annual-state-of-independence-report.html

Why the Gender Pay Gap Persists for Freelancers too

Questions about Freelancing

Another new segment! Ask your question by emailing me at [email protected]. Put Freelancer Questions in the subject. Be sure to leave information about your practice so I can answer it.

Q1: Fitting in the Freelancing

Vivie S asks:

“Can anyone give me tips on how to be a successful freelancer when you have to work full time (and overtime) and sometimes on weekend? Because this gal is struggling!”

Vivie is a freelance illustrator and you can find her on twitter

Q2: Wonky payment promises

First If you’re in the UK, you should sign up for the Freelance Heroes community on Facebook. Lots of great support there, and answers to questions on things specific to UK residents.

Now, here’s the question!

Jemma asks:

“Hi Heroes. After some advice please! I have a client, who I’m not sure is being straight with me and it’s making me very uneasy. So first job was fine, and he was adamant that he wanted me to invoice in advance, as that’s the way he runs his company, and I’d get paid by faster payment, which I did for the first job. Then second job, said same thing, but payment was delayed. Everytime I spoke to him he said oh it’s being processed… then I got paid after my payment terms (14 days – which technically is still early, as I don’t normally invoice till a job is finished). Now have completed a another couple of little jobs and the invoice is now again over my payment terms of 14 days.

He was then telling me yesterday that it has to go through two people to get approved and then it takes 3 days from the payment being processed to reach my account. So I’m thinking to myself do you actually even remember what you have told me before? Then a big new project came up, for which I’ve already invoiced, (in advance) and now I’m totally uneasy. I don’t feel like I know when I’m going to get paid at all. Don’t know where to go from here, as I feel like I’ve committed to the upcoming projects and invoiced in advance (I’m pretty sure this is no where near being paid) but I’m not comfortable with it and have a bad gut feeling. “

Jemma’s a graphic designer, and you can find her Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/JemmaGraphicDesign

Main Segment: Discipline and Habit

Then we delve into the main segment. Here’s an outline!

Building discipline in your freelance practice lets you

focus where you need to.

say yes where you should

say no where it matters

Not having discipline means

You disappoint people

You damage your reputation

You jump from emergency to emergency

Discipline is about a few things.

Understanding why (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5_Whys)

Building habits (http://charlesduhigg.com/the-power-of-habit/)

Making choices

Discipline is not willpower

Our wills falter

We need to recognize when it happens and just get back on track

Every week where there’s some improvement, that’s a win.

Setting your freelance rate is one of the most important things you’ll do in your practice. But it’s more than just getting started with an hourly amount and some expenses. When I help freelancers set their rates, we go through figuring out all the hidden costs. We then add those in so that you’re left with what you wanted to earn in the first place.

So work with me as I walk you through all these hidden areas. At the end of it you’ll be left with a much larger number than you probably expected, but you’ll also be able to communicate that value and cost to your clients better as a result and when you give your rate to them, you’ll both know why you’re worth it.

Bonus Content! A Freelance Rate Checklist

I’ve also created a checklist that you can use to do this work on your own, and you can find the Google Doc for it here.

I wrote a blog post recently that’s relevant to this conversation as well. I talk about some warning signs that happen if your rate is too low. If you’re experiencing any of these, then listen to the episode, re-do your calculations, and tell me what you find!

Just a quick notice that we're back to weekly episodes starting next week!