Competition means that there is someone else who is also targeting your ideal clients and prospects. They may be applying for the same projects. They may even be getting more of those projects than you are getting.

It’s very easy for a freelancer to get distracted by what their competition is doing.

In this post, we’ll discuss the three possible attitudes you can have towards your competition. We’ll also explain why it’s important not to get too sidetracked by focusing on your competitors.

Competition and Freelancing

The Best Attitude to Have

Don’t Let the Competition Distract You

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I started dreaming about working from home when I first became a Mom almost 16 years ago. But, back then, I had no idea there were so many ways to earn an income without a regular job. Besides, as my family grew, we needed the medical coverage my job provided.

Fast forward many years later: I have three children and have become Internet-savvy. My head is swimming with the many possibilities for self-employment. With the guidance of experienced, entrepreneurial Moms, I set up shop as a freelance writer and online marketer.

I am giddy. I am living my dream, at last!

And then reality hits. An 18-month-old toddler needs constant attention and does not understand that Mommy needs to be at the computer for hours at a time so that we can buy groceries. To make it worse, he stops needing two naps a day. The house gets dirty again a couple of hours after I vacuum. Plus, older children, even a teenager, still need Mom after all.

A few weeks after my dream became a reality, I was almost crying in frustration. How was I going to get any work done if my family–particularly The Little One–was demanding my attention constantly?

Many Possible Solutions

I had several options:

• Put the Little One in Daycare–Mothers who are employed do it. I have a job to do as well, so why don’t I do it, too? Find a good, reliable, affordable day care, and enroll my youngest child there. Sounds like an excellent option if I want to be able to work from home full time. However, I did not like this option at all! I left full-time employment precisely to be with my children. Besides, no daycare accepted children on a part-time basis (not where I live anyway). So, I quickly dropped this option.
• Find a Mother’s Helper–Look for a nearby mother or student who’s looking for part-time work and have her come to my home a few hours a week to look after The Little One while I get stuff done. This was a very attractive option for me. I get to stay with The Little One, but still manage to work at home. I asked my friends for referrals, hoping to find somebody I could trust. Unfortunately, I didn’t find any. And, no, I wasn’t about to hire somebody from Kijiji or Craigslist! Also, it didn’t make sense to hire a student when I had students of my own, living in the same house already. Which brings us to the next option…
• Share Child Care Responsibilities with Family Members–Family members make good child care providers because you trust them (most of the time, that is). They’ll often provide occasional child care for free, plus your child is already familiar with them. Unfortunately, my family lives quite far away, but I do have older children and a hubby who pitch in when they’re home from school or work. Of course, The Girls need to finish their homework first, so when there’s school their “opportunity” to help me out is quite limited. However, I do find that I can get tons more work done in the summer.
• Work Only When the Little One Is Asleep–I know many Moms who’ve accomplished a lot just by doing this. While I’ve done this on occasion, particularly on emergency basis (such as when a deadline is fast approaching), I find that I can’t do this every single day. My brain’s “prime time” is in the morning. At night, I just can’t think straight or write very well. However, if you’re a night owl, then this is a perfect option for you.

My other problem is that I really get wiped out when I try to go by on very little sleep for days on end. I get cranky, my skin breaks out, and I eventually just pass out by 8 p.m. If I keep pushing myself, I get ill–which makes it even harder to get work done!

How I (Didn’t) Solve My Problem

Managing Expectations

Tell Me

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2. Student Freelancing: Tips to Budget Your Freelance Earnings

Some students spend their earnings on everyday needs while others (like me) have allowances being sent every two weeks to cover most of the major expenses (especially food and transportation). This leaves my freelance earnings in my bank account at my disposal.

Obviously, the earnings received from freelance work can be spent on almost anything my heart desires. I get to buy clothes, shoes, accessories, better food, and can even treat my friends out to pizza every week!

Having disposable income from freelancing is a dream come true, right? Far from it. As student freelancers, we need to remain responsible with our expenses and must learn how to budget our freelance earnings. In this post, I’ll explain how to accomplish that.

