Tax season—that time of year dreaded by most. And while filing your taxes as a freelance business owner is a much different ball game than doing them as a W2 employee, if you get organized, stay organized, and follow my tips, tax time will go smoother than you think.

In this episode, you’ll learn the following:

• 04:37 – My number one tip to keep your finances organized from the beginning
• 08:07 – What’s a deduction, and what the IRS considers an expense
• 11:38 – A surprising expense that can be deducted from your taxes if you work from home (I had no idea!)
• 15:43 – Books are considered a business expense?! (Use your common sense and good judgment and ask your accountant first)

Discussed in the episode:

• California AB5
• IRS estimated taxes
• IRS Employer Identification Number (EIN) application

Connect:

• Book a free 15-minute call
• Join the Freelance Editors Club
• Tara on Instagram
• Tara on Facebook

It’s always helpful to get a glimpse into how others approach their editing projects. No two editors are the same, and there isn’t one right way to get the job done. So whether it’s for new tips, things you haven’t thought of, or just to make your process more efficient, I’m sharing ten prechecks I do at the beginning of every copyediting project I take on.

In this episode, you’ll learn the following:

• 03:35 – The number one rule I check for and we should all be following in 2023
• 05:58 – One tool in CMOS that is going to be your best friend
• 08:30 – How to get your hands on my 60-page Elevate Your Editing Resource Guide, which includes 300+ commonly confused words
• 10:43 – A quick way to switch out straight quotes and apostrophes for curly

Connect:

• Book a free 15-minute call
• Join the Freelance Editors Club
• Tara on Instagram
• Tara on Facebook

Whenever a new type of technology emerges, there’s always an initial surge of panic, followed closely by people worrying it’ll take over their jobs and their livelihoods are in jeopardy. Usually, once the panic has worn off, we can see a little clearer and be able to do our due diligence and learn more about the new trend.

Some juicy highlights from the episode are below:

• 04:55 – What the heck is ChatGPT?
• 07:58 – What can we use ChatGPT for?
• 10:19 – The outline for a romance novel created by ChatGPT
• 11:43 – Where does ChatGPT get its content?
• 18:00 & 19:50 – My opinion on whether or not ChatGPT is ethical

Connect:

• Book a free 15-minute call
• Join the Freelance Editors Club
• Tara on Instagram
• Tara on Facebook

As a follow-up to Episode 17, Goal-Setting Part 1: Reflection, this episode will take you through my process of creating intentional goals but with a slight twist (hint: it’s not actually about the goals).⁠ I’ve found this process incredibly effective, and it’s completely changed how I approach goal-setting in my editing business. My hope is that these tips will take the ick out of goal-setting and perhaps even make it fun.

In this episode, we’re going to discuss some of the following:

• 07:47 – How I use the Wheel of Life to help me set goals
• 13:39 – How many goals should we set for each month, quarter, or year?
• 17:20 – The most important part of this whole goal-setting process

Connect:

• Book a free 15-minute call
• Join the Freelance Editors Club
• Tara on Instagram
• Tara on Facebook

Trends in business are constantly changing, especially in the online business world and in freelance editing. It can sometimes be hard to keep up as a freelance editor. Based on current trends I’m seeing in the editing industry, I’ve created a short list of my predictions and hopes for freelance editors for 2023 and what you can expect to see more (or less) of.

In this episode, you’ll learn the following:

Connect:

Around the end of every year, this buzz phrase starts getting tossed around in abundance: “word of the year.” If you’ve never heard this buzz phrase before and are starting to freak out, don’t sweat!

In this episode, I talk all about choosing a word (or words), why it can be important for your business, and how to do it in a way that will actually help you reach your goals. 

Check out some highlights below:

• 02:57 – How I coincidentally chose the word “community” for the year 2020
• 06:54 – One thing I’ve learned from choosing words over the past three years
• 09:32 – Why having a word of the year helps me make big decisions in my business (and how I came to this realization)
• 16:43 – Why it’s imperative to write your words everywhere!

Connect:

• Book a free 15-minute call
• Join the Freelance Editors Club
• Tara on Instagram
• Tara on Facebook

Reflection, no matter when it’s done, is an important tool when it comes to prioritizing and setting goals. After reviewing the reflection process, I share some thought-provoking questions to help you pause, reflect, and analyze before you start setting new goals. Grab a pen and paper for this episode!

In this episode, we’ll talk about the following:

• 01:50 – Why there’s no perfect time to reflect or set goals
• 03:18 – Why many of us skip the reflection process before setting our goals
• 04:16 – How to detach your self-worth from your goals
• 09:45 – One of my favourite questions to ask myself when self-reflecting

Connect:

• Book a free 15-minute call
• Join the Freelance Editors Club
• Tara on Instagram
• Tara on Facebook

Defining your editing business’s purpose and values will make your decisions that much easier to come to terms with. Your purpose and values are two key components in making business decisions and keeping your goals in alignment with what you truly hold dear as a freelance editor.

In this episode, you’ll learn the following:

Connect:

The number of decisions we have to make daily seems to keep going up…and up…and up…

So in this episode, we’re talking about the one simple question you can ask yourself to help you stay intentional in your business and your life. We’re channeling our inner three-year-old today and learning to ask ourselves “Why?”

Here are a few things you’ll hear in the episode:

• 03:11 – How asking ourselves “Why?” can help us decide when we should act on our ideas.
• 06:33 – If you’re considering adding a new service to your roster, you may want to try this first.
• 07:45 – How to prevent getting irritated with all the “Whys?”

Connect:

• Book a free 15-minute call
• Join the Freelance Editors Club
• Tara on Instagram
• Tara on Facebook

With the growing instability of social media platforms, it’s become even more apparent than ever that we shouldn’t rely solely on social media for marketing our editing business. There are many ways to market your business outside of social media, and we’re going to look at eleven ways to market your freelance editing business.

In this episode, you’ll learn the following:

Connect: