6 Dating Red Flags That Are Weapons In a Freelancer’s Arsenal

Relationship vices might be virtues in freelance writing.

Think of the worst kind of person that you’d never want to run into when looking for a serious long-term partner. They wouldn’t call you back after a great first date, will treat you amazingly well while you’re with them but then pretend like that awesome meeting never happened, will use those same sweet nothings they said to you on their next date to another person.

Sometimes they’ll even date you for a bit but tell the world they never knew you.

What if I told you all these abominable habits could be just the perfect habits for you to succeed in the world of freelance writing?

You might start to wonder I am some crazy dude who decided to make no sense with anything he writes.

Well, if you think about it the way I do, you’ll see how it all makes perfect sense. Here’s how.

#1 — Bring your A-game every time to that first date

Every time you’re starting a new piece of writing, you’ve got to be on top of your game. First impressions last forever — this is more true in writing than it is in dating. You would likely have a second date to make amends for your first, but as a freelancer, each content piece you do is a finished product in itself.

There are hardly ever any “follow-ups” and room to make amends. So you have to be your charming, amazing self on that first date, and nail it like you mean it.

#2 — No emotional baggage, please

The worst thing a freelancer could do to themselves is to get too emotionally invested in your work.

The reality is today you’re writing for one client, tomorrow for another, and sometimes you get to call your work your own, but other times you give up the “rights” to your work to your client too.

Learn to treat your work as a one-night-stand that you’re in for “fun” which in this case hopefully translates to “money” and don’t let emotions get the better of you. You may have put your heart and soul into that piece, but once it is done, it is time to move on. There’s no room or time for emotions in this game.

#3 — There’s plenty of fish in the sea

The poorest excuse I’ve had freelancers make is “there isn’t enough work in the market” or “I am running out of ideas to write about.”

There’s nothing that’s farther from the truth. If you look hard enough and in the right places, there is plenty of work out there for everyone and each requires a different skill set. You just need to find the right match.

The world of the internet makes it super easy too with websites and platforms in abundance to get you assignments in the comfort of your home, or favorite coffee shop. Your Upworks, Fiverrs, and other platforms are the Tinders and Hinges of the content world — all you need to do is swipe right and left according to your preference to an endless supply of “potential matches.”

According to a Forbes article,

There are about 400 million active websites worldwide, almost double the number in 2019, which in are driving demand for people who can write compelling content.

#4 — There’s no free lunch, we always go dutch

Leave the chivalry at home and don’t be the idiot who offers to foot the bill for the whole meal.

You ate just as much as your partner did, so why should you be paying for the both of you? In the content world, this translates to doing your due but charging your client the right amount for it. A lot of content writers lose out on making the right amount of money because they are afraid that negotiation will lose them a potential client.

That is not how you build a brand for yourself and get fairly rewarded. The right clients will always be willing to meet you halfway and pay you what you deserve for the quality of work. Never be the one making the compromise and undercharging for your work. That’s the equivalent of you paying for your client’s meal — not happening.

A recent study in the UK indicated that a large percentage of freelancers feel overworked and underpaid. The key goal for freelancing is flexibility and independence — both in terms of your time and money. If that is compromised, what’s the point?

#5 — If a pick-up line works, don’t be shy to use it again

Writing is all about templates. You can’t write dozens of pieces every day and have “fresh” ideas and inspirations all the time. The reality is all good writers recycle content all the time.

They just do it so well that to the untrained eye, it isn’t as obvious. This doesn’t mean that you need to write the same content over and over again, but having a set template or structure that works for you always helps.

For a certain genre of the piece, I always like to have a set structure I follow that more often than not leads me to a great finished product.

Using your strengths and making your technique into a repeatable process is a true skill that helps successful content creators.

#6 —Cheating and multi-timing is acceptable

There’s a huge belief that having a “niche” helps. I say stop worrying about having a niche. As you grow as a content creator you will naturally be better at some things than others. However, give yourself a shot at different things and genres until you find your best fit.

It is OK to even try multiple things at the same time to break the monotony of writing the same type of pieces over and over again.

Experiment and have fun with it and you’ll figure out what’s best for you sooner than later — until then don’t stress about having a specialty or a niche.

Freelancing and online content writing is a game that has been around for a while, but there has been an uptick in both demand and supply in recent years. However, like anything else, the winners are easily separated from the losers, and you need to have a strategy in place to be on the right side of it. Clearly, this is one game where nice guys might just finish last, so learn from the bad boys instead!

For more tips on content creation, here’s something that might help.