Deliberate Freelancer

Today’s guest is Cassandra Le, owner of The Quirky Pineapple Studio, a brand strategy and content marketing studio that works with Black, Indigenous and people of color, queer folks and intersectional feminists.  Cassandra is originally from Virginia in the United States, but she now lives in Spain. For more than 13 years, she has been creating content across all mediums (written, graphics, audio, video, photography), and through her business. She works with mission-driven brands and thought leaders around the world in English and Spanish — helping them share their story, connect with their community, and drive brand awareness with content marketing that is enjoyable and anti-oppressive. Cassandra believes believe business and marketing can be fun AND be used as tools to dismantle systems of oppression. In this episode, we talk about:  How Cassandra’s studio, The Quirky Pineapple Studio, got its name.  How she went from freelance travel writing to running her agency.  Why content marketing is important, even

On today’s show I provide a recap of The Content Byte Summit, which was held in Sydney, Australia, September 15-16. I attended virtually and was super impressed with the content, particularly all the discussion around artificial intelligence. There was also a lot of great tactical advice about running your freelance business, so even if you’re not a writer, I think you can learn from some of the advice I’m sharing today.   Here’s what I share with you in this episode: A panel about humans versus AI discussed how a writer can stand out nowadays. Where AI fails and isn’t helpful. AI is a word predictor, so that means it has no original thought, no anecdotes, no creativity, no vulnerability. Those are areas you should include in your content.  Why Ed Gandia no longer uses the word “strategy.”  How to stop giving away your strategy and advice to clients for free.  Tips from a panel on how to escape the low-paying cycle and make more money.  Why accountability partners and mastermind groups can be good for you. 

The podcast is back after my summer hiatus! Thanks for continuing to listen and support the show.  Here’s what I share with you in today’s episode: The importance of taking breaks for your mental fitness and for better client work.  The types of breaks you should be thinking about and planning for. Why planned and unplanned mental health breaks are important. What happens when you neglect your networking and marketing and slow down too much.  Why you have to work at getting referrals.  How I’m ready to embrace this new “back to school” season — and why I need to get my act together!  New episodes of my second podcast, Association Station, that might also appeal to you (see links below).  What happened to my Facebook account and the status of the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group.  Biz Bite: The 1% rule of thumb (by Brian Hood) The Bookshelf: “Beyond That, the Sea” by Laura Spence-Ash Resources: Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee Melanie’s other podcast, Association Station Episode #10 of A

Deliberate Freelancer is on a summer hiatus and will return toward the end of August or early September. Take this time to listen to some previous episodes or relisten to favorite guests! Or make a playlist of specific topics, like finding clients or pricing projects.  The Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group will be active during this time, so please join us over there for great conversations with other listeners. You can ask for advice and share your experiences.  If you have benefited from this podcast, please help support the show financially at Buy Me a Coffee. And check out Melanie’s second podcast, Association Station. Season 1 debuted last summer, and season 2 will be released soon. So, subscribe now on your favorite podcast app.

Today’s guest is Austin Church from Knoxville, Tennessee. Austin helps e-commerce founders stand out online with their brand strategy. Lately, he’s been working as a fractional chief marketing officer (CMO), consulting for creator economy companies. He also coaches freelance creatives. Austin was one of the six-figure freelancers I featured on the show in May 2021. We’ve since become friends, and his podcast, Freelance Cake, was in my ears during my recent solo business retreat — because I needed all his marketing advice! I realized you all could benefit from hearing some of his great marketing strategies and tactics too, so I invited him back on the show. In this episode, we talk about:  What a “fractional” role is for a freelancer and how Austin moved into that role.  How Austin defines and sells strategy. Why templates are so important.  How Austin works through a “content road map” with clients.  Austin’s marketing strategy and his “freakout” protocol.  The difference between “cold” leads and “warm” lead

