How To Be A Successful Freelance Mom – Tips For Working Moms On Balancing Their Career And Family
If you’ve ever wanted to spend more time with your children, increase your income, and achieve a better work-life balance, freelancing as a mother is the way to go.
In the last decade alone, there has been a whopping 70% rise in mothers who are working for themselves.
The Freelance Mum book will show you exactly how to join them.
Take notes from successful freelance writer Annie Ridout’s experiences and watch as she goes from being asked for free services to commanding an impressive amount of $1,000 per day!
Full of practical advice, empowering tips and helpful insights, this guide provides the tools necessary to ace the process of changing up your career and making it work around your beautiful family.
From mastering childcare and blogging to networking and setting ideal rates, The Freelance Mum will teach you how ditching your day job can become a life-changing journey that opens doors of long-term success.
You’ll discover why freelancers must have swan-like attributes; how much payment to charge according to your expertise; and what morning routines help unleash maximum potential for becoming an entrepreneurial mom.
Make The Most Of Your Skills, Time, And Resources: How To Successfully Freelance As A New Mom
Having a clear idea of what kind of work you want to do is a crucial part of being a successful freelancer.
It might help focus your mind, and give you the motivation needed to pursue your dream job.
Francesca McConchie was one example of someone who had it all planned out from the start: She knew that she wanted to spend more time with her young children and that she wanted to do more baking – something she already enjoyed doing as a hobby before becoming a mom.
Armed with her newfound clarity, she set about transforming her favorite pastime into her dream job.
This is not always an easy transition, however.
After making the decision to go freelance and having the clarity of vision on what they want to do, some individuals are often left waiting for their ultimate dream job to pay off right away.
This doesn’t mean they should despair; in some cases, these challenging projects can be used as opportunities for learning and gaining experience that can be applied towards achieving their goals eventually.
For instance, Annie wanted to have a book published but it wasn’t becoming reality instantly so in the meantime she took on writing gigs as a copywriter — this helped teach her how to express herself concisely which is an invaluable skill when composing creative pieces like books or other types of writing.
So if your ideal freelance work isn’t arriving as soon as you’d like, don’t forget that even taking on challenging projects or projects you don’t necessarily love may still benefit your journey in different ways.
Be clear on what your dream job looks like and don’t despair if it doesn’t pay right away.
Do Your Research Before Setting Rates As A Freelancer – Know What You’Re Worth And Have Savings For Unexpected Events
When you’re setting fees for your freelance services, it pays to do your research and understand your costs.
Annie, the author of The Freelance Mum book, found this out the hard way when she started her parenting and lifestyle blog The Early Hour.
At first, she was offering sponsored posts at a far lower rate than what other bloggers in her niche were charging.
After doing research, she realized just how much more money she could have been making had she done her homework first!
It’s important to understand all the costs that come along with freelancing – such as equipment, office space, taxes and childcare if you’ve got young children.
For peace of mind, Holly June Smith recommends having a backup savings fund that covers 3 months in case of an unexpected dip in earnings.
Additionally, it’s important to calculate what amount of money you’ll actually need each month to cover all expenses and still make a decent income.
In short: To give yourself the best chance at success as a freelancer, it pays to do your research on standard industry rates and factor in all the additional costs that come along with being self-employed!
Start Your Own Morning Freelance Routine To Achieve Success Like Ariana Huffington
If you’re a freelancer and a mum, having a strict morning routine can really help you get the most out of your day.
One of the best ways to take control of your new freedom is by devising an early morning routine that enhances your productivity.
For instance, getting up as early as you can – Annie Wakeham got up at 5:30am – is one way to ensure that you have time to focus on your work without any distractions from the kids.
You can also benefit from exercising in the morning; Annie often goes out for a run which helps boost her self-esteem and energizes her for the day ahead.
Another great idea is banning screens from your bedroom so that you’re not starting and ending off your day with an overload of input; Annie used to check her smartphone as soon as she woke up and surfed the internet before bed which affected her quality of sleep.
As if this wasn’t enough motivation, some of the world’s most successful people follow their own strict morning routine too!
Ariana Huffington spends 30 minutes exercising, writing down goals for the day, making a list of what she’s grateful for in that moment, before concluding with 30 minutes meditation time.
Clearly it has paid off; she sold The Huffington Post for $315 million dollars in 2011!
