If you haven’t been keeping up with the #EbonyOwes hashtag on Twitter, you’ve missed some really interesting insight into the life of freelancers, writers in particular.

“Interesting” is just me being nice though, because a LOT of it was disappointing. Not only are we watching writers who’ve produced work from Ebony coming out with stories of being unpaid and underpaid, we’re also seeing people, a WHOLE lot of people defending it as normal, even expected that freelancers should be treated that way.

The worst part? A lot of those people were freelancers themselves.

Some people out here have it stuck in their heads that freelancers are meant to be broke and taken advantage of. This isn’t true, and it’s incredibly frustrating for me personally to watch Black freelancers trade in this idea, especially while I’m listening to White freelancers touting their first $10K months (that’s a writer by the way.)

Freelancers don’t have to be broke. While there’s a lot of variation based on skillset and niche, anyone who’s willing to shift their thinking to focus on where their skill is needed can make HUGE strides in increasing their income.

My question to you, is are you ready to change your mind?

Megan