I just read an awesome book on freelance writing by Jim Kimmons. This guy's created
some really, really great systems for getting things done quickly and effectively - and he shares
the websites, spreadsheets, and step-by-step procedures he follows to pull in more than $2,500
PART-TIME as a freelance writer. I personally pulled about a dozen tools from his book that will
help my writing business.
After reading this book I started getting more excited about this whole system question. You see,
mastering the process for lining up writing gigs is a huge step toward making you more profitable as
a freelance writer. If you flounder on this, you're hamstringing yourself on one of the most easily
systematized tasks involved in running a freelance writing business. Perfecting your system is a
giant leap toward making the highest, best use of your time.
Whether you get your work from freelance writing boards, discussion forums, cold calls, direct mail,
or some other way, the time you spend seeking work - as opposed to producing work - is unpaid, and
therefore something you want to do as efficiently as possible. Efficiency equals systems. Systems
are the upside of "ruts" - ruts that serve you, as opposed to ruts that keep you stuck.
So, how's your system? Take just a minute to think about the procedure you follow from beginning to
end from the time you go looking for work to the time you actually start working on a gig. Could you
teach it to someone else? Could you hire someone to do it for you? Chances are that if you said
something like, "No, it's too complicated," that it really IS too complicated.
To help you streamline and systematize this crucial part of your business, let's look at some
questions. (By the way, this might be a good time to try using a mind-mapping tool. Tons of you
looked at the one I mentioned last time (bubbl.us) and loved it.)
- Where do you look for work?
- When do you look for work? Is it part of your daily routine? Something you do when you're
out of work? Something you do when you get around to it?
- How do you recognize a project or client you'd like to work with?
- How do you evaluate whether the project is, in fact, a good match for you?
- How do you know what to charge?
- How do you know how long to expect a project to take?
- What samples will you send?
- What's the next step if the client wants to hire you?
- Do you require a deposit? An escrow payment?
- Do you have a contract you use?
- How do you keep track of the gigs you've pursued?
- Do you have a way to test and track your marketing efforts?
Yikes - it IS complicated!
How do you eat THIS elephant? The same way you tackle anything else that looks complex - one bite
at a time. Break it down into manageable pieces and master each one in turn.
What's in it for you to create a proposal system? Well, think about tying your shoes. When you're
just learning how to do this task, it seems really complicated, non-intuitive, and half the time,
unsuccessful. Eventually you figure it out (or resign yourself to a life of Velcro) and it becomes
so natural, so second-nature, that you can do it with your eyes closed. You can teach it to someone
else. You can do it quickly, effectively, and reliably.
What would it do for your freelance writing business if your pursuit of work was quick,
effective, and reliable? Why, that sounds like a cash machine to me! Pull the lever, and out pops
money!
Your challenge, should you accept it, is to document and tweak your process for finding work.
Make a flow chart, write bullet points, whatever it takes so that you end up with a system that runs
like clockwork.
See? That'll teach you to judge an article by its title! And now, it's time for more coffee!
