Do You Have What it Takes to be a Profitable Freelancer?

As a freelancer, do you just scrape by month to month? Are you struggling to earn the kind of living that would leave you truly comfortable? 

If so, you might want to check out this new website from a fellow freelance writer, a good friend, and my top pick if I ever need a partner in crime -- Yolander Prinzel. Her new site is called The Profitable Freelancer.

About The Profitable Freelancer

"What is a profitable freelancer?" you might ask. 

It's about more than earning enough to pay all of your bills every month. In fact, that's exactly what it's about -- earning more.

With The Profitable Freelancer, Yo focuses on helping freelance writers go from living client-to-client to thinking of themselves as being on the payroll. It's about consistency in earnings, and it's about making more than you technically need. 

What is "Profitable Freelancing?"

Here's how many freelance writers operate:

• Get client. 
• Do work. 
• Get paid. 
• Spend money. 

It's a never ending cycle where they can end up relying on that next client to get the money they need for their next bill. And this is in part what leads to the common feast-famine cycle of freelancing. 

When you think of yourself in terms of being on the payroll, you work to bring consistency to your revenue. You pay yourself a set amount every week, other week, or month, depending on what you prefer. 

That payment is on top of any other business expenses you've already paid out. And it would include all of your personal financial goals including your rent or mortgage, other monthly bills, health insurance, retirement savings, and any other savings goals you might have. 

Let's say you land a huge contract one month that nets you an extra few thousand dollars. With the way many freelancers operate, that money might be spent right away, or it might be the only money they have available to put into personal savings. 

A truly profitable freelancer wouldn't be as inclined to do that. The money would stay with the business, as profit. This is money that you might later decide to invest back into the business to grow further. It's not money you immediately pull out of the business for some big personal expense (whether that's a necessity or a luxury). Your normal payments should provide enough in savings to cover those things. If not, it's time to give yourself a raise.

How Much Do Profitable Freelancers Make?

Now that you know what The Profitable Freelancer aims to help you do, how much money will you make in the process? 

Here's the beauty of it. That depends on you. 

No one is going to tell you that you have to earn a specific amount in order to successfully become a profitable freelancer. You don't have to earn $100k to make it work. You might not even have to earn $50k to be truly profitable. It all comes down to your personal expenses, savings goals, and business decisions. 

That makes Yo's site a great destination for freelance writers the world over. Rather than working toward rigid goals (not that there's anything wrong with that as long as you are the one setting them), she'll help you figure out what you need to do to be in a comfortable financial position, whatever that means for you. 

About Yo Prinzel -- She's Baaack!

Personally, I'm excited about this launch. As some of you might know, Yo was a regular contributor here for quite a while when this was a group blog (under the site's old name, All Freelance Writing). 

She used to run a freelance writing blog of her own too. And while she occasionally surfaced to publicly talk shop (like her recent guest series here on ghostwriting), she was largely absent from the freelance writing community. That's because, a couple of years back, she decided she needed a break to really hunker down and focus on some writing and publishing pursuits.

If you aren't familiar with Yo, she's a successful freelance financial writer as well as an independent publisher -- both topics covered on her new blog.

During that time, I've had plenty of private conversations with her about freelancing, blogging, publishing, and writing in general. But it wasn't quite the same. Her voice in the community was sorely missed. And I'm sure I told her that about a million times. 

Needless to say, I'm thrilled that Yo has decided to come back, and I'm looking forward to seeing all that The Profitable Freelancer has to offer. I'll be a regular there on the new blog. And I hope to see you there too.

From The Profitable Freelancer

• 10 Lessons for Profitable Freelancers
• Sure You're a Full-Time Writer-But Are You a Happy One?
• How to Live Your Dream Without Turning it Into a Nightmare
• Have You Heard? Freelancers and Self-Pubbers Can't Make a Living!
• The Profitable Freelancer's Guide to Taking Every Holiday Off
• Identifying What You're After
• Are You Ready to Turn Your Freelance Career up a Notch?

More From Yo, at All Freelance Writing

• Demand Studios - You Can Make Over Two Million Dollars if You Try Really Hard
• Demand Media Strikes Back at PBS and Writers Everywhere - Yawn
• Why Low Paying Gigs Are and Are Not Your Problem
• The 10 Commandments of Freelance Writing
• Elitists, Haters, Negativity and Anger - Oh My!
• How to Lose a $7000 Freelance Writing Gig Without Even Trying
• Confessions of a Late Sleeping, Bunny Slipper Wearing Freelance Writer
• Why Clients Hire Ghostwriters
• Ghostwriting Contracts: 4 Points to Consider