As freelancers, we desire to do less and earn more. We want that financial freedom that freelancing promises. Yet, making this feat isn’t easy.
A frustrated freelance writer wrote a letter to his boss because, anytime he wanted a raise, his boss asked for more work. During the summer, the writer read a book on leadership, which made him think about his life. “I’d love to achieve a work-life balance,” the writer muttered. Following this thought, he wrote the below letter to his boss.
POV: the letter most writers wish they could write to their boss
Dear Boss,
This is about you. Yes, you. The person who is responsible for our financial health.
Do you care about our mental wellbeing?
Everyone wants to make money, agreed. The customer is king, agreed.
Writers deserve a work-life balance. Don't you agree? If you think helping us have a work-life balance hinders your business’ growth, you’re wrong. A book titled Walk the Walk by Alan Deutschman discussed, “when you walk the walk, you show who comes first” in the second chapter.
Deutschman explained the non-negotiable principles businesses uphold and expanded on how these principles elevate them. A striking example was Southwest Airlines in America, which Fortune magazine proclaimed the most successful airline in history.
Why did this airline get so many accolades back then?
Firstly, the airline was profitable for 35 years, despite the economy’s setbacks. Secondly, the airline’s No. 1 non-negotiable was their employees. According to the airline owners, “Employees are number one. The way you treat your employees is the way they will treat your customers.”
So what makes you think your business wouldn’t flourish if you cared about our financial and mental well-being? Take care of your writers, and they will take care of your audience; it’s as simple as that.
Yours faithfully,
Frustrated writer.
POV: your boss’ ideal reply
Dear Writer,
You deserve better. You deserve your work-life balance. I’ve also been in your shoes. But back then, I had a plan. I know you’ve seen freelance writing tips for work-life balance. However, that’s a delusion, and I'll tell you why in a bit.
You should have a plan to achieve stable financial and mental health. When I was in your situation, I planned to quit. Yes, I get it. This approach is an obvious answer. Yet, it’s the hardest decision because of the uncertainty of finding another one.
Before you start your exit plan, let me tell you the challenge I faced with freelance writing. I faced the challenge of scaling freelance writing with fewer hours. This challenge made me understand that desiring a work-life balance is delusional. Anytime I wanted to scale, my clients asked for more.
Sadly, I brought my client’s mentality into this creative agency. But after reading your letter, I had a nuanced view of work-life balance.
How to manage mental health as a freelance writer
Create a writing haven
Imagine working in a creative agency and don’t enjoy what you write about. Now imagine working where you enjoy what you write about. Do you feel this difference? But here’s the reality. You won’t always land your dream job as a freelancer. So in situations like this, learn how to exit.
One day, I spoke to an experienced freelancer about quitting my writing job. What he told me helped with my exit plan and gave me the discipline to continue the demanding job. My friend told me to create a haven—something to anticipate, like a reward after working.
This reward shouldn’t be snacking or anything related to that. It should be something you’re passionate about and can make you money. So my haven was dedicating three hours to building a personal brand after work. This reward helped keep my mental health in check. Afterward, I left my job when the personal brand started getting traction.
Have a relative mindset
As a freelancer, I saw work-life balance as a delusion. Yet, I had this nuanced view that having a relative mindset is better than an absolute one. A relative mindset aims to achieve work-life integration instead of balance. For example, a stay-at-home parent who aspires to become a freelance writer can achieve work-life integration with proper time management and fewer high-paying clients.
Starting a personal brand is another example of work-life integration. Another good way to integrate work and life is by getting work inspiration from your life experience.
Learn to unplug from writing
Two woodcutters spent five hours cutting wood every day. James could chop 100 pieces of wood in five hours while Tony chopped 150 pieces. Now, James noticed Tony usually rests for two hours every day. So out of curiosity, James asked Tony how he chopped more wood. “While I unplug, I sharpen my axe for the next round of woods,” Tony replied.
I’m telling you this story so that you can understand the importance of unplugging. When we unplug, we build up more creative juice. I understand that you might feel FOMO on marketing trends. But can you follow marketing trends with a low creative juice? Unplugging is another way to manage your mental health as a writer.
Pro tip: unplugging for a day goes a long way. See unplugging as a reward for your hard work because it helps you feel accomplished.
How to scale your freelance writing business without sacrificing mental health
Scaling your freelance business helps you achieve financial stability. Achieving financial stability helps improve your mental health. With scaling, you do less and earn more. Also, scaling can help a freelance writing career grow sustainably. Now, you finally made it as a freelance writer. How do you scale your freelance writing business? By using the inbound marketing flywheel as your scaling system.
Attract high-paying clients
Before attracting these clients, choose a high-paying freelance writing niche. A high-paying niche increases your chances of landing this type of client. Also, the fewer clients you attract, the more you earn. Furthermore, the fewer clients you attract the better your mental health. Now, cold email marketing is one of the effective ways to find high-paying writing clients.
Pro tip: a cold email that offers top-tier free value easily converts cold clients into hot clients.
Engage your clients with a holistic service offer
Are you wondering how writers can earn more with fewer clients? Well, it’s as easy as ABC, especially for generalists. As a generalist, you can offer your clients a holistic service to retain them. For example, an SEO writer that can market content on social media. Offering a holistic service means increasing your credibility and adding more value to your client’s business.
Delight your client with your value ladder
The value ladder is where most of the scaling happens. You use the value ladder to upsell your clients as they engage with your brand. For example:
You attract a high-paying client with a top-tier free value.
You then engage them with a holistic service.
Finally, you delight them with a loyal program that offers exclusive benefits to their brand’s growth.
Another way to create your value ladder is by collaborating with other services that sync with your craft. For example, a copywriter collaborating with a graphic designer to enhance your client’s branding strategy. The higher your clients climb the more collaboration and cost-effective services you offer.
Finally, you can create your value ladder with free top-tier values that lead to your services. For example, you got a gig to write copies for an email marketing campaign. At the end of the gig, you offer free blog post ideas that would help the company remain relevant. Your client could request that you write copies for those content ideas.
Market your freelance writing skill
Start a personal brand to market your writing skills. The best marketing channels for freelance writers include LinkedIn, Medium, Substack, and Email. To choose a good marketing platform, check if the platform supports community building. So as you build your community, you can start a better marketing agency with your experience.
Remember, you want to do less and earn more as a freelance writer. Thus, you need to summon grit and build a writing business you enjoy to make this feat.
Yours faithfully,
Humbled boss.
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