Time To Quit Your Freelance Day Job?

A lot has been written about how to decide whether to quit your job. However, most of these articles are focused on employees who work at an office and have a more predictable schedule and routine.

For freelancers, the decision to quit your day job is much more complicated, because we tend to be emotionally tied to our jobs and we feel like we need it for the stability of experience. To help you navigate this decision, I’ve outlined 4 big questions you should ask yourself before deciding what’s best for you.

Should You Quit Your Job To Freelance Full Time? – YouTube

Takeaways
1. Quitting your freelance day job requires careful planning and consideration.
2. Building a support system and network can help ease the transition.
3. It’s important to have a financial safety net before taking the leap.
4. Diversifying your income sources can provide stability as a freelancer.
5. Prioritize self-care and maintaining a healthy work-life balance.
6. Continuously develop your skills and stay updated in your industry.
7. Embrace the freedom and flexibility that comes with freelancing.
8. Be prepared for challenges and setbacks along the way.
9. Seek guidance from experienced freelancers or join freelance communities for support.
10. Stay motivated and persistent in pursuing your freelance career goals.

Table of Contents

Find Your Perfect Client

So you’ve decided to quit your day job and pursue freelancing full-time. Good for you! This is an exciting time and a big decision, so it’s important to make sure that this is what’s best for you. As with many things in life, when it comes down to it, the most important thing is simply finding the right niche. Once you do, everything else will fall into place.

And while there are many things that can help guide your path toward finding the perfect client or freelance business model (like looking at what other people are doing), I want to focus on one specific thing: finding something that makes sense for who YOU are as a writer/designer/editor/etcetera.

Building a successful freelance career requires understanding the difference between a freelance writer and a copywriter. Learn more about this distinction and how it can impact your freelance journey in our article on the difference between a freelance writer and a copywriter.

Produce Some Fantastic Copy

So you have a great idea for a product, and you’re ready to develop it into something customers will love. You know what your market is, what they want and need, and how to give it to them. You know that your competition has similar products but not as good quality.

You understand that to succeed in this business (and business it is) you must produce some fantastic copy so that people will buy from you rather than one of the other guys out there vying for the same dollar.

What does “fantastic copy” mean? It means having clear information about:

Your market/product/audience/competition/strengths/weaknesses
Your style as an author how do I write? What kinds of words do I use? Is there a particular tone I’m comfortable with? How do others perceive my writing style?

Get A Mentor

There are a lot of people who can help you out and give you advice, but not everyone is willing to share their knowledge with someone they haven’t met. If you’re looking for a mentor, try to find someone who has done what you want to do or something similar.

They may be willing to help you out if they see potential in your work, but they’ll also be able to tell if it’s worth investing in more training or guidance.

Follow Other Successful Copywriters

Many successful copywriters have been in the game for a long time and have built up a reputation. You can learn a lot from them because they’ve got years of experience to draw on.

So, how do you follow other copywriters? Well, there are a few ways:

Read their blog posts. What topics do they cover? How are these topics different from your own? Where might you find some common ground? Have they written about anything related to freelancing or day jobs that might help you out?

Watch video interviews with these copywriters on YouTube or another video platform of your choice. Listen closely for advice about how to quit your day job and make it as an entrepreneur (or freelancer).

Look at their websites, newsletters, and other online content marketing efforts and then compare them against yours. What are the differences between what they’re doing and how you’re promoting yourself online? Can you apply any lessons learned from them to improve whatever it is that you’re doing right now?

As a freelance writer, one of your goals is to achieve a consistent income. Discover practical strategies and tips for making a steady income as a freelance writer in our comprehensive guide on making a consistent income as a freelance writer.

Think About What You Have To Offer

Let’s start with the first question: What do you have to offer?

Think about your skills and experience. Who is hiring for this kind of work? What do they need from someone like you? Are there any gaps in their existing team that could fit with what you can offer? Is there a market for what you’ve spent years learning how to do, or does it need to be explained in an entirely new way before anyone will pay attention?

Next, think about your unique selling point (USP). The USP is something that differentiates you from other freelancers and makes clients want to work with only you. Think of a good example of this it can be as simple as having extensive knowledge in one very specific area or making yourself seem more trustworthy by committing to deadlines on time every time.

Maybe it’s being able to write code faster than everyone else on Upwork; maybe it’s knowing exactly how many words per minute are needed for each type of writing assignment; maybe it’s knowing which fonts look best online or off; maybe it’s being able “to make things happen when no one else can.”

Whatever the case may be, come up with at least three examples that prove why people should hire YOU over anyone else who has similar credentials and costs less money.

Then comes the target market: Who would benefit most from using your services over someone else’s? Is there an audience out there where these services would shine where they could help them succeed where others fail without fail because no one understands their needs better than YOU do!

Set Up A Decent Website For Yourself

It’s time to get your website set up. It should:

Be professional and easy to navigate
Have your contact details, including phone number and email address
Showcase some of your best work (don’t just post everything you’ve ever done)

Make sure it’s mobile-friendly so that potential employers can access it on their phones or tablets. You want them to be able to see what kind of work you can do while they’re on the go!

