Instead of using your eyes and reading this newsletter, you can listen to it instead in the form of audio or as I like to call it: A Mini Podcast. Your choice!

1. MOUNTAINS

Hey Freelance Friend,

You’ve probably came across quotes like these before:

“Everyone wants the results, but not the work”

“People want the prize, but not the competition”

“People want the view from the top of the mountain, but not the climb up”

While often true, and often trumpeted by podcast bros who congratulate one another for repeating something so profound (often with an underlying air of superiority just under the surface, as if they are not one of ‘those people’…obviously)

The last one, about climbing a mountain, was the one I found most interesting.

I actually like the hike, I like the climb, I like the exercise and the camaraderie of doing something out in nature which is a bit difficult with friends.

I was thinking about how this applies to Freelance life (because I’m the kind of guy who thinks about this kind of thing and write newsletters about it…)

A lot of Freelancers cycle through services and offerings, changing things or being ‘inspired’ when they see results people are getting.

As a web designer I sometimes spend time getting lost in this hole too.

Someone posts that they started offering Web Design Templates and are now making $100,000 a year.

I think, well, I could do that, I should do that, I want to make $100,000!

But the issue is, I’m wanting the result.

I have no passion for Web Design Templates.

I enjoy the creative process.

If I made a template I would create something once, then it becomes a product to be marketed and sold.

So the ‘journey’ to this ‘mountain top’ of $100,000 is actually A LOT of marketing and sales, something I do not enjoy.

Therefore, I probably wouldn’t last very long doing this.

Which brings me to the central point: Doing something where the journey IS the thing you like, is often the best route to long term success.

“But it’s just work, how can you make the journey feel like something you enjoy?”

Taking the mountain top hike scenario, there are some strategies which apply to your Freelance life.

1. Hiking with friends
   

   Freelancing alone all the time sucks, make it easier with other people.
   

2. Stopping and taking in the view along the way
   

   Make sure you stop for periodic reviews and rewards along the way, check in and see the progress you are making. (Gamify it if you can!)
   

3. Get advice from a local who knows the terrain, or a guide
   
   Getting advice from a seasoned Freelancer or coach can make things easier and ensure you take less wrong turns. Going in blind to a big hike or Freelance journey can be a huge mistake. Many humans trod this path before you and made all the mistakes, so a route could be formed, so why not take advantage of this.
   

4. Make sure you get adequate nutrition and rest along the way. Those climbing Everest need to acclimatise for days at a time along the way.
   
   A caution against burn out. Often during a rest stop, other groups will hike on past you and it can feel like you are falling behind, or not doing enough. The problem is, you have no idea how many rests they had, or whether they had a helicopter take them up half way, or if they will get tired soon or injured because they didn’t rest… Only you know how much rest you need and what it will take to get you to the top.

By the end, you will be sad it is over, and you’ll reminisce about the climb.

So try to make the journey the good part, because if nothing else, the journey is most of your life, and the ‘prize’ at the end may not feel or be like you imagined it to be.

2. FREELANCER FEATURE

AYA ELLABOUDY

Aya, known to many on LinkedIn as the carousel queen, but she is so much more than that!

She describes herself as a Hope Dealer.

Offering copywriting and ghostwriting services to mental health and personal development businesses, something I’m sure we can all support!

Aya became a friend of the newsletter and dropped by to give us some wisdom:

3. COMFORT ZONE

This is your reminder to get out of your comfort zone.

My experience of the comfort zone is that it is ever shrinking, you need to take continual action to ensure it is not restricting your life’s potential.

When I am running regularly, there is zero inertia to get out and run.

Often it just happens, I finish work and I go.

But when I haven’t been running consistently, I ask myself questions, I don’t do it, it gets pushed to the next day.

Are you someone who would be comfortable walking into a networking event and introducing yourself to strangers?

if you’ve not done one ever, or for a long time, probably not.

If you’ve literally just left one, or were at one yesterday, you probably are.

The difference is often doing.

The longer you don’t do things that expand your comfort zone, the more entrenched the idea becomes that “you are not the type of person who does X, Y or Z”

I’m here to tell you, you absolutely are.

It’s just really hard depending on the thing, and your brain is going to tell you stories convincing you:

• why you shouldn’t do it

• why I am wrong to say you can (it already did, didn’t it)

• to stay nice and cosy and ‘safe’ in that comfort zone.

Don’t listen to it.

Actively add things to your schedule that are outside your comfort zone.

I guarantee your life will improve dramatically if you do.

Here is one my favourite illustrations of the comfort zone:

Next Week

017: TRAVEL, NOMADS, AFFILIATES

A huge part of my Freelance life is travelling with my laptop. For the last 10 years I’ve been crushing around the world, moving to different countries and enjoying various cultures. The last 5 years as a Freelancer.

Time to share some of that Digital Nomad knowledge so you can escape the incoming winter, now summer has officially ended!

There will also be a part about Affiliate / Supplemental Income to help pay for those flights!

With you on 27 SEPTEMBER 2024 at 11:00am (UK TIME)