Responsible Students, Responsible Freelancers

Budgeting for Future Investments

Budgeting Tips that Worked for Me

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A reader once asked me a very interesting question–how do I stay motivated  long-term when I don’t receive any raises or benefits as a freelancer? This got me thinking hard–just how do I keep myself motivated?

I was never really lucky enough to have a job with good benefits, bonuses or raises, so maybe the lack of these things doesn’t bother me as much as someone who did have them at a full-time job. Or, perhaps it’s because I feel like I do receive all of these benefits–and more.

There are tons of things that keep me motivated as a freelancer, so much so that I don’t think I would ever go back to any kind of regular job.

The trick is to reward yourself regularly for the hard work you do, much like a boss would. Here are some ways I’ve kept myself motivated through years of freelancing.

Love What You Do

Give Yourself Raises

Have Goals in Mind

Better Benefits

Always Moving Forward

Working Some Place You Love

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Now the waiting begins.

A day goes by without a call back. Then another. And another. You’re beginning to wonder if the prospect received your email. Maybe she went with someone else?

Should you call? Should you wait another day or two? Will following up make her think you’re desperate for work? But what if you don’t call? Will she think you’re not interested?

While there’s no one right approach to following up on proposals, the key to any follow-up process is to strike a balance. Sure, you want the work. But, you don’t want to turn off the prospect or client with too many follow-up calls and emails.

By following the steps below, I’ve been able to significantly increase my success rate and reduce the number of opportunities that seem to go nowhere. (Note: for the sake of convenience, I’ll be referring to the prospect as “she.”)

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Recently, Amber shared a list of 35 Books All Freelance Web Developers Should Read. Her list is a great resource for web developers.

In fact, I love to read. I always have a book that I’m in the middle of reading, or am about to read. Often, the books I read are about freelancing, but sometimes I just pick a book for fun.

What Are Your Favorite Books About Freelancing?

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I grew up attending my brother’s little league games, and now I have the opportunity to watch my own children participate in sport activities. The one thing that nearly every coach stressed was good sportsmanship–which included the ability to get along with others on the team as well as the ability to handle losing gracefully.

Not only is good sportsmanship vital to good teamwork, it’s also a crucial attitude for the successful freelancer to have.

In this post, I’ll share some of those early lessons that I learned about good sportsmanship. We’ll look at how good sportsmanship can help your freelancing business. We’ll also list several ways for you to find and keep a more sportsmanlike freelancing attitude.

Why Good Sports Are More Professional

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It’s happened to me in my freelancing business, and it’s probably also happened to you. It’s really frustrating, I know.

It doesn’t have to be that way, though. You can be become better at closing deals with some practice. In this post, I’ll list a few techniques that you can use to close client deals and get more clients.

How to Close a New Client Deal

Here are five important techniques that most freelancers skip or ignore when dealing with a prospective client. Following these suggestions for closing a new client deal can help you learn to close more deals (and avoid frustration):

1. Pay attention and ask for details.
2. Do your homework.
3. Ask for the business.
4. Be positive in your communications.
5. Follow up with the client.

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Les dejo “Kathy, La reina del Saloon” jajajajaja versión para “Piano solo”. Excelente! Uno de los mejores.

Amigos fanáticos de Les Luthiers, los animo a que hagamos uno de esos “memes”, o que me manden el link de su video favorito de Les Luthiers y los agregan en el comentario o bien los incorporo al post. Hay unos viejitos que todavía tengo en VHS :-S donde está Ernesto Hacher!!!

Bueno, acá el video.

Pinche aquí para ver el vídeo

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In my experience, I’ve noticed something strange–clients are more likely to notice the little extra things you do for them than the big ones.

I’ve always been a strong supporter of not doing any spec work and I always charge the client for work outside of the contract. But, we can offer our clients other little extras that they’ll appreciate just as much.

So what are some little things you can offer your clients?

Smile in Your Conversations

Delivery Early…Every Time

Take Initiative

Answer Emails Promptly

Take Extra Time

Let Them Know ASAP

Forgive, Smile, Do…

Scratch Each Other’s Backs

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