IMPROVE YOUR FREELANCE BUSINESS WITH A FREELANCE COACH
Improve Your Freelance Business With A Freelance Coach
Having a freelance coach or mentor is one of the best things you will do to take your freelance business to the next level.
That’s right. Your freelance career is a business. And that’s one of the most important factors you need to get to grips with.
Investing in a freelance coach grants you access to experience, expertise, and education from someone who has been there and done that.
I’ve made the mistakes, learned the lessons, and now make a ton of money while working on what I want and when I want.
Sound like the place you want to get to?
There are no hard and fast rules about what a freelance coach does. I’ve been running Freelance Ask Me Anythings (AMAs) for over a year now and every call is different.
Sometimes we chat about specific pitches, projects, and plans for the future. Sometimes it’s a more holistic view. Sometimes we go off topic because that’s what you need at that moment in time.
This isn’t a formal life coaching plan
It’s what you need to enhance your freelance career
A freelance mentor can be anybody you look up to with regard to your freelance career. This might be an author, someone on LinkedIn, or someone you know in person.
You might engage with them on Twitter or admire them from afar. A freelance mentor can be absolutely anyone.
The difference between a freelance coach and a mentor is the active one-to-one communication between both parties. A mentor may provide content to many people whereas a coach provides personalised, specific advice.
Freelance mentors are everywhere. There are loads of successful freelancers on Twitter, LinkedIn, and who have newsletters and podcasts.
Anyone you look up to can be a freelance mentor. If you want specific guidance from another freelancer, you might enquire whether they are interested in doing something on a one-to-one basis.
This is how I started my informal mentoring program in a Slack workspace. The workspace was for marketers but word got out that I was a font of knowledge for freelance support so my group DM grew to an unmanageable number of people.
When you pay for freelance mentoring or coaching, you’re investing in your business and yourself.
Assuming you’re a good match with your mentor, and you take action on their advice, it’s like paying for anything that makes you better. Any course you take, book you read, or coach you hire is a positive investment into your immediate and long-term future.
And hey! I’m not going to be a great match for everyone. Let’s get that on the table right away.
But, for marketers and writers, we always form a winning combination.
"Dominic's guidance was a game changer for my writing journey, offering the clarity I was looking for to help me evolve to my next level as a freelancer. Love his outlook on niching down—wish I would have reached out sooner!"
Freelance Writer
"Speaking with Dominic and following his work has brought me a lot of clarity as a writer and freelancer. He's super specific and shares details I rarely find elsewhere. I can't recommend him enough if you want to level up as a freelancer. "
Freelance Content Strategist
It’s my firm belief that nobody is too old to have a mentor. If you’re a freelancer of any ilk, experience, or age, you can benefit from the guidance of other people.
When you’re young, it’s daunting to ask for help. When you’re old, that comes back around.
Society may dictate you’re too ___ to ask for help. I don’t care how old or who you are, if you’re a freelancer and you’re willing to work on your craft or business, I’d love to help.
Uncover new productivity levels
Struggling to build a pipeline of customers
Be confident with pricing and raising rates
Uncover a new work-life balance
Learn from experience
Benefit from connections
Receive constructive feedback
Small expense each month/meeting
Time commitment each month/meeting
Pressure to action items
Potential for dependence
I’m always going to stick to my principles and I’m always going to use examples from my freelance success.
From going full-time freelance in 2018, I rapidly learned what works and what doesn’t work when it comes to attracting customers, always having work, and charging a rate that makes me happy.
Over the last five years, I’ve:
Earned $1m in freelance profit
Never worked more than 4 days a week
Turned down more clients than I’ve said yes to
Worked at times that suit me and in places that suit me
Worked on projects that make me happy to go to work in the morning
When writing The Autonomous Freelancer book, I dug deep into common freelancer questions and have learned a ton myself. In some cases, I was too skilled to enter the freelance market as a novice. In other cases, I was still unaware of many complexities and tribulations freelancers come across.
Today, I am in a position where I can help fellow freelance marketers and writers take their careers to the next level.
If you think a mentor is the right approach for you and you’re actively looking for an online freelance coach, book a Freelance AMA with me.