When To Let Go of a Gig

marybabysteps — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 18:51:53 -0700

I'm still alive! Did you miss me? I've missed you and this blog. I truly have. This summer has been quite an eye-opener for me. Having the kids home all day keeps a mom extremely busy. On a personal note, it's been fun. We've gone to the pool and played outside. On a professional note, it's really caused me to reevaluate some things.

Letting Things Go

I decided to drop a blogging job because I found that it was becoming too stressful to try to keep up with it on a daily basis, especially when considering the money the job paid. I'm really not begrudging the employer. There's a lot of controversing in the freelance world about how much to accept for your writing, and it's a very personal decision. I know that employers have to work within their means, in many cases. But I also know that I no longer felt fulfilled by accepting the rate the job was paying.

When I took the gig, it was exclusively on a topic I knew a great deal about. Coming up with daily content was not extremely difficult, and I was able to write a post during my son's nap time and was still able to keep up with my other pursuits. Since the kids have gotten out of school and the blog's topic has changed a bit, I realized that I needed to prioritize.

Things Happen For a Reason

Here's the amazing part. I decided to let that job go so that I could focus on my kids and my blogs, with the full intention of digging up new blogging gigs when the kids go back to school. As soon as I made that decision, an offer for new, higher-paying work came in, and I decided to go for it.

Even though I'm still spread thin right now, this new connection seems beneficial in that it's exposing me to a more in-depth kind of writing than the short blog posts I'm used to. And making the time to devote to my new endeavor is a little easier when the monetary payout is a bit higher. I feel like I'm growing as a professional, and that means a lot.

What about you? Have you ever made the decision to let a paid gig go? What made you come to that decision, and what were the results? I'd love to hear your story.

What Should Freelancers Be Paid?

marybabysteps — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 13:33:03 -0800

Short answer - I don't know. Sorry, I just don't. There are so many different kinds of freelance writing; each one demands different skills and effort, thus each one commands a different level of payment. What I do know is that there are a lot of people out there ready to suck writers dry and to take advantage of them, and it's imp;ortant that you don't fall prey to such scammers.

Decide what's right for you.

This may be based on your enjoyment of the material you're writing or the time involved. You may be shooting for a particular amount of money per hour. There are lots of factors to consider here. Lisa from Work at Home Mom Revolution wrote a great post on this matter and provides a link to a resource from Freelance Switch that can help you to calculate your ideal rate. The bottom line is not to accept a position that's going to make you feel burnt out or resentful in terms of what you're being paid.

I just had a discussion with a blogging pal who asked me if she was being offered enough for a particular job. After hearing the offer, I hesitated to tell her that I thought it wasn't enough. Each person has to decide this for themselves, but I did feel what was being asked of her was not nearly enough for the compensation being offered. I told her this as well as letting her know that her talents are beyond that. I also gave her some information on how I've gotten paid blogging jobs as a starting point.

Evaluate Your Situation

While I'm not currently making the money I'd like to be, I am confident that I'm building bridges that will lead me to more paid writing opportunities. I've struggled with whether I'm making the right decisions for my career, and I've had to reassess my plans a few times already. Because I have three children, I know my writing time is limited. I'm now focusing on realistic goals and writing pursuits that are less time consuming than full-length magazine features.

I'm not saying limit yourself, and I'd never advise anyone not to follow their dreams. For me, however, it makes sense to tailor my writing to a smaller scale for now. I still have long-term goals set and feel good about the path I'm taking to reach them. That's something I'd say is most important of all when deciding the types of writing and rates of pay you'll accept. Does it fit into your lifestyle and does it mesh with your goals?

For More Information

You'll want to read what Deb Ng has to say at Freelance Writing Jobs on the subject of low-paying writing jobs. She gives some wonderful advice on the subject. She also explains why some folks pay writers so very little and how this affects the rest of us. Be sure to read the comments at this post for valuable insight from other writers. You're sure to learn a lot.

I wish I had a definitive answer to give. I just don't. Follow your gut. Cliche as it may sound, sometime it's the best advice there is. What are your thoughts and experiences? Please let me know!

Adventures In Freelancing

When To Let Go of a Gig

What Should Freelancers Be Paid?