If you are thinking about how you can start making some extra cash by writing online, or want to take up freelance writing as a career, I’ve got some information that might be beneficial to you. No, this won’t be a detailed guide that you can use to get filthy rich overnight. Instead, I’m going to give you the steps I took to gain success, and I’m positive that, if you follow my advice, you will have a good idea of the mentality you must have in order to start earning an income by freelance writing on the internet.
About six months ago I made a decision. I said to myself… “For the rest of your life, you will work only on your terms.” I meant it. Now I don’t have anything against the people who work nine to five, in fact, I believe they are the backbone of this country. However, that life isn’t for me. I like a little bit of freedom and I don’t like it when someone is looking over my shoulder. So, I made the decision and, even though I hadn’t the slightest clue of how I was going to make money writing, I started exploring my options.
With no degree and very little experience, I concluded that I’d have to begin by writing cheap-paying assignment and that if I produced my best work, I could work my way up. It didn’t matter to me how little I would get paid, or how long I would spend writing… I was one-hundred percent sure that I was going to get to where I wanted to be… no matter what I was going to find a way to make money writing articles online. And this mindset I had was probably the most crucial component of finding successful early in my career. In fact, this mindset is something that can help anyone in any career or walk of life. You have to have faith. You have to know without a doubt that you are going to be successful in whatever it is that you are undertaking and you HAVE to be ready to give it your all. For the first time in my life, I had the mentality necessary to succeed…
When I first started, I was writing nearly 14 hours a day and I was only earning about $3 for ever 500 word article I wrote. As I look back now, I know that I was working more than necessary for so little money, but, at during that time period, I was unaware of how little I was being paid. It was so awesome to me that I was actually getting paid to write! The positive attitude I possessed made me look pass the little income I was earning. Having a positive attitude and being enthusiastic is a vital component to being successful in any line of work you find yourself in. The bottom line is, you will never find a job where every task you do is completely satisfying. However, by having a positive attitude and enjoying your work, you can get past those inconveniences that come your way.
So, as my attitude and faith in knowing that I would make it as a successful freelance writer, provided my support, I began searching for better opportunities. About one month after deciding to start freelance writing, I came across a site that was in beta testing. I figured that if this site was just starting, maybe I’d have a chance to get on something that would turn out to be more lucrative down the road. At first, the work available on the site was non-existent. In fact, in the first month writing for the new site, I had only written one article and it was on a topic that I knew NOTHING about. But I got paid $11.50 for completing it. (During that time period I continued writing my $3 articles to give me something to fall back on.) About a month later, I grabbed a couple more assignments on the same topic. With each assignment I took, I made sure that I was producing the best work I possibly could.
I don’t know what it was about this site, I just had a good feeling about it from the get go. After a few assignments on the subject I knew little about, I was contacted by one of the editors. She asked me if I’d like more work, and of course I said yes. This was my first big break (really, I’ve only had about two ‘big breaks’ in my short sixth month career… but it sounds cool to say ‘my first’ because I’m expecting a ton more in the future). So, I started getting regular work and this subject that I used to know little about, I was starting to learn a bunch more about. And whenever they asked if I could take on more, I ALWAYS said yes.
As I look back at my life now, I realize there was a lot of jobs that I could have excelled at. However, I never wanted to take on anything else, or go above and beyond what was required of me. With this writing thing, I was willing to say yes to ANYTHING that came my way… and that’s exactly what I did.
As my client continued to send me more assignments, my writing became much more efficient. After two months writing for them and nearly three months after I decided to jump into a new career, I was earning about $1500 a month and have managed to stay at that level of income for about three months. Now, $1500 a month is nothing for a lot of writers and that’s great for them, because I, too, want to be doing well for myself. But $1500 right now, when compared to where I was, might as well be a million dollars. When I began I didn’t have any idea on how I was going to make money writing online. I didn’t know where to start. I wasn’t sure if I could produce quality work. And I had no idea what I was going to write about. All I had was faith and enthusiasm.
Finally, my second big break came about two weeks ago. (About six months into my career.) I had just finished an article and I had an idea I wanted to pitch to my client. So, I did. Within a day I got a direct message from my client asking me to email her. Upon emailing her, she told me that she was looking for a single writer to build a database for a new client for their company. It wasn’t the idea that I pitched, but who cares! It was a better opportunity! The articles I would be writing would pay four times as much as I was currently making. Of course, as you can imagine, I accepted with enthusiasm.
It’s incredible to me to see what happens when you take a chance. You MUST take chances if you want to find success. Sure, what I pitched wasn’t considered, however, I was given a far better opportunity than I currently had. And that was HUGE.
So, to recap… the three things that have produced some success for me in my short career as a freelance writer are: have faith, be enthusiastic, and take chances when you see them.
I’m absolutely positive that it any kind of challenge that you may face in your life, be it freelance writing, owning your own business, or entering into a food eating competition, those three components will always lead you to success. They are without a doubt the reasons that have gotten me from having no clue to finding some success in such a short period of time and if I continue to be successful, there is no doubt in my mind that they will be the reason.
If you are looking for ways to gain writing success, continue reading.. Free reprint available from: $1500 A Month After Six Months As A Freelance Writer.