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How serious are you about being freelancer? by Roy Sheppard How to earn more money and get paid more promptly are two over-riding interests of freelancers. And as every freelance journalist knows, pursuing either is akin to pushing water uphill. Through nearly a decade at BBC television as a freelance news presenter and reporter and holding many seminars for freelancers - I know a lot of freelance journalists! Some are successful, most are not. But all are hard working, professionally cynical and proud of their writing ability. Too many needlessly lead a poor, hand-to-mouth existence and are deeply depressed. This piece is deliberately blunt and is aimed at the latter group. How serious are you about freelancing? Here’s a test; if you are freelance and do not have daily access to the internet, preferably on your own computer, you are only ‘playing’ as a journalist. Up to 80% of journalists I meet ‘haven’t got around to it yet’. Don’t say "I can’t afford it." or "I don’t need it." You cannot afford not to linked to the cheapest, biggest, most information packed research facility in the world. Make it a priority. Invest in yourself. Your productivity will soar. Anyone using a computer who doesn’t make money from it - is using it wrong! If you are a technophobe - get therapy! There are a number of other reasons why freelancers don’t do as well as they could: 1) editors don’t care, they mess you around by turning down your ideas and promptly giving them to staffers. 2) they offer derisory fees believing they are doing you a favour - and so what if you have to wait months for payment. 3) if you complain, you risk never working for that publisher again This is the market you operate in. One seminar delegate, a TV journalist kept complaining to me about her lot in life. I asked "Are you prepared to take that level of crap for the rest of your working life? You have a choice; work with it or get out and do something else." So how can you improve your results as a freelancer? One of the biggest mistakes you can make as a journo is believing you are a journalist first and a business person second. What are you? Secondly, freelancers rarely have a business success system. This is the key to success and what my seminars deal with. In the context of freelance journalism, there are only three ways to earn more money; work for more publishers, persuade every one to pay more for each assignment and produce more pieces for each of those clients. If you do not have a personal system for finding new outlets for your work, re-connecting with past clients on a regular basis and finding ways to increase your productivity, possibly through the use of technology, you are making life needlessly difficult for yourself. But why should an editor give you rather than somebody else a commission? If you can’t answer that, you cannot expect an editor to. Struggling freelancers rarely consider the pressures an editor is under - they are too wrapped up in their own financial pain and professional frustration. Ask yourself these questions:
If it doesn’t add value, you can’t expect much work. As you read this you may feel that as a writer, it is not your job to ‘add value’ in this commercial way. Do yourself a favour - change your job. You are headed towards extinction - publishing and broadcasting are changing dramatically. Today and tomorrow, successful freelancing requires a commercial entrepreneurial mindset. Few have it. But it can be learned. A journalist who only came to the UK a year ago told me "London is a candy store of opportunity for any freelance journalist." I can’t see every freelancer agreeing with that, but three months after attending my seminar he wrote to tell me that he had trebled his business. It is possible - but only if you use a systematic approach. When you do this, you could join the ranks of those freelancers who would never agree to work fulltime for an employer. Strange but true.
Roy Sheppard has produced a 6 part step-by-step audio course on how to market your services as a freelancer, free agent or consultant - especially useful if you HATE to market yourself. Called The Secrets of Successful Freelancing it can be ordered safely and securely on-line. We know the ideas in this programme work - because so many freelancers have told us they do. We guarantee your mind will be buzzing with so many new and profitable ideas when you listen to this programme.
This programme is the same price to everyone in the world. Yes, this costs us extra money to ship it to 'out of the way places' but we don't believe you should be charged more, simply because of where you live. The internet is global therefore each customer should be treated with the same respect and pay the same price - regardless of their post or zipcode. However, we can only accept payment in pounds sterling, so the price you are charged will be determined by the current rate of exchange which is outside our control. The programme costs £49.95. This is approximately US $75. If you wish to purchase this audio tape programme you can do so in one of 3 ways;
Please don't forget to include your name and the address you want the programme sent to - some people forget to do so. Because we have no way to contact the customer, we then have to wait for an irate phone call, fax or email wanting to know why we are being so inefficient! It's only when we explain that an address would help..... If you use a Switch card we also need the Issue number. We cannot accept "Charge Cards" such as American Express (its a banking thing!) We look
forward to sending you this programme. Roy Sheppard can be contacted on: Tel/Fax 00 44 1761 414676 Centre Publishing, Croft House, Clapton, Midsomer Norton, Somerset, BA3 4EB, England Email: roy.sheppard@virgin.net Back to Previous Page
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