Imposter syndrom for freelance writers

You know when employers ask you what your biggest weakness is and it's awkward? Well, my answer is...I am a workaholic. Don't hire me unless you want someone who is 100% dedicated to slaying corporate goals. Just kidding.

My real answer (which I wouldn't share with a potential employer) is I don't take criticism very well. It's not because I think everything I do is perfect and amazing, and I'm right about everything. Quite the opposite. It's because criticism plays into my least favorite psychological phenomenon: IMPOSTER SYNDROME.

My natural reaction to criticism isn't, "Wow, what a great suggestion!" It's more like, "OMG. What am I doing here? Why do I own a business? How do I call myself a writer? I should quit my life and work as a chimney sweep."

I know. Harsh. And, so ridiculous.

Why am I even bringing up Imposter Syndrome in relation to starting/enhancing your freelance writing business?

Because psychological research shows two things:

1. Imposter Syndrome affects nearly everyone (70% of the population, to be exact), including the likes of total losers like Tom Hanks, Sheryl Sandberg, Lady Gaga, Tina Fey, and Howard Shultz.

2. When you buy into Imposter Syndrome, it hinders personal growth and goal achievement in a significant way.

My hope is to offer a bit of encouragement and some strategies to overcome Imposter Syndrome as you build your freelance writing business.

1. You are awesome and uniquely talented. Seriously, Dr. Suess even said so, “Today you are you, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is you-er than you. Shout aloud, I am glad to be what I am. Thank goodness I'm not a ham, or a clam, or a dusty old jar of gooseberry jam. I am what I am, what a great thing to be. If I say so myself, happy every day to me!”

2. You don't have to know everything (or anything) to work toward your goals. Einstein wasn't born...well...Einstein. I mean, he was, and he wasn't. He was always Einstein, but he didn't come out of the womb holding a Nobel Prize for Physics. It took hard work, trial and error, research, dedication, and...you guessed it...dealing with Imposter Syndrome.

3. Your worth as a human (and writer) isn't defined by your external achievements. Rainer Marie Rilke says that the only relevant question for writers is, "must I write?" He doesn't tell you to ask yourself, "Have I been published in the New York Times?" "Do I make $200K a year?" "Do I know every grammar rule in the book?" If you must write, you're a writer. End of story.

4. Be your own BFF. This one comes from my therapist. If the 4-year-old version of yourself was trying something new, would you tell your cute little self you were a total fraud and not good at it and should stop trying? No way! You'd pick that little person up, give yourself a hug, and tell yourself you are awesome for trying, learning, and accomplishing new goals and are growing in ways that are unimaginable. Talk to yourself the way you’d talk to your 4-year-old self.

5. Roll with instant successes. Imposter Syndrome isn't always triggered by criticism. In fact, it's more often incited by rapid success, which may explain why it affects so many celebrities. It’s normal to feel out of place when you set expectations of what it takes to get somewhere and then you suddenly find yourself there, but you skipped some of the steps. Rapid success doesn’t make you a fraud; it makes you cool (and maybe a bit lucky).

Imposter Syndrome is real and affects most of us, but it's not a reflection of reality. Don't let it hold you back from seeking out help and working toward your goals, even if you don't know what you're doing yet. Whatever it is you set out to do, do it because you are worth everything you have worked for or will work for. You are not a fraud; you're fantastic.

When is the best time to start a freelance writing business?

This year has been a doozy in so many ways, right? For me, personally, I've felt the stress of losing childcare, homeschooling (oh dear!), watching loved ones pass away, and the isolation of the pandemic.

While this year has been an emotional roller-coaster in so many ways, it's also been the best year yet for my business. 

Let me say this. It's a good time to work as a freelance writer in a world that relies on the internet more and more each day. If you've been thinking about building your own freelance writing business, the time is now.

To give you a little overview about me, my background is in curriculum development (see resources below) and teaching (Russian and ESL). A little over 10 years ago, however, I longed for a job that allowed for more flexibility and creativity. So, I quit my job and started a freelance writing business.

I started slowly, but it has been the best decision I've ever made. I've spent the past 10 years learning the ins and outs of the freelancing world, building my network, landing dream clients, and fine-tuning my writing and business processes. The best part is I work 15-20 hours a week and make 4x what I was making before at my 9-5.

While I'm constantly learning new things, I have gained some killer business-building insights along the way that I wish I knew when I started out. It would have helped me avoid some painful rabbit holes.

To help freelance writers get their businesses up and running during this strange time, I've developed an in-depth,  step-by-step guide, complete with instructions, resources, and templates. Basically, the guide has everything you need to get started.

GET THE GUIDE HERE!!!

If you have already started a freelance writing business, and want to iron out your processes, this guide is for you too.