Also, make sure that it’s easy for you or someone else in your team (if applicable) to update when necessary; after all, if they’re going to put their trust in you with a freelance project, then they’d better be able to count on a timely response from the person responsible for getting things done efficiently.

Are you interested in becoming a freelance writer in the agricultural industry? Our step-by-step guide provides valuable insights and advice on how to kickstart your career as a freelance writer in agriculture. Check out our article on becoming a freelance writer in the agricultural industry to learn more.

Draft Your First Freelance Contract

When you’re ready to start offering your services to clients, it’s important to understand what goes into drafting a contract. Contracts are essential for both parties: they outline the scope and terms of the project, along with payment schedules and an agreed-upon deadline.

The first thing you’ll want to consider is how much time and effort you’ll need to put into the project. What kind of experience does this client have? How many projects has he or she worked on in the past? What are his or her needs and budget?

These factors will help determine how much money he/she can afford to pay for your services. You should also ask yourself these questions: Is this a project I’m willing to work on? Do I have time available in my schedule right now? Does this gig align with my goals as a freelancer (i.e., am I looking for more exposure)? If so, great!

But if not no worries! You can always turn down offers if they don’t feel right for you at this point or aren’t aligned with where your business is going next year or beyond (it happens).

Once we’ve got those answers sorted out, then we can get started drafting our first freelance contract together.”

Get Yourself And Your Work Organized

The first step toward making the leap and quitting your day job is to get yourself and your work organized. This means setting up an online CRM for your contacts, a project management tool for all your projects, a calendar to keep track of deadlines, a task manager to help with tasks and ideas, or even just using a notebook to jot down notes on what you need to do next.

Here’s why this is important: when we’re busy with our regular jobs (whether they’re in design or not), it can be hard to find time or energy to focus on freelancing projects that aren’t paying us yet.

This can lead us into a vicious cycle where we’re not actively pursuing new opportunities because we don’t know how long they’ll take…but then we don’t have anything coming in either! Setting up an effective system will make sure that nothing falls through the cracks even if it feels like there isn’t enough time left over at the end of each day.

Believe In Yourself

You can do it. You’re good enough. You are worth it. You are capable of great things and you deserve to be taken care of in the best way possible. If you think that quitting your day job means that you have failed somehow because your job requires a salary and not an hourly rate,

Then it’s easier than what other people are doing then I’m sorry but that is just not true! When we work for ourselves, we work harder than any 9-5 office worker ever could imagine because we have no one else to blame if things go wrong but ourselves…and that includes when we fail at something or make mistakes along the way (which happens often).

Promote And Market Your Services Regularly

If you’re going to be a successful freelancer, then you need to promote and market yourself regularly. You may have heard that the best marketing tactic is to write great content, but there are plenty of other things you can do as well:

Write a blog post every week.
Write an article in an industry magazine once or twice per year.
Create a free report about topics related to your area of expertise (and give it away for free).

Keep Track Of Everything And Set Targets

Your freelance day job is a great place to get started, but it’s also important to keep track of everything. You’ll need to set targets for how much money you want to earn, save and spend each month. And yes: this means you need to think about your investments too!

Keeping a record of all your income and expenses will help you stay on top of things. It’s also a good way to identify areas where there might be room for improvement if one month’s budget was only half as much as another month’s budget, then something must have changed between those two months (and either way is fine).

If you’re looking for high-paying freelance jobs, we’ve compiled a list of opportunities that pay $30 an hour or more. Explore this curated collection of well-paying freelance gigs in our article on freelance jobs that pay $30 an hour and take your freelancing career to the next level.

Don’t Be Afraid To Ask For Help Or Advice

Don’t be afraid to ask for help or advice. If you’re at a crossroads and need support, there are plenty of people who will be happy to lend their knowledge. Along the way, you will learn more by asking than by doing (and it’s a lot more fun).

You can learn how to ask for help from others. You’ll make new friends in your industry who may become great collaborators or even bosses someday! And as a bonus, asking questions will make you better at what you do: It keeps your mind fresh and active and allows you to expand on your ideas by incorporating those of others.

Be Friendly, Helpful, Polite, And Professional At All Times

Remember that you are always representing yourself, even if you’re helping someone else with their issues. Be friendly, helpful, and polite at all times. Don’t be sarcastic or unnecessarily rude to clients or customers; people will remember how they were treated by you and your business long after the project is over.

Be A Good Listener

You should try to make sure that your client feels heard by making them feel comfortable in sharing their thoughts with you, even if they come across as difficult or unreasonable! Remember that a happy customer is what keeps our businesses alive so do all that’s in your power to help your clients achieve this state of being!

Try To Stick To Regular Working Hours, Every Day If You Can!

If you’re going to be a freelancer, you must set up your schedule as soon as possible. You will need to stick to your regular working hours every day if you can, but even if things don’t quite go according to plan, it will still help you feel more stable and less like a nomad.

At the very least try not to work at 2 am every night!

Freelancers must develop routines because they make us feel more in control of our lives and give us something stable and reliable in an otherwise unpredictable career path (that may or may not pay next month).

