Hey!

A couple days ago I ran across a book that I think has a lot of relevance to the future of freelancing and how it’s going to become a standard for many (if not most) of us.

Career Creativity is a look at various intersections of how we build our work lives and where creativity plays a role. 

This is a big deal for anyone interested in lifestyle-first freelancing—not only because a lot of freelancers are creatives, but also because our work requires creativity in our strategic thinking, and demands that we understand how others respond to creativity in our marketing and sales. 

But I see a lot of us getting tripped up. 

The thing about freelancing is there are no guardrails. That’s beautiful when we get to build our own schedule and work from wherever we want, but it can cause all sorts of issues when shaping our businesses. 

So this month, I want to touch on three areas of guardrails (boundaries) that we can use to build structure and support into our freelance journey. 

• Markets
• Employment 
• Sales

Sales is information

If you’re like me and not a natural salesperson (at all), then sales is going to be immensely valuable in informing productive application of your creative side. 

The thing about sales is that it’s grounded in listening and emotional intelligence. And once you learn to listen with business ears, you’ll see a clearer path to applying your creativity in a way that aligns with your freelance goals and strategy. 

Sales is a skill anyone can learn. With time and practice, you’ll find an approach that fits your personality and business needs. But you can start practicing listening to people’s frustrations and pain points well before you launch your freelance business. (I honestly wish I started practicing earlier.)

Start listening like a salesperson now (especially to the sales pitches that work on you) and you’ll be creating really strong guardrails for your career creativity for years to come. 

Want to get the most out of your employment experience? Grab your free Employment Value Extraction worksheet here.

Megan

P.S. A couple reminders…

• Don’t forget to keep your strategy workbook going! Need any help? Come talk it out.

• If you’re ready to take the next step in your freelance journey and want to “self-coach” your way to a healthier freelance business—come check out the Black Freelance Academy to improve your skills as CEO of your freelance world. 

• It’s our job as Black freelancers to spread the word on the potential out there, so if this message was helpful, pass it on!