Today’s guest is Helen Jane  Campbell. Helen is from Wales and recently moved from Hay-on-Wye, Wales, to Worthing, England. Helen is a life and business coach for ambitious and creative entrepreneurs, bringing authenticity and energy to all she does. Clients turn to Helen when they feel ready to bring more joy, energy, and abundance into their lives and their teams. She helps people create space and reconnect with their self-worth and creative freedom. Prior to becoming a coach, Helen spent two decades of her career in PR and communications strategy — with a focus on creativity and on building and leading effective teams. She worked directly with decision-makers and CEOs.  Helen is the author of the book “Founders, Freelancers & Rebels” and the co-founder of Hay Pride, the Pride celebration Hay-on-Wye. She also hosts monthly sessions on Zoom called Powerful Journaling.  In this episode, we talk about: How Helen went from employee to freelance PR professional to business coach.  Helen’s book, “Founders, F

On today’s show I share my structure, agenda and my action plan developed during my most recent solo business retreat. Here’s what I share with you in this episode: Please leave a rating and review for Deliberate Freelancer on Apple Podcasts or any other podcast platform.  Why I chose Thomasville, Georgia, for my latest solo business retreat. How I structured my retreat and my theme for the two days. What happened when I stopped consistently following my Always Be Marketing rule. How Austin Church’s podcast Freelance Cake helped me. The two big questions I asked myself as I started my retreat.  How I evaluated my best income months from 2022 and built lessons and action around what worked in those months. How I created a list of top-level services that bring in money and are services I enjoy — so I can focus on getting work in those areas first.  The two areas I am focusing on as part of the new marketing strategy and action plan I created.  Biz Bite: Let an app do your errands The Bookshelf: “The Verifiers

Today’s guest is Eman Ismail, an email strategist and copywriter who is originally from England and now lives in Finland. She also coaches copywriters.  Eman is the person to call when you want to make money from your emails. As an email conversion strategist and copywriter, she helps six-figure-plus online business owners and ecommerce brands fire up their conversions, evergreen their sales and turn fans into superfans. Eman is also the host of the podcast Mistakes That Made Me, which asks extraordinary business owners to share their biggest business mistake, so you know what NOT to do on your road to success. I confess I had trouble coming up with a title for this episode because we cover a lot of ground and Eman shares such great advice and lessons. We talk in-depth about finding your niche and figuring out who the perfect clients are for you. Eman also goes into great detail about her intake form, which weeds out all the not-right clients.  In this episode, we talk about:  How Eman niched down from a cop

On today’s show, I discuss how I found myself in the dreaded “famine” part of the feast-or-famine cycle and what I’m trying to do about it. Here’s what I share with you in this episode: A few tips when you’re in the “feast” phase. How to tell clients no — and turn down work when you’re too busy.  My three-pronged approach to get out of the famine stage.  The importance of figuring out where your potential clients are and getting involved in that space. The upcoming Content Marketing World, which will be outside Cleveland, Ohio, for the first time. It will be held in Washington, DC, September 27-28, 2023. The importance of my Always Be Marketing rule.  Asking yourself big picture questions surrounding “how did I get stuck in this famine stage?”  Biz Bite: Use the two-minute rule to get things done The Bookshelf: “Nora Goes off Script” by Annabel Monaghan Resources: Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group.  Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee. Episode #158 of Deliberate Freelancer: My Four

Today’s guest is Ernie Smith, a longtime writer for nonprofits and membership associations. He also has a lot of experience in graphic design, content strategy, content management systems, newsletter creation, and content. Ernie is also a tech writer — that includes writing about technology for Vice magazine — and Ernie is a self-proclaimed tech nerd. His name and voice might sound familiar because I just had him on the ChatGPT episode a few weeks ago. That was episode 156.  So, I thought he was the perfect person to come on the show and introduce us to a variety of tech tools that we might want to try out for our businesses.  We broke this discussion down into various categories of tools, ones that can help with writing, note-taking, audio recording, scheduling meetings, graphic design, and newsletter platform tools. Ernie shares dozens of tools and also talks a bit about the benefits of publishing our own newsletter.  In this episode, we talk about:  Writing tools, including Markdown, Bear, Obsidian, iA wr

