Freelancer Life #1 - First Week Back on the Front Lines

Another day, another update from the freelance front lines. This is something I have been posting over on Facebook for a few days now, just little updates about my daily routine back on the front lines of freelance work. Mainly because for the last week I have taken it seriously after accepting a job that has regular work.

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This marks the first week of me writing for that company. Here are some stats that I would like to share.

12 articles written. 3 still pending approval. 7 published on client sites/approved for publication. This may seem like a low number but it is not. The work is varied and fun but also challenging in unique ways that I don't often get to experience when writing for my own site, for YouTube, or here. You give up a bit of freedom when you accept this type of writing position and that is the thing that I have had the most trouble adjusting to no longer having in my arsenal. Before, if an article didn't feel right, I could scrap it entirely and go in another direction, possibly completely different content. That is no longer an option.

I have set guidelines to be followed based on the needs of the client. This is very similar to when I take on jobs via sites such as UpWork and Freelancer. One thing freelancers have to understand is, when someone else is paying you, you are going to have to do what they want more than what you want. It is just how business works.

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Amount of sleep gotten, average per day, has dropped to about 6 hours total (down from 7 for me). Work hours at day job cut back a bit this week (not much to do and I can make more sitting at home with my pups - guess which I chose when given the opportunity). Got a good solid 33 hours in at the day job this week.

My goal is to eventually drop the day job completely. For those that do not know, I work in a sheet metal shop, aka a razor blade factory as I refer to it as nearly everything in there can and will, if given a chance, cut you. It is not exactly a demanding job outside of the set hours and general requirement that we be there during work hours. I know, jobs suck.

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I do have a fair bit of leniency within the confines of the rules. Mainly, if things are slow, like this week, I can often get away and go home to work on freelance jobs. This works great for me right now because my freelance work brings in more money than my day job does.

Earnings from my writing surpassed my day job earnings and have been added to my nest egg so I can eventually cut the day job completely. You may be reading this and thinking, if he is making a lot of money, why doesn't he quit now and run with just freelance work.

Because I want to have a set amount of money set aside before I give up a guaranteed paycheck like I have with the day job. I know how much money I need to pay the bills each month with a bit of padding for contingencies I cannot plan for (like an electric bill that happens to jump higher one month for whatever reason). This will ensure that when I leave the day job that I won't be back there within a few months with my tail between my legs asking for a job.

When I leave, I am done.

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The first time this week I have the night off from writing and all I want to do is sleep because while tomorrow is technically my "weekend" I know it is going to be spent mostly working on writing. Each night this week I had at least one article to put away, some nights I had two. I already know, and others need to understand this prior to attempting to become a freelancer, that nights like this are rare and will be far between. Even while writing this article I have been on UpWork checking out potential jobs I could bid on in order to add just a little more money to my nest egg. The old saying "get it while the getting is good" comes to mind. May as well take on work while there is plenty of it available so I can weather the periods where work is more scarce.

That is something a lot of people don't understand about being a freelancer. You cannot rest too long or you will find yourself broke and starving for work. This lifestyle is very much "what have you done lately" as far as getting more work. If you go weeks between jobs or abruptly end long term agreements then you are not going to last long in this field of work. Plain and simple.

While I am working to become a full time freelance writer, these tips and discussions can be applied to a wide range of jobs. It is all about attitude, quality of work, and you yourself getting out there and getting the jobs. Doesn't matter if you own a janitorial company or are writing or are driving for Uber you still have to be proactive and search out work in order to earn money.

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Does this sound like it is all easy peasy? It shouldn't. I am tired. I spend a lot of time looking for inspiration on articles that are due. I look for inspiration to go into work each morning. It is not that I hate my day job. I actually enjoy it and love doing that type of work, I should because I have been doing it since I was nine years old and told my father I was not going to school one day. He took me to work with him that day thinking it would make me not want to do this type of work and stay in school. While I staid in school, I was fortunate enough to be able to work with my father off and on for years in the evenings in a sheet metal shop.

It is worth it because someday, maybe one soon, I will be able to go full time working for myself, pushing harder for my own efforts during time that I don't have available to me right now. This is one of the goals of my day. I have seven or eight things bringing in money right now with freelance writing only being one of those efforts. That is not counting my day job either. The point is, you cannot sit on your butt and think the world is going to make you a success. You have to get up every day and go out and take that success from the world. Believe me, the world is going to fight you every step of the way as well.

Even when more success finds its way to me I will probably still be tired. That is just part of building your success. Get used to it and take as much time as possible to enjoy life as it is afforded to you. Sometimes you have to make time as well, otherwise this work can grind you down faster than a day job that you hate.

I have been fighting for over 10 years now, day in and day out, for this dream. I have had hundreds of people come into my life, most wanting to ride my coattails, or get a leg up in this stuff, and just as quickly walk out when they found out there was actual work to be done (not all of it around stuff that is particularly interesting to them). I can count on one hand the number of people that have stuck around and put in the work to become a success with this stuff. They are few and far between. Many drop out because they want to focus on gaming or only writing about movies or something else. They don't understand that your dreams are not always what you intended them to be. That is the thing though. You have to be flexible with your dreams - they are not always going to work out as you envision them.

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Remember, your dreams are not the same as everyone else's and if you want them bad enough, you will go through hell to achieve them. If you won't go through whatever is put in front of you for your dreams then you don't deserve them. Plain and simple.