It’s easy for freelance writers to feel like failures now and then, especially when invoices are mislaid or work is slow. That’s why it’s important to assess your business now and then. Self-assessments can reveal more than you might imagine.
Last year one of my core clients decided to stop using freelance writers. That really cut into my 2018 income. Despite a huge marketing push 2019 got off to a slow start, but by mid-March things were looking up.
Once I started getting regular work from a couple new clients, I knew it was time to update my 2019 income estimate with the Healthcare Exchange.
If you’re not familiar with the Healthcare Exchange, let me explain. In the application process (and annual updates), they ask for your estimated income for the coming year. The funny thing is that they really don’t care what you expect to earn, they want to know what you earned last year. They didn’t accept the slightly higher income I entered as my estimate for 2019 and instructed me to re-set it based on the previous tax year. They said once my income started to improve I should update the information on their website.
I updated my income in April and sent in 20+ pages of documentation—copies of invoices, assignment letters, cancelled checks, and my hand-written ledger. Apparently, that wasn’t enough. Last week I received a form letter from the Healthcare Exchange saying I have until a specific date in June to provide additional documentation. (Seriously, what freelancers have W2s or paystubs?)
The experience compelled me to break down my income by week and by month, not only in terms in income received, but also in terms of income generated.
I knew adding a couple new clients had increased my productivity, but because it can take a while for some clients to pay, I hadn’t realized just how drastically it had improved. Seeing how much income I was generating on a weekly and monthly basis was really encouraging. And motivating. If this keeps up—and it should—it won’t be long before I’ll have to update my estimated income with the Healthcare Exchange again.
A lot of freelancers boost their self-esteem by looking at their client lists or reviewing old clips, but seeing how your efforts are generating income is pretty inspiring, too.
When was the last time you reviewed your overall productivity, be it in terms of income generated or projects completed?
How did that make you feel about your freelance business? Did it boost your self-confidence? Did it motivate you to market yourself a little harder?
Oh wow… I’m actually changing my whole business around… so who knows. Congratulations, Paula. Good job.
Sounds like a good time to start some type of assessment so you can compare your new way of doing business to the old way.