On today’s show I discuss some client wins, a fail and some ongoing challenges in my freelance business so far in 2023.  Here’s what I share with you in this episode: A win in which I didn’t dismiss the client because it wasn’t a straightforward proposal and I had to customize it.  A “bridge service” win, in which I took an existing service and skill I’m good at and went beyond it a bit, expanded it to create a new, great project. A win in which I fired a client that forced me to often track down payments. A win in progress in which I’m thinking through how to develop a three-tiered proposal, offering three options at different price points for one potential client who is unclear about the scope of work they need right now.  A “sort of” fail that reminded me of a few lessons. Three challenges I’m facing this year so far: working weekends, lack of consistent marketing, and a feast-or-famine cycle (no!!!!).  Biz Bite: Consider your rubber balls versus your glass balls (thanks to Alysha Love for sharing this a

Today’s guest is Eva Stabenow, a Pilates teacher and movement coach who helps freelance writers, translators and other desk workers heal their bodies through movement while continuing to pursue the work they love.  In the early 2010s, after a successful career as a German medical translator, Eva began to suffer from severe shoulder and wrist pain caused by long hours at her desk. After years of searching, Eva finally found lasting relief through corrective Pilates. This inspired her to seek comprehensive training and help other writers find the same lasting relief and enjoy the lifelong health benefits of a tailored Pilates practice. Today, in addition to empowering others to take charge of their health through movement, Eva works primarily as a health writer specializing in plain-language patient education. I invited Eva on the show to talk about how Pilates — but also just movement and stretching and strength training is important for our bodies, especially for those of who sit for long periods of time. I d

Today’s episode features several guests who all have an interest in ChatGPT and generative artificial intelligence (AI). Their varying backgrounds and experiences in tech, writing and editing provide unique insights into the potential and risks of generative AI such as ChatGPT.   ChatGPT has risks and opportunities. Most of us are hearing how ChatGPT plagiarizes, how we can’t fact-check what the sources are, and how formulaic and repetitive the writing is. But we also have to remember this is the first iteration of this program, and it—or others like it—will continue to improve. I don’t think it’s going away.  We have to use ChatGPT with a lot of caution, but it does have benefits for freelancers right now, including helping you brainstorm and generate article and project ideas, do some research (as long as you fact-check it), and even write headlines.  In today’s episode, my guests provide their unique insight into what all this means for freelancers. My guests are:  Tori Liu, president and CEO of the Assoc

Today’s guest is Michelle Jackson of Denver, Colorado. Michelle is a freelance content creator. She has been blogging, writing and talking about personal finance for the past decade—although she will tell us in today’s episode how she’s pivoting her business away from that.  But, I’ve been following Michelle on Twitter for a while and learning from what she has to say about earning and managing money as a freelancer. So, I invited her to come on the show to talk about how we can prepare ourselves for uncertain times. Many people are nervous right now about the economy, inflation and clients cutting back on work, so I hope this conversation will help you brainstorm potential new ventures ways to diversify your income.  Michelle’s website, The Brand Building Lab is where, in her own words, she gets to “geek out about all things online entrepreneurship while uplifting voices of color and allies who are doing the work … but may not get on center stage for whatever reason.” In this episode, Michelle talks about:

Today’s guest is Miranda Marquit. She lives in Idaho Falls, Idaho. Miranda has been writing and podcasting about money on a freelance basis since 2006. Her work has appeared in various media, including CNBC, NPR, Forbes, and TIME.  She has a background in journalism and enjoys telling stories about finances and creating your own financial journey. Miranda has created a successful six-figure freelance career and recently released the second edition of her book about freelancing, “Confessions of a Professional Blogger.” She also developed a freelance writing course with two other successful freelancers, available on Gumroad.  Another freelancer recommended Miranda for the show and when I was doing a bit of research, I came across this blog post she had written about creating your own benefits package as a freelancer — things like health insurance, retirement and paid time off.  I liked how she framed that as a “benefits package.” I think that framing can help us start to plan for these types of things and put t