How to Improve Your Freelance Writing Business Processes

Have you ever had this happen to you? You land a new client (yay!), conduct an introductory call, and then settle on your first assignment. 

Then, you clack away at the keyboard and write something 100% OUT OF THIS WORLD AWESOME.

Next step: Send Google Doc to the client, shimmy, and bask in your coolness.

The next day you get the surprising and dreadful email. "This is great, but it's not quite what we were going for. Could you rewrite it to say X, Y, and Z, please?"

Gasp! All your hard work feels wasted and you have to start over.

If this has ever happened to you, you're not alone. It happens to a lot of freelance writers. I've been freelancing for 10 years, and have had this happen to me a few times throughout the years.

I didn't miss the mark because I am the worst freelancer in the world. I had to re-do my work because I didn't take enough time with the client setting expectations, understanding their content marketing goals, and learning exactly what it is they want the blog post to do and say.

These were my two drastic mistakes: 

1. I didn't know what questions to ask on a kick-off call (oops!)

2. I wasn't sending clients a content brief (double oops!)

After making this mistake a few times in my early days, I decided never again. I did the research and came up with some killer kick-off Qs and a pretty rad content brief.

I cannot begin to tell you how much time fine-tuning my onboarding process has saved me. 

If this scenario rings true with you, I'd encourage you to take a closer look at what you are doing right after you acquire your customers. Do you send new customers a proposal and contract? How about an onboarding email with the next steps? Do you ask them the right questions during your kick-off call? Do you send a content brief? What about sending an outline before going hog wild and writing your whole piece?

If you haven't ironed out your onboarding processes, the time is now to start. You won't regret it.

If you need help, I have good news! I sell guides + proven templates you can use to grow your freelance writing business the right way.

What's the trouble with self-editing?

Writing & Editing aren't the same jobs!

No matter what any client tells you, don't let them tell you that you are responsible for editing your own stuff.

Now, this doesn’t mean a writer can’t be an editor. On the contrary. Writers make the best editors because they are familiar with how to structure a piece, grammar rules, and all the tidbits that go into crafting masterpieces.

My argument isn’t that writers shouldn’t edit. My argument is that writers shouldn’t be responsible for editing the final version of THEIR OWN WORK.

WHAT?!?! WHY!?!?!

Because the brain works in mysterious ways, and neuroscience tells us if we try and edit our own work, we will inevitably miss things we wouldn’t miss if someone else had written it.

Brain scientist, Tom Stafford, provides a more scientific look into why self-editing isn't a foolproof process in "Why It's So Hard To Catch Your Own Typos." You can read the whole article on Wired, but here's the gist.

Writing is a high-level task (aka takes up a lot of focused brainpower). When our brains are working on the high-level job of writing, they do two things. One, they work hard to convey meaning, and they also map out a destination for a story. When our brains are focused on meaning and mapping, they naturally generalize smaller tasks like grammar and spelling, making us gloss over even the simplest of errors.

Seriously. Ever had some hoity-toity Hermione Granger point out an “it’s” where you should have written an “its,” and then you put your palm to your face, and feel like a dummy?

Well, here's some good news. You didn’t make this error because you’re dumb and suck at grammar and need to go back to second grade. You missed it because you’re smart, and your brain is engaged in a high-level task. You rock!

Let's move on to why it's easy to see others' mistakes (and others to see our errors).

When others read our work, their brains aren't responsible for the heavy-duty task of conveying meaning or mapping out a cohesive journey. These readers are relaxed, first-timers with fresh minds.

As such, their brains are capable of seeing those smaller details, and an “it’s” that should have been an “its” will stick out like a sore thumb.

WHAT DOES THIS ALL MEAN? WHAT IS THE TAKEAWAY?

It means every writer needs an editor (one that is not yourself). All writers need an editor. All of them. Even me. Even you. Even J.K. Rowling.

It also means that you should advocate for yourself when you sign a new client and tell them they need to hire an editor.

WHAT’S THE SECOND BEST EDITING OPTION?

Look. Not all clients are going to have an editor on the team. And, even though it’s a bad idea, a lot of your clients will expect you to edit all your own work. Boo.

The next best option is to sign up for the Premium version of Grammarly (affiliate). Grammarly is an online editing tool that catches those silly mistakes your brain doesn’t see. Ultimately, Grammarly helps you polish your work, so sign up for an account.

Whatever you do, remember it's natural to miss mistakes in your own work. To ensure a polished final version, make sure you have a human editor on your team or an AI tool like Grammarly to help you catch mistakes.

Onward, friends!  Please feel free to check out my freelance writing resources if you're interested in growing your business and fine-tuning your processes. Or don't. I'm not the boss of you.