For me, having a routine means doing the same things at roughly the same time each day: eating breakfast with my cat; checking emails;

Plan out my day; then work until lunchtime when I usually take a break for an hour before getting back into work mode again until 5 pm when I go home and spend time with my partner before going out for dinner or seeing friends on occasion.

This gives me structure without being too restrictive I know exactly what I’m doing each day without feeling overwhelmed by too many obligations (which would happen if I tried writing from home all day).

Have A Good Stand-By Pitch Letter Ready To Send Out In Reply To Inquiries Within 24 Hours Of Receipt

You’ve sent out your letter, and now you’re waiting for responses. It’s important to be prepared for their arrival. Make sure that you have a good pitch letter ready to send out in reply to inquiries within 24 hours of receipt.

Your name, address, and phone number (including mobile)
A brief description of services/products offered
A few examples of previous work done in this area
Your contact details should be at the top of the page (i.e., name and email address).

This allows potential clients to easily find out more about your business by using Google or other search engines if they want further information on what you do before contacting you directly via email or phone call later on down the line when they feel comfortable enough with both their requirements and whether or not they’d like someone else does them instead

Never Stop Learning

To keep growing and improving, it’s important to keep learning. There are many ways you can do this. Here are some ideas:

Keep an eye out for new skills that you could learn and add to your portfolio of talents. Online courses are a great way of doing this and they’re often free or low-cost!

You might also consider enrolling in a local college program or community workshop that interests you, even if it isn’t related directly to freelancing work. The more knowledge you have in your back pocket, the better equipped you’ll be when it comes time for clients’ jobs requiring specific expertise (or even just when selling yourself as a valuable resource).

Read books, blogs, and articles about freelancing on topics such as legal issues affecting independent contractors; marketing tips for up-and-coming solopreneurs; how best practices change over time based on technology trends (e.g., social media); what makes an effective newsletter template; etcetera…

The possibilities here are endless! Just make sure whatever mediums appeal most strongly with each person so everyone can find success within their comfort zones while still benefiting from others’ experiences elsewhere.”

You Can Be A Successful Freelancer

You can be a successful freelancer. If you want to leap from working for someone else to being your boss, here are some tips:

Have the right skills and experience. You must have at least one or two years of experience doing what you want to do as a freelancer this will show clients that you’re competent and have expertise in this field.

You should also demonstrate that you have good communication skills since they will come in handy when working with clients and colleagues remotely (and sometimes even face-to-face).

Make sure there is demand for your services or products before quitting your day job and starting on your own full-time (or even part-time).

For example, if you want to build websites for local businesses but don’t live near any customers who need them built yet, it may not be worth going solo just yet! On the other hand…

The market could change overnight which means waiting until things are perfect might take longer than expected!

While there isn’t necessarily one thing about being self-employed that makes someone “successful” (it’s more about building up their network), having connections within the industry can certainly help them succeed sooner rather than later by sharing tips & tricks learned over time through trial & error while also learning from others’ mistakes along the way.”

Health insurance is an important consideration for freelancers. Discover the reasons why obtaining health insurance as a freelancer is crucial for your financial and personal well-being. Read our insightful article on reasons why you should get health insurance when freelancing to gain a comprehensive understanding of the topic.

Conclusion

Are you ready to turn your freelance career into full-time work? There’s no perfect time, but if you have a plan for yourself and your finances and can afford it, then go for it! We hope these tips have helped prepare you for the next step in your journey.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Do You Mean By “Freelance Day Job?”

A “freelance day job” is a job that is not your own, but you do as a side job to earn extra money. This means that you are not the owner of the business, and therefore you are not able to take advantage of the benefits associated with being self-employed or owning your own business.

Why Should I Quit?

There are many reasons why it makes sense for you to quit your freelance day job and go into business for yourself. First, it may be easier than you think! Many people don’t realize how simple it can be to start their own business and make money from home.

Second, quitting your freelance day job can help you reach financial independence sooner even if you’re scared about leaving behind your steady paycheck! Third, being self-employed gives you more freedom than working for someone else ever could, and isn’t that what we all want?

How Do I Know If It’s Time To Quit My Day Job?

It depends on how much you’re making, how much you’re spending, and what your goals are. If you want to quit your day job ASAP and make tons of money freelancing, then you might want to keep reading. Otherwise, we recommend doing some research first before deciding whether or not it’s time to quit your freelance day job.

How Long Should I Wait Before Quitting My Freelancing Gig?

If you’re making a decent amount of money (we’ll talk about what that means in a minute), we recommend waiting until the end of the year that way, you can have a full year’s worth of tax deductions come tax time next April!

That way, it makes sense financially too: You’ll get the most bang for your buck with those taxes by waiting until the end of December.

What If I Don’t Make Enough Money? Should I Keep My Day Job?

If you’re not making enough money at all from freelancing, then we’d highly recommend sticking with your day job for now. Freelancing is a risky business; there are lots of factors that could go wrong and some people just aren’t cut out for it

Costantine Edward

Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.