I finally have had a moment to reflect on last year and look at my numbers. I reflect briefly, taking a qualitative look back, but this is mostly a quantitative look.  Here’s what I share with you in this episode: My 2023 income goal (big and audacious!) My 2023 word of the year  A reflection on how 2022 was for me My Q4 recap, including an analysis of income and time tracking My 2022 total income  My weekly average number of hours worked last year The number of weeks of vacation I took (and one sick week) My number of clients and a reflection on “regular” clients vs. one-offs and anchor clients Why I fired one “good” client Six lessons learned—or gentle reminders I needed—from last year that might be helpful to you also Biz Bite: Overestimate your time for deep work The Bookshelf: “The Light Pirate” by Lily Brooks-Dalton Resources: Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group.  Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee. Episode #152 of Deliberate Freelancer: How Mary Tindall Began to Earn $200,000

Today’s guest is Mary Tindall. Mary launched Mary Tindall Communications in 2018. She is a content marketer and thought leadership strategist in Orlando, Florida. Mary leads a boutique agency team that specializes in healthcare content marketing, working with leading institutions and innovative startups across the U.S.  Mary became a six-figure freelancer in 2020, which was a goal of hers. Then she grew even more and began to earn $200K in gross revenue on her own. As revenue continued to grow, she hired subcontractors to help with the workload and built a small agency model. In this episode, Mary talks about: The key lessons that led her to earning $200K Her work and family structure How many hours she works Playing the comparison game Why getting confident as an expert on a sales call is so important The importance of following your energy—not mimicking someone else’s schedule Freelancers who are overly flexible or overly rigid What she struggles with  What her daily and weekly schedule looks like How she

As the year ends, please consider supporting this free podcast at Buy Me a Coffee. Your support is helpful financially, obviously, but it also boosts my spirits and keeps the show going.  Today’s show is my special wrap-up episode where I share my top 10 books of the year. I read 65 books in 2022, as of December 19, and narrowed down my favorite to 10. Eight of the top 10 were published in 2022, while two were published in 2021. Those were two books I didn’t finish in 2021 and purposely scheduled to read early in 2022, and I’m so glad I did.  I also share which book I hated and wanted to throw across the room, a few disappointing books, and a few extras that were great books, even though they didn’t make my top 10. And I end with a few books that I’m looking forward to that will be published in 2023. Join us in the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group where we’ll be talking about our best and worst books of 2022!  I don’t want to spoil where my top 10 books fell in the list, so the following books are ones I

Podcast news: After much deliberation, I’m changing the schedule of Deliberate Freelancer slightly. We will stick to weekly Thursday episodes, and the episode format will remain the same. However, I will now publish in two big seasons, with breaks in between. So, after December 22, 2022, the podcast will go on hiatus until February. Then, the schedule will resume through May. I will take a summer hiatus, likely June through August, then return for the fall season. I will take another break next year likely similar to this year’s: Christmas through January.  The Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group will remain active during these breaks, so be sure to join us there. And you can also continue to listen to Melanie talk with others about building a successful freelance business on other podcasts she’s been a guest on. You can access those episodes on the Deliberate Freelancer website.  Bookworm alert! Next week’s final episode of the year will be my annual book episode, where I share my favorite books of 2022, di

Podcast news: After much deliberation, I’m changing the schedule of Deliberate Freelancer slightly. We will stick to weekly Thursday episodes, and the episode format will remain the same. However, I will now publish in two big seasons, with breaks in between. So, after December 22, 2022, the podcast will go on hiatus until February. Then, the schedule will resume through May. I will take a summer hiatus, likely June through August, then return for the fall season. I will take another break next year likely similar to this year’s: Christmas through January.  The Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group will remain active during these breaks, so be sure to join us there. And you can also continue to listen to Melanie talk with others about building a successful freelance business on other podcasts she’s been a guest on. You can access those episodes on the Deliberate Freelancer website.  Today’s episode walks you through some ways to evaluate your client list to set you up for a strong 2023. This practice is