Today’s guest is Eman Ismail, an email strategist and copywriter who is originally from England and now lives in Finland. She also coaches copywriters. 

Eman is the person to call when you want to make money from your emails. As an email conversion strategist and copywriter, she helps six-figure-plus online business owners and ecommerce brands fire up their conversions, evergreen their sales and turn fans into superfans.

Eman is also the host of the podcast Mistakes That Made Me, which asks extraordinary business owners to share their biggest business mistake, so you know what NOT to do on your road to success.

I confess I had trouble coming up with a title for this episode because we cover a lot of ground and Eman shares such great advice and lessons. We talk in-depth about finding your niche and figuring out who the perfect clients are for you. Eman also goes into great detail about her intake form, which weeds out all the not-right clients. 

In this episode, we talk about: 

• How Eman niched down from a copywriter to an email strategist
• How finding your niche is not the only way to be successful but is perhaps the fastest way
• Try a bit of everything at first — your niche will often find you
• Don’t get distracted by going after the niche where you think you can charge the most; you have to enjoy your niche also
• How defining your core values as a business owner helps you focus your business goals
• Switching from monthly income goals to quarterly income goals
• Paying yourself first, with the same amount every two weeks or every month
• How Eman prepared for maternity leave
• Defining and focusing intently on the clients that are right for you
• Creating a detailed intake form so sales calls happen only with the right clients
• How to go from an intake form to the sales call to landing the client
• Tips for freelancers when creating their own email newsletters 
• Why Eman records all her sales calls
• Eman’s podcast Mistakes That Made Me 

Biz Bite: Session Buddy

(Google Chrome extension to save your tabs)

Resources:

Eman is offering Deliberate Freelancer listeners 50% off her A Week of Workshops bundle. Go to the link for more information. Click through to checkout and use coupon code: EMAN-MEL-PODCAST.

Eman’s website: Emancopyco.com

Eman’s free 35-minute class The Email Rules

Eman’s Like a Boss course about the business side of running a copywriting business. 

“Preparing for Maternity Leave with Eman Ismail” on the Being Boss podcast

Eman’s podcast Mistakes That Made Me 

Eman on Instagram

Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group. 

Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee.

On today’s show, I discuss how I found myself in the dreaded “famine” part of the feast-or-famine cycle and what I’m trying to do about it.

Here’s what I share with you in this episode:

• A few tips when you’re in the “feast” phase.
• How to tell clients no — and turn down work when you’re too busy. 
• My three-pronged approach to get out of the famine stage. 
• The importance of figuring out where your potential clients are and getting involved in that space.
• The upcoming Content Marketing World, which will be outside Cleveland, Ohio, for the first time. It will be held in Washington, DC, September 27-28, 2023.
• The importance of my Always Be Marketing rule. 
• Asking yourself big picture questions surrounding “how did I get stuck in this famine stage?” 

Biz Bite: Use the two-minute rule to get things done

The Bookshelf: “Nora Goes off Script” by Annabel Monaghan

Resources:

• Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group. 
• Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee.
• Episode #158 of Deliberate Freelancer: My Four Client Wins and One Fail in Q1
• Content Marketing World, Washington, DC, September 27-28, 2023

Today’s guest is Ernie Smith, a longtime writer for nonprofits and membership associations. He also has a lot of experience in graphic design, content strategy, content management systems, newsletter creation, and content.

Ernie is also a tech writer — that includes writing about technology for Vice magazine — and Ernie is a self-proclaimed tech nerd. His name and voice might sound familiar because I just had him on the ChatGPT episode a few weeks ago. That was episode 156. 

So, I thought he was the perfect person to come on the show and introduce us to a variety of tech tools that we might want to try out for our businesses. 

We broke this discussion down into various categories of tools, ones that can help with writing, note-taking, audio recording, scheduling meetings, graphic design, and newsletter platform tools. Ernie shares dozens of tools and also talks a bit about the benefits of publishing our own newsletter. 

In this episode, we talk about: 

• Writing tools, including Markdown, Bear, Obsidian, iA writer, Lex AI
• Tool to synchronize programs between computers and phones: Syncthing
• Google Docs feature we might not be taking advantage of
• Note-taking tools: Markdown, Evernote, Notion
• Task management tools: Flow Pomodoro timer
• Meeting and interview recording: Otter.ai, Rev
• Audio routing: Loopback
• Scheduling meetings: Calendly 
• The benefits of publishing your own newsletter
• Newsletter platforms: Substack, Beehiiv, Ghost, Newsletter Glue (a WordPress plug-in)
• Graphic design tools: Canva, Pixelmator, Affinity Photo
• The importance of optimizing a few tools that are best for YOU

Resources:

• Ernie’s newsletter: Tedium.co
• Ernie on Twitter
• Ernie on Mastodon: @ernie@writing.exchange
• Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group. 
• Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee.
• Episode #156 of Deliberate Freelancer: The Risks and Opportunities of ChatGPT

On today’s show I discuss some client wins, a fail and some ongoing challenges in my freelance business so far in 2023. 

