by The words you use when talking about the work you do could be the difference between earning £1,000 or £10,000 a month.
By calling yourself a freelancer, rather than a business owner, you send all sorts of different signals, not only to your potential clients but to yourself too.
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When you think of the word freelance, what pops into your mind?
- Is it someone who trades time for money?
- Perhaps someone who has a limit to what they can charge?
- Someone who’s always looking for the next client and worries about their income?
- Someone who doesn’t outsource, who can only take on so many clients because they only have so many hours to give?
If this is the case, imagine what using the words “I’m a freelancer” is doing to your ability to earn money and create a sustainable business.
What about from your potential client’s perspective? When they think about a freelancer, what pops into their head?
- Is it someone who provides a temporary service? Someone who’s disposable or cheap?
- Someone who only charges per hour, and perhaps even someone who can’t be trusted to play a bigger role in their business?
If this is the case, imagine the difference it could make to the work you do and your income if you simply switch from using the word freelancer to business.
Why you should stop calling yourself a freelancer
From a client’s perspective, a business owner is experienced, established, an expert in their field, and worth the investment.
From your perspective, as a business owner, you can outsource tasks to take on more work. You can delegate, invest, grow, specialize, and charge more for your business’s expertise and skills, rather than how much time you give.
So if you’re looking to stop thinking like a freelancer and instead like a business owner, here’s how you can put this into practice.
Remove the word freelance from your website and marketing
Removing the word freelance from your website and marketing will have an immediate effect, especially on your mindset when it comes to your business.
You can still do business solo. You don’t have to fake having a team, just remove the word freelance to remove the connotation that word has from potential clients and your mind.
Objectively analyze your business’s strengths and weaknesses
You’re a business owner, so take this opportunity to be objective about where your business needs to improve.
- Does your client process or your communication methods need tweaking?
- Do you need to develop a better way to find clients in the first place?
Take a day to analyze all aspects of your business and pick one area to improve, then add another once that’s done.
Take on more work by outsourcing
As a business owner rather than a freelancer, you now have the freedom to outsource some of your work.
I don’t mean business admin or marketing, I mean, behind the scenes work for the services you provide.
- If you’re a copywriter, can you outsource to other writers and do quality control before sending to clients?
- If you’re a VA, could you outsource parts of your work, and again, perform quality control?
Oversee and delegate work to others. By doing this, you’re able to take on more work and increase your earnings at the same time.
So now you’re a business owner rather than a freelancer, what changes are you going to make to your business? Leave a comment below.
