5 Simple Tips For Success

You can do it. Don’t ever think you can’t.

I’ve been a successful freelancer for about a quarter of a century now. I started in book design and, over the years, have also worked in publishing, art, and writing.

Given that I’m not starving seems to indicate a certain measure of success. While I’m not wealthy, I’ve done well enough to keep a roof over my head, fed, entertained, and healthy. My family as well.

That’s not to say there weren’t challenges, but at a certain point in my life, I decided to tackle challenges head-on and see where that got me.

It got me pretty far.

These are the top five tips I’ve learned about coming to some success.

1. See opportunities rather than obstacles.

This opening step is one that has served me well repeatedly over the years.

Once upon a time, I worked as a graphics specialist for a local printing company. I hated the place. It suffered from poor management and toxic people. I really wanted to quit. But I was also learning many valuable skills. I stuck with it and became quite good at design and layout.

Changes in the industry and the economy meant a lot of commercial printers in my area were shutting down or downsizing. When my job got downsized, and no similar positions were available, I could have chucked it all and gotten a retail job.

Instead, I took it as an opportunity to tackle freelance full time. Between unemployment benefits and a 401k, I was able to support myself enough to last me until I found enough clients to allow me to go full time as a freelancer.

That was 25 years ago. I’m still freelancing. I’m still learning new things.

You can approach a problem as an obstacle, or you can try to see it as an opportunity and ask yourself how you can use this situation to turn things around.

You may surprise yourself with what you come up with.

2. Don’t wait on perfection

About 10 years ago, I decided I wanted to start a small press. I had worked with several small presses as a book designer and had picked up some editing chops as a production editor for a medical journal.

So why not become a publisher? Amazon made it easy and affordable to produce and sell books. (It’s less so now, but it was once a fantastic option for people like me.)

I researched the business. I talked with friends with more experience. I designed logos and a website.

But I hadn’t launched.

What was I waiting for?

Perfection.

Guess what? Perfection never comes — especially when starting out. A friend reminded me of this and encouraged me to just roll the dice with what I had.

I launched. I announced. Then got silence in return.

Two weeks later, however, I ended up becoming the new publisher for the Marla Mason series by TA Pratt — an urban fantasy series with a loyal following. I picked up a few short story collections soon after. And then some nonfiction titles on genre fiction. Later some graphic novels and fiction novels by legendary cartoonist Matt Howarth.

Since then, Merry Blacksmith Press books have been nominated for Hugo and Nebula Awards. It’s not a big name in publishing. Not by any means, but it’s the size I wanted it to be, and I’m still putting out new titles every year.

If I had waited for perfection, I’d have never gotten it off the ground. I’ve since gone on to create Merry Blacksmith Studios for my art, and Words By John for my freelance writing services.

I was not 100% prepared for any of these ventures, but I’ve not regretted just starting anyway.

If you wait until you’re ready, you’ll never be ready.

Roll them dice.

3. Be patient as a farmer.

Rome wasn’t built in a day. But you knew that already, didn’t you? When you plant a seed, it takes a while to go from seed to sprout to plant to fruit. It doesn’t happen overnight. It takes a long period of care, nurturing, and a little bit of faith.

When I started Words By John, I had had a couple of small — nay, tiny — jobs. It took some time to grow more clients and, more importantly, better-paying clients. When I started Merry Blacksmith Studios, I think I sold about $100 in art the first year.

By the following year, that grew to over $1000. The year after that was even better. For a part-time venture, that’s not bad. If I had let that first year get me down, I’d have never had the better years that followed.

Art is a side hustle for me, but it’s paying off.

I understand impatience. I think we’d all love to experience instant gratification for our efforts.

The truth is, things take time.

But the wait is worth it. Keep the faith.

4. Learn from failure and move on

Sometimes things don’t work out. Before starting Merry Blacksmith Press, I got together with a friend and tried starting an independent comic book publishing business. We managed to put out two graphic novels that didn’t sell.

It was a lot of work and little reward. It didn’t help that my partner, about halfway through the imprint’s life, essentially ghosted me. He was supposed to be handling the distribution end of things. No wonder the imprint failed.

I learned some things from the experience. Sure, I learned about being careful who I go into business with, but I also learned about production flows, advertising, and distribution — mostly because I failed so dismally at it the first time.

By the time I decided to launch a more traditional small press, I had used what I had learned from the previous failure and did my best to avoid making the same mistakes.

When failure happens, take a day or two to mourn or beat your breast if you feel you must. But then dust yourself off, think about what you learned, and move on. Try it again, or try something different.

But try something anyway. Don’t let failure stop you from moving forward.

5. Always try to do at least one better… or more

This takes commitment, but the payoff is worth it.

A few months after I launched Words By John, I landed a great client. Good pay, interesting assignments, and creative directors that really knew how to nurture freelance writers. Needless to say, I was excited to work with this client and wanted to make sure I kept them.

I forget which self-help guru suggested this idea, but whoever it was really pushed the concept of giving at least 110%.

At least.

So I did. My word counts were always a bit above the requested (but not by too much). When I had to source a fact, I used as close to a primary source as possible. No second or third-hand reporting allowed. I edited myself mercilessly.

It was more work. I wasn’t being paid for the extra work. So why do it?

It made me their top freelance writer. And when the creative director moved on to greener pastures, she took me with her for assignments that paid even better. She also set me up with additional clients.

I wouldn’t have gotten that if I turned in work that was lacking, or only met the assignment’s minimum requirements.

Anything worth doing is worth doing well. You may not reap the reward every time or immediately, but it will serve you in the long run.

Whatever works

I’ve been reasonably fortunate to enjoy some success in my freelance endeavors over the years. The tricks I’ve learned didn’t come all at once or easily. But I’ve learned to recognize a good thing when I see it.

Your mileage may vary with these tips, but I can tell you with absolute certainty that you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

It comes down to what you decide to do, and what you determine works best for you.

Go for it.

Thank you for reading. I’d love to share more with you via my Bi-Weekly Word Roundup newsletter sent to subscribers every other Sunday. It will feature news, productivity tips, life hacks, and links to top stories making the rounds on the Internet. You can unsubscribe at any time!