Freelancing 101: Stop Looking For The Magic Bullet
In a perfect world, you’d decide to become a successful pet blogger and by sheer will and your having spoken the words, it would happen. In real life, success takes time, attention to detail and stick-to-it-iveness! When it comes to pet blogging business success, you need to stop looking for the magic bullet, stop doubting yourself and recognize that your success hinges on the incremental steps you take each and every day.
In this Freelancing 101: Stop looking for the magic bullet post, we will look at ways in which you can look at your success with an “I think I can. I think I can” mentality and toss the “oh woe, is me” thinking out the door. Focus on yourself. Forget about the “competition.” Recognize what it is you have to offer that makes you, and your blog or pet business unique, and find ways to make your star shine the brightest.
Stop doubting yourself.
I know it’s easy for me to say, but it’s crucial that you believe in yourself and in the mission and vision of your pet blog or your pet business. Here are some of the self-doubting questions I hear people say:
“I really WANT TO (fill in the blank), BUT I don’t know WHAT TO DO (make the right choice, the best choice, a decision at all). Now I have TOO MANY options or opinions from outside sources so I am OVERWHELMED and then I DO NOTHING.” This thinking leads to even higher levels of self doubt.
Then you begin thinking, “This is NEVER going to work.” Why? Because you think, “I’m not good enough” or “I don’t have the support of my family” or “I don’t even know the first step to take.” You are then frozen in place, BUT the DESIRE to jump into your own business is still inside of you and it’s clawing away at you to break free.
The paragraph above is what many individuals who are in the start-up phase of their freelancing careers go through in one form or another.
What do you do?
Cut yourself some slack. Don’t “should” on yourself. I’m not certain if you’ve ever heard that before, but it means you are living with the “should haves” or “shouldn’t haves” and that thinking weighs you down. Don’t blame yourself for being stuck. Starting a business or a blog is not an easy thing to do–if it were, everyone would be doing it, right?
Sometimes you need to just say, “It’s not perfect, but it’s good enough.” Why? Forward momentum feeds forward momentum.
Go into the wild.
Like many of you, I would love to be able to predict the future and know if this idea or that idea will bear fruit. Sometimes you just have to let go. Trust in the cosmos to come through for you.
Remember, if you try and fail, you are further ahead of the game than those who don’t even try. Also, don’t look at it as “failure” but as an experiment. If it didn’t pan out the way you’d hoped, retool, tweak and try again.
Take stock of your assets.
Your assets could be physical–a home office, a business plan–or they could be assets in the form of your knowledge, unique expertise and the niche in which you want to operate.
Write down your assets. Write down what makes you unique. Write down how you will perform or provide a service that sets you apart. What is it in your background that makes you perfectly positioned for this business idea you’re pursuing?
When you’re taking stock of your assets, take the time to put them into the skeleton of your business plan. I urge you to take the time to put together a business plan, even a one-pager, as it will keep you focused on the end goal.
Take it easy.
Unless you’ve been downsized and are desperately seeking a revenue stream, slow and steady will win the race toward the finish line of self employment in a freelance field.
If you’re currently working in a different field but want to break free and run your own pet blog or pet business, be grateful for the revenue you have coming in, and be prepared to put in late nights and weekends to get your pet endeavor off the ground. Make certain you can afford yourself before you tender your resignation.
There’s nothing wrong with small.
Sure, there are pet bloggers and pet business owners out there who have a staff or who have a virtual assistant, graphic designer and bookkeeper on the payroll. Good for them! Remember, you don’t have to be them. I’ll also bet if you ask them, they will tell you they started small.
They worked their way up to having paid staff. If that’s something you dream of–having a staff–work toward it in a slow and steady fashion. Your small steps will eventually lead to big results.
Shout it to the world.
Let everyone know what you’re doing. “Hey, I’m starting a pet blog and plan to make enough money at it that I can quit my day job.” Stating your intentions, out loud, to someone other than the cat will make it more real. Stating it to your tribe also holds you accountable.
If you don’t let people know what you’re doing, how will they know they can come to you if they need the goods or services you’re providing? They won’t. Shout it from the rooftops!
Celebrate your wins.
In your business plan you will have listed milestones that show you if you’re making progress toward the bigger goal of self-employment. When you meet a milestone, e.g. sign a new client, sell a dog bed, get invited to write a sponsored post, etc., celebrate it.
I don’t mean you have to go out and buy a purse or a new pair of heels, but you can call your friends and tell them of your success. Shout it across your social media platforms. Pick up your dog and dance around the room with him. Pat yourself on the back. You deserve it!
What is a freelancer to do?
Frankly, you need to believe in yourself. If you do that, you will project confidence that will inspire others to either support you or work with you. I truly believe that. Are you ready to go forth and rid yourself of the self-doubt? How can I help?
Robbi Hess is an award-winning author, full-time writer and time-management guru. She works with bloggers and solopreneurs and blogs at All Words Matter.
Images: ra2studio/Shutterstock.com and Brainsil/Shutterstock.com