Here’s what I share with you in this episode:

• A win in which I didn’t dismiss the client because it wasn’t a straightforward proposal and I had to customize it. 
• A “bridge service” win, in which I took an existing service and skill I’m good at and went beyond it a bit, expanded it to create a new, great project.
• A win in which I fired a client that forced me to often track down payments.
• A win in progress in which I’m thinking through how to develop a three-tiered proposal, offering three options at different price points for one potential client who is unclear about the scope of work they need right now. 
• A “sort of” fail that reminded me of a few lessons.
• Three challenges I’m facing this year so far: working weekends, lack of consistent marketing, and a feast-or-famine cycle (no!!!!). 

Biz Bite: Consider your rubber balls versus your glass balls

(thanks to Alysha Love for sharing this at ACES)

The Bookshelf: “Wake” by Shelley Burr

Resources:

Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group. 

Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee.

Episode #153 of Deliberate Freelancer: My 2022 and Q4 Audit and Six Lessons from Last Year

ACES–the Society for Editing virtual conference: Sept. 27-29, 2023

ACES–the Society for Editing in-person conference: April 4-6, 2024, San Diego

Today’s guest is Eva Stabenow, a Pilates teacher and movement coach who helps freelance writers, translators and other desk workers heal their bodies through movement while continuing to pursue the work they love. 

In the early 2010s, after a successful career as a German medical translator, Eva began to suffer from severe shoulder and wrist pain caused by long hours at her desk. After years of searching, Eva finally found lasting relief through corrective Pilates. This inspired her to seek comprehensive training and help other writers find the same lasting relief and enjoy the lifelong health benefits of a tailored Pilates practice.

Today, in addition to empowering others to take charge of their health through movement, Eva works primarily as a health writer specializing in plain-language patient education.

I invited Eva on the show to talk about how Pilates — but also just movement and stretching and strength training is important for our bodies, especially for those of who sit for long periods of time. I don’t think our human bodies were meant to sit in chairs all day, and human evolution hasn’t caught up to the modern world. 

Eva shares with us a few things we can do throughout the day and in our lives, in general, to make our desk work less painful and better for our bodies and posture. 

In this episode, Eva talks about:

• What Pilates is
• How Pilates helped Eva realign her body and relieve pain
• What happens to our body alignment when we sit too long (forward head posture, back roundness, low back pain, tight hip flexors)
• Why it’s important to strengthen your upper back muscles and move more throughout the day
• Stretching alone isn’t usually enough to prevent pain. You need to work to strengthen certain muscles too. 
• We also need to focus on strengthening our feet and ankles. 
• Think of your body as a “walking building” with a strong foundation that moves. 
• The importance of incorporating movement throughout your day—move in all planes of motion. 
• The various types of Pilates and how to do it at home versus taking a group or private class
• Standing desks, treadmill desks and other “solutions” to modern desk work
• Pilates moves to do at your desk: Mermaid stretch, Pilates roll down
• How Pilates helps with mental health also
• Setting timers or booking classes or friend meetups to remind yourself to get up and move
• How to build movement and exercise into habits
• How to find a good Pilates studio and teacher  

Biz Bite: Make yourself and your physical health a priority. 

Resources:

• Eva’s website: Sunroom Pilates
• Eva on LinkedIn
• Eva’s Sunroom Pilates on Instagram
• Eva’s Sunroom Pilates on Facebook
• Physical therapist Melanie follows on Instagram and video of hip flexor strengthening exercise
• Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group. 

Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee.

Today’s episode features several guests who all have an interest in ChatGPT and generative artificial intelligence (AI). Their varying backgrounds and experiences in tech, writing and editing provide unique insights into the potential and risks of generative AI such as ChatGPT.  

ChatGPT has risks and opportunities. Most of us are hearing how ChatGPT plagiarizes, how we can’t fact-check what the sources are, and how formulaic and repetitive the writing is. But we also have to remember this is the first iteration of this program, and it—or others like it—will continue to improve. I don’t think it’s going away. 

