Why laziness in freelancing leads to low-paid work

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Photo credit: Lazy Sunday

Are you a lazy freelancer? By “lazy”, I mean someone who wants writing gigs handed to them, just like they received assignments in school.

Unfortunately, if you take the “school assignment” approach to getting freelance writing gigs, you get low-paid work. There’s plenty of it out there. However, there are also many, many highly paid assignments waiting for you. You just need to be proactive.

An interesting post “The Changing Face of Freelancing” remarks that “The jobs that are there pay squat. If we secured 20 gigs a month, the pay still wouldn’t add up to enough to bring home KFC for dinner (or tofu kabobs for us vegetarians).:”

Lori goes on to say:

Part of the blame rests with us, you know. The Internet made us passive observers in our careers. We no longer marketed nor did we make cold calls. We just clicked and clicked and voila! Work appeared. Well guess what? That’s all becoming a fruitless pursuit. Time to return to our roots. We gotta start marketing again. Do you remember how?

Yes, indeed.

Think about people advertising for writers on CraigsList etc for a moment. Many of the companies which advertise there for freelance writers do so because they want CHEAP writers. They don’t see the value of good writing, and/ or they can’t afford good writers.

That’s fine. Live and let live. But if you’re taking those jobs and complaining about it, sadly the onus is on you to get busy and get great gigs.

I’ve got a stable of clients, many of whom have been with me for years. Last night I was chatting with a friend and we were bemoaning the fact that we’re booked solid for the next several months. Every freelancer I know who’s proactive is booked solid.

When I coach students, the first step is to change their attitude - to instill some confidence and self respect. And to get them moving - working for $150 an hour is easier (believe it) than working for $25 an hour.

Want to know how to build your career? Read “You CAN Sell Your Writing Now: Marketing Skills For Writers”. Great writing gigs are out there.

And BTW, you can use CraigsList, but to advertise your services and promote them, not by responding to ads.

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