New digs, new ideas, new ways to let go
Freelancing in Australia as we hit a year under COVID teaches you a few things about making space for better things.
I’ve joined the mass exodus from Mailchimp to give Substack a chance. It has certainly taken the pressure off, cost wise. I am also excited to see how the Freelance Jungle journey unfolds here. If you haven’t checked out Substack, please do so. There’s an entire archive of content and previous newsletters you can enjoy. Plus, it’s pretty addictive browsing all the great newsletters out there.
I highly recommend checking out The Write Stuff and Ann Friedman if you are curious at the potential.
It’s fitting the month I leave Mailchimp for greener pastures also coincides with 12 months since the pandemic kicked off in earnest in Australia.
That’s why I want to discuss letting go of things that no longer serve you and your freelance business.
Facebook denied Australia news and it led to us examining our relationship with Facebook, news and our alternatives. Is it time to say goodbye to Google?
Is it time to change career? What to consider when it’s time to make freelancing fulltime. And when to give up freelancing for fulltime work instead. Stuck on your freelance marketing? Maybe it’s time to take yourself out of the equation.
And it wouldn’t be a proper reflection without looking at what 12 months under COVID has taught me.
Why I’m giving up on the linear workflow
I’ve been fighting to be something I am not for an exceptionally long time. I am not the sort of person who got into freelancing or freelance advocacy because I wanted a golden yacht or fame. I got into both to be more creative and to have more freedom to act as a creative person.
The pandemic gave me the ability to change things.
I’m studying how to use Patreon better with their class series. I’ve been accepted as a scholarship student to the community manager program with Facebook. I’m developing a program to support people who have been made redundant under COVID under a joint Facebook Australia and Good2Give grant. None of which I would have done if I kept pushing the content > product > company route of so many before me.
There’s nothing wrong with that workflow and it certainly works for some amazing people out there. But I am an anarchist who room services and the opportunity to change the world one creative, punk experiment at a time.
And you know what? It’s paying off for me. I’m cheerfully working on the redundancy program. I have launched a group coaching program on accountability and creativity. The Patreon approach to freelance education is giving me so much joy. And I am really excited by my work with my current clients in death literacy, disability, open source and web services.
Want to work out your way of doing things better? Ask yourself-
1. What are you doing with your freelancing business that feels more like a chore than an exciting experiment in testing your abilities?
2. Are you drowning in the mush created by low hanging fruit that doesn’t excite you? What would you rather be doing?
3. What do you want your freelance business to say about you as a person?
4. What’s one thing you could do tomorrow to stretch your creative muscle and experiment on your freelance business that wouldn’t rely on a lot of time, big budgets or learning new skills?
How do you decide it’s time to let go?
Recently, I had someone walk away from a 25-year friendship because my Facebook posts supporting women’s rights made him unhappy and uncomfortable. I applaud his choice to do what he needed to do for himself. Not so much his choice to announce his departure in a series of abusive texts.
It’s important to recognise when it’s time to let go of a friendship, business, idea, anything before it becomes too much. It’s true not only of growing apart but also breaking up with clients, leaving Facebook groups and making a change.
Here’s how:
1. Check in with yourself on occasion. Ask yourself if what you are pursuing and maintaining still serves you, your values and your plans on a regular basis. A simple question might be “does this still serve me?”
2. Maintain perspective. If you’re starting to view someone or something as a drain, don’t write it off or make excuses. Sit down and write out those feelings. Make a list and dig into the pros and cons
3. Don’t try to control your way out of the situation. Realise that no matter how much you’ve invested in a situation, it’s OK to let it go. Let it go before you enter the stage of rumination, agitation and stagnation. And forget about the desire to teach someone a lesson as you exit. It’s never a great final impression and it’s kinder for all involved.
And remember, as you grow, it’s natural to lose the appetite for former great ideas, partnerships or a style of doing something. Embrace the growth and realise if you or others change, this is healthy. It’s a sign of progress.
What we shouldn’t give up on
COVID has given us some great benefits as freelancers. The ultimate one is probably how many companies are finally OK with remote work and freelancing working from home. Yet as COVID recedes, so too as the opportunities to work remotely.
We need to keep that fire stoked. Here’s a three part blog series on how we can define why working from home is important, how to make a case for remote work with big business and clients, as well as maintain telecommuting to normalise it using activism tactics.
How about you? What are wanting to let go of this Autumn?
What do you want to preserve?
How are you feeling when you reflect of 12 months on from COVID?
LMK your thoughts!
Until next time,
Rebekah
Want to find out more about the Freelance Jungle or the work I do?
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Check out my work as a freelancer in contingency, content,culture and coaching.
Thank you for being a constant inspiration & sharing your wisdom!
Thanks Bek, great to get those reading recommendations from someone we trust. I've done a massive email subscription purge so don't want to sign up to anything new for now - love that The Write Stuff allows you to browse first!