So go ahead and make it part of your daily schedule – who knows what success awaits you?
Making The Most Of Your Childcare Solutions As A Working Parent
As a single mother running a business at home, childcare can often be a major hurdle that needs to be overcome.
Whether it’s using the convenience of an attached daycare or outsourcing a nanny or au pair, freelance moms need reliable childcare in order to work and still keep up with parenting duties.
Just as important is having supportive partners.
While it’s true that fathers aren’t typically contributing as much to parental leave as mothers do, encouraging them to get involved with childcare can make all the difference for busy mamas who want to take on extra projects outside their home.
Partners can help share responsibilities and enable moms to take last-minute freelance jobs that might benefit their family in the long run.
All in all, having good childcare options and supportive partners makes being a freelance mom just that much easier.
That way, you’ll be one step closer towards achieving that ever elusive “have it all!”
Faking Confidence Is Essential For Freelance Moms To Survive And Thrive
Most mothers find freelancing difficult.
We don’t need to deny that it can be a struggle, especially when looking after a baby and working from home together.
Take Anna Jones’ experience as an example: Despite being reassured by another mother that her baby would sleep while she wrote her cookbook, her child was crying most of the time during his first six months!
She managed to get it done, but things could have been much easier if other moms were just truthful about how challenging it is to combine work and motherhood.
It’s not just Anna who struggles either; we all do.
Just like Annie does sometimes too, when she has to cry down the phone to her mum for support.
But she believes strongly in faking confidence until you actually feel confident – she puts on a brave face whenever she leaves the house so that clients are none-the-wiser of any chaos going on in her life.
This kind of confidence often makes up a large part of success when it comes to both freelancing and traditional jobs too – women tend to focus more on what they feel that they lack and let that stop them from applying for good positions, whereas men will still apply even when they don’t meet every requirement.
It’s this lack of belief in themselves which partly explains why only 12% of those earning over £150k a year are women.
That’s why it’s important for us as freelance mums to try our best at appearing confident – no matter how difficult things may be underneath the surface.
How To Join The Blogging Revolution And Turn Your Passion Into Profit
Blogging can be a powerful tool to build your business.
Just ask Annie and Emma, two successful freelance mums who have done exactly that!
Annie created the online magazine The Early Hour after starting her blog Annie Loves back in 2008.
Now, this blog is an important part of her income stream; she monetizes it by posting sponsored content.
Meanwhile, Emma used her love for children’s fashion brands and built Finlay Fox, which has become an indispensable guide for design-savvy parents looking for top-notch independent fashion brands for their kids – all while fitting in perfectly with Emma’s family routine!
It isn’t easy to make a living off of blogging, though.
You’ll need to be up-to-date with SEO and post fresh content on a daily basis to get your website ranking highly on Google search results.
It’s also important to focus on topics you’re interested in so that writing won’t seem like a chore.
With hard work and dedication, however, blogging can be a great way to build your business!
You Might Find Your Next Industry Contact In The Most Unexpected Places
When it comes to networking, Annie’s experience as a freelance mum has shown her that it isn’t just about meeting people – it’s about building lasting relationships with them.
And one way to do this is by making friends instead of just networking contacts.
For example, she met one of her most useful contacts at her child’s playgroup: a fellow mom who worked for an online magazine.
It wasn’t just an ordinary conversation – they bonded over children’s activities and eventually became firm friends.
This chance encounter shows that you never know where your next industry contact is going to come from, so make sure to be friendly and engaged with everyone you meet!
Although it may seem daunting at first, don’t feel too shy about connecting with people on social media once your conversation is over.
Just ask for their details and follow up a few days later; many people are often looking for new connections too.
In other words, don’t network – make friends instead!
Wrap Up
The Freelance Mum by Annie Ridout offers new moms an invaluable guide to entering the freelancing world.
Through this book, Annie provides a path to success through business-savvy advice and the right childcare in place.
Her key message is that regardless of motherhood, it’s perfectly possible to dive into freelance work and charge fees you deserve.
And if you figure out your story – be it through a personal experience or professional journey – you can attract media attention and grow your own platform.
All in all, The Freelance Mum is an incredibly helpful read for any mom looking to jumpstart their freelancing career.
With plenty of actionable advice, prep tips and stories from other women in the biz, Annie encourages us all that taking big steps towards success is never too late or too hard.
So pick up this book and start crafting your journey today!
