Eight years of freelance life (and a few truths I learnt along the way)

Eight years of freelance life (and a few truths I learnt along the way)

Today marks eight years since I quit the in-house life and went freelance.

It’s been a while since I marked a work anniversary (I’m generally not very good at remembering significant dates – just ask my husband, whose birthday I’m pretty sure is in April), but I know it’s a tough market out there at the moment and I’m often approached for advice on going freelance.

So, this year, I thought I’d share a few truths about being freelance for anyone thinking about taking the leap (and is in need of reassurance). ?

Not everyone is turning over six figures.

I’m not. And I’m OK with that. It’s also great if you are (really – very well done, it takes a lot of work). My goal when I set out to be freelance was to earn enough to live a nice life and you guessed it, achieve a work-life balance (still not there – maybe next year?!).

Work out what success means to you, not to everyone else. I do work I genuinely enjoy with lovely people, and I earn decent money doing it. I haven’t grown my business in the sense that I don’t run events or have products or have taken on employees. Growth for me is about learning and improving. For example, I’ve been on the IoIC board for the past three years – an experience that has been fulfilling and challenging (in a good way!).

Not every project will work out.

I’ve been lucky and most of mine have, but there is one that will always stick in my mind that absolutely did not. It was a personality clash, and I realised that early on but decided to stick with it for fear of looking unprofessional and walking away. Big mistake. I should have saved us both a lot of time and stress by having the courage to acknowledge that it wasn’t working.

Always go with your gut.

Be realistic.

Do I have a newsletter? No. Should I have a newsletter? Probably. Can I commit to a newsletter? No.

It’s something I have beaten myself up over in the past but honestly, I don’t have the time right now alongside other commitments (there are only so many hours in a day and I’m currently ruled by an opinionated three-year-old) and I’m not sure what I would be adding to the conversation.

Maybe one day I will but right now, I need to be realistic about what I can achieve. Having said that, early on in my freelance career, I did a lot of blogging. That visibility definitely helped me win work – so the lesson here is to find what works best for you.

I make myself visible through volunteering my time within the IC world (plus through doing this I continually learn) and by delivering work I’m proud of that will hopefully lead to a future recommendation.

The network really is everything.

I say this to anyone who will listen but if you want to succeed as a freelancer, you need a network. And that can only be built on trust – for someone to recommend you, they are putting their own reputation on the line. Always do what you say you will, when you say you will (and be nice to people).

Eight years ago, Rachel Miller and Alan Oram both took a chance on me and without their support I might have just hit the ground and not quite managed the running part. There have been so many others since then who have trusted me with their projects or contacts, and I have tried to pay that forward wherever I can.

?

So there you have it, a self-indulgent post that I hope has given a realistic insight into freelance life – you might not get rich and you will fail from time to time (you may even decide it’s not for you – that’s OK too) but I guarantee you’ll meet some great people and have some fun along the way.?

Chloe Maple JP

Award-Winning Data-Driven Communicator | Internal Communication Consultant | Magistrate | Fellow IoIC | MCIPR

1 年

A really insightful read, thanks for sharing and congratulations on 8 years ????

Helen Deverell happy anniversary and congratulations, I really enjoyed reading your post. In particular I liked your comment about not being sure what you’d add to the conversation (with a newsletter) - in our world we often find people wanting to communicate without actually having something to say, and that’s a consideration for us as communicators too! Thank you for sharing your thoughts, and wishing you many more years of success to come…

Olivia Lawson (CIIC)

Internal Communications Consultant: Empowering organisations to transform their communication strategies and engage key stakeholders through clear, impactful messaging.

1 年

I love this Helen.. all rings very true with me! 9 years this end and have never looked back! And yes yes yes re your points on a newsletter!

Simon Rutter

*Available Now* - Senior Communications Consultant, Copywriter, Coach/Mentor, Speaker - I help companies communicate with clarity and purpose to stand out from the crowd, cut through the noise, and get commercial results

1 年

Great posts and congrats Helen Deverell

要查看或添加评论,请登录

Helen Deverell的更多文章

  • Five takeaways from the IoIC Festival 2022

    Five takeaways from the IoIC Festival 2022

    If I’m honest, I have recently found myself in a bit of a slump. Work was busy but I lacked the motivation I normally…

    10 条评论
  • The usual suspects

    The usual suspects

    “If someone appears boring, you’re not asking them the right questions.” This quote from the latest IC Podcast with…

    15 条评论
  • 8 top tips to network with confidence

    8 top tips to network with confidence

    Conferences and networking events are an opportunity to learn, share ideas and network. But for some people networking…

  • Finding stories in the ordinary

    Finding stories in the ordinary

    I’m passionate about storytelling. I think it’s one of the greatest tools at an internal communicator’s disposal.

    4 条评论
  • Six highlights from #SmileLondon

    Six highlights from #SmileLondon

    On Monday I attended #SmileLondon hosted by Simply Communicate. As always it was an event packed full of insights and…

    6 条评论
  • Setting the standard

    Setting the standard

    Could the answer to the age-old question “why doesn’t internal communication have a seat at the top table?” be our…

    7 条评论
  • Making it count: CIPR Inside research

    Making it count: CIPR Inside research

    At the Making it Count conference in November, the CIPR Inside committee will be revealing the results of their…

  • Measuring the value we add

    Measuring the value we add

    Having spent last weekend judging a few categories in the IoIC awards, the topic of measurement is buzzing around my…

  • Reaching the unreachable

    Reaching the unreachable

    Being married to an engineer has its advantages and disadvantages. There are times when walking down the street I…

    8 条评论
  • Freelance life – one year on

    Freelance life – one year on

    It’s been a whole year since I set up Helen Deverell Communications and I’ve spent some time over the last few weeks…

    34 条评论

社区洞察

其他会员也浏览了