We have to use ChatGPT with a lot of caution, but it does have benefits for freelancers right now, including helping you brainstorm and generate article and project ideas, do some research (as long as you fact-check it), and even write headlines. 

In today’s episode, my guests provide their unique insight into what all this means for freelancers. My guests are: 

1. Tori Liu, president and CEO of the Association for Intelligent Information Management
2. Ernie Smith, a writer for Manifest content marketing agency and a technology nerd
3. Michelle Rafter, a longtime freelance writer and former business reporter
4. Adrienne Montgomerie, a longtime freelance editor who teaches editing at Canadian universities
5. Ben Pines, director of content for AI21 Labs, which has developed its own generative AI tool called WordTune.

Resources:

• The Washington Post article that mentions that ChatGPT makes up information when it doesn’t know the answer (type “Vincent” to go right to that section): “We asked ChatGPT to plan the perfect tour of D.C. Here’s how it went.”
• Tori’s blog post: “Unpacking ChatGPT for the Information Management Industry”
• Ernie’s article in Vice: “Are Google and Bing’s Chat AI Going to Change Search Forever?”
• Adrienne’s series Editor Vs. AI
• Michelle’s LinkedIn posts
• AI21Labs’ WordTune
• Futurism article: “CNET’s AI Journalist Appears to Have Committed Extensive Plagiarism”
• The New York Times: “chatbot-microsoft-chatgpt.html">A Conversation With Bing’s Chatbot Left Me Deeply Unsettled”
• The Associated Press (AP) has been using AI since 2014! “Unlocking the power of AI: 6 lessons from AP for publishers”
• American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) virtual conference June 13-15

Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group. 

Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee.

Today’s guest is Michelle Jackson of Denver, Colorado. Michelle is a freelance content creator. She has been blogging, writing and talking about personal finance for the past decade—although she will tell us in today’s episode how she’s pivoting her business away from that. 

But, I’ve been following Michelle on Twitter for a while and learning from what she has to say about earning and managing money as a freelancer. So, I invited her to come on the show to talk about how we can prepare ourselves for uncertain times.

Many people are nervous right now about the economy, inflation and clients cutting back on work, so I hope this conversation will help you brainstorm potential new ventures ways to diversify your income. 

Michelle’s website, The Brand Building Lab is where, in her own words, she gets to “geek out about all things online entrepreneurship while uplifting voices of color and allies who are doing the work … but may not get on center stage for whatever reason.”

In this episode, Michelle talks about:

• Navigating uncertainty in the economy
• How freelancers underestimate the number of clients they need to sustain their business
• Why you always need systems to be bringing in new clients
• Relying too much on one client for your income
• Asking yourself: Who has the power in your business? 
• The importance of setting boundaries
• Understand how your clients make money and what the value is of your work versus what they are paying you
• Be intentional about the work you’re doing
• Why and how to diversify your income
• How to scale your expertise
• “Passive income isn’t passive until it’s passive”—it takes a long time to build up
• Getting comfortable with taking measured risks
• Apply for grants to support a project you want to pursue 

Biz Bites: Be clear about your priorities each quarter; batch work; diversify your income; prioritize you. 

Resources:

• Michelle’s website: BrandBuildinglab.com
• Michelle on Twitter
• Podcasters Getting Paid newsletter
• Michelle Is Money Hungry podcast
• Kaitlyn Arford’s freelance opportunities newsletter
• Grants for Creators
• Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group. 

Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee.

Today’s guest is Miranda Marquit. She lives in Idaho Falls, Idaho. Miranda has been writing and podcasting about money on a freelance basis since 2006. Her work has appeared in various media, including CNBC, NPR, Forbes, and TIME. 

She has a background in journalism and enjoys telling stories about finances and creating your own financial journey. Miranda has created a successful six-figure freelance career and recently released the second edition of her book about freelancing, “Confessions of a Professional Blogger.” She also developed a freelance writing course with two other successful freelancers, available on Gumroad. 

Another freelancer recommended Miranda for the show and when I was doing a bit of research, I came across this blog post she had written about creating your own benefits package as a freelancer — things like health insurance, retirement and paid time off. 

I liked how she framed that as a “benefits package.” I think that framing can help us start to plan for these types of things and put them all together into one package, not just randomly think about retirement and take vacations whenever. 

As a financial writer, Miranda is also quite knowledgeable about these areas, and in this episode, she dives into the details of various benefits. 

In this episode, Miranda talks about:

• When she began thinking of her freelancing as a business. 
• Why you should create your own benefits package as a solo business owner. 
• How to start to create a benefits package: look at your income and list the most important benefits you need to cover right now.
• You might not be able to have a full benefits package right now, but start to build one. 
• Start with health insurance (in the U.S. in particular). 
• Consider using a health savings account (HSA) — which provides a triple tax savings.
• Also consider: short-term and long-term disability. Disability coverage can be expensive, but see if your bank has any available plans or build your own “disability fund” or “emergency fund” as a savings account. 
• Why you need life insurance. 
• Know ahead of time what community resources are available if you need help. 
• Make retirement planning a priority and start now if you haven’t already. Even putting away $10 a week can add up. 
• Retirement options:
• Roth IRA (pay taxes now, no taxes when you withdraw the money)
• IRA and SEP IRA (deposit money now pre-tax, pay taxes when you withdraw money in retirement)
• Plan ahead for child care needs.
• Include vacation days in your benefits package (plan annually and in each quarter).  
• Build in deadline buffers, which can be helpful when you need to take a sick day. 
• Building good relationships with clients and always hitting deadlines makes it easier to ask for deadline extensions when you’re having an emergency. 

Biz Bite: Outsource tasks

Resources:

• Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group. 
• Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee.
• Miranda’s website
• Miranda on Twitter
• Miranda on Instagram
• Miranda’s book “Confessions of a Professional Blogger: How I make money as an online writer”
• Miranda’s courses for freelancers 
• Freelancers Union health plans
• Fidelity article: What is an HSA, and how does it work?
• Lively (company for HSAs)
• HealthEquity (company for HSAs)
• Forbes article: 5 Big Changes To Roth Accounts In Secure Act 2.0
• Betterment online investing company
• Can You Claim the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit?

I finally have had a moment to reflect on last year and look at my numbers. I reflect briefly, taking a qualitative look back, but this is mostly a quantitative look. 

Here’s what I share with you in this episode:

• My 2023 income goal (big and audacious!)
• My 2023 word of the year 
• A reflection on how 2022 was for me
• My Q4 recap, including an analysis of income and time tracking
• My 2022 total income 
• My weekly average number of hours worked last year
• The number of weeks of vacation I took (and one sick week)
• My number of clients and a reflection on “regular” clients vs. one-offs and anchor clients
• Why I fired one “good” client
• Six lessons learned—or gentle reminders I needed—from last year that might be helpful to you also

Biz Bite: Overestimate your time for deep work

The Bookshelf: “The Light Pirate” by Lily Brooks-Dalton

Resources:

• Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group. 
• Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee.
• Episode #152 of Deliberate Freelancer: How Mary Tindall Began to Earn $200,000 a Year as a Freelancer
• Episode #127 of Deliberate Freelancer: Embrace LinkedIn to Improve Your Business, with Atlas Katari
• Episode #147 of Deliberate Freelancer: My Q3 Audit—Grief, Brain Fog and Better Times Ahead
• Episode #139 of Deliberate Freelancer: A Solo Biz Retreat After a Struggling Summer
• Episode #137 of Deliberate Freelancer: I’m Grieving. How Can I Keep My Business Running?

Today’s guest is Mary Tindall. Mary launched Mary Tindall Communications in 2018. She is a content marketer and thought leadership strategist in Orlando, Florida. Mary leads a boutique agency team that specializes in healthcare content marketing, working with leading institutions and innovative startups across the U.S. 

Mary became a six-figure freelancer in 2020, which was a goal of hers. Then she grew even more and began to earn $200K in gross revenue on her own. As revenue continued to grow, she hired subcontractors to help with the workload and built a small agency model.

In this episode, Mary talks about:

• The key lessons that led her to earning $200K
• Her work and family structure
• How many hours she works
• Playing the comparison game
• Why getting confident as an expert on a sales call is so important
• The importance of following your energy—not mimicking someone else’s schedule
• Freelancers who are overly flexible or overly rigid
• What she struggles with 
• What her daily and weekly schedule looks like
• How she thinks through pricing projects (Hint: Get on the phone and get super clear on the scope of work)
• Figuring out her ideal client—what clients make your blood pressure rise versus the ones you love working with
• How she finds clients, particularly on LinkedIn

Biz Bite: Otter.ai transcription services

Resources:

Institute for Independent Journalists conference

Mary Tindal’s program Break Into B2B is a mentorship course for aspiring B2B health care writers. A new cohort will relaunch later this year. Join the waitlist by visiting her LinkedIn profile.

Mary’s website

Connect with Mary on LinkedIn

Email Mary

Join the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group. 

Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee.