Making a success of anything in life can largely come down to forming healthy and productive daily habits. The Japanese even have a word for this way of thinking; they call it ‘Kaizen’.
For example, we know that incorporating exercise into our everyday lives makes us feel fitter and better and benefits us in the short and long term.
But forming favorable habits is not just beneficial from a health perspective; the things we habitually do in other aspects of life and business can, over time, have a positive cumulative effect and pay off handsomely.
Here are 9 habits you can set in motion right now to set yourself up for success as a freelancer.
1. Follow up
Still waiting to hear back from a prospective client? Waiting to hear feedback from a current one? Need to chase a client to pay an invoice but haven’t gotten around to it? Don’t be shy. Follow up. Follow up. Oh, and… Follow up!
People are busy, and your prompt may be just the thing they need to nudge them into action. Especially when it comes to winning new business – following up with clients is key. It shows that you take their – and your business – seriously. So, make it a habit to always follow up.
When it comes to chasing invoices, with the Invoice Ninja Pro Plan, you can create custom email reminders to prompt your clients before or after invoices are due to ensure you get paid.
2. Market your business
Try to proactively promote yourself and your business in some way or another every single day.
This is a habit you won’t regret and can help lessen the chances of experiencing the notorious freelancer feast and famine cycle. It doesn’t have to be anything significant either; it can be a short social media post (that you can schedule in advance), connecting with potential clients or peers on LinkedIn, or helping your ideal clients out by sharing a valuable tip relevant to them that solves a problem.
In-person networking is also a great way to promote your services, build valuable connections, and keep you top of mind. You may also want to consider email marketing – so you can communicate with people who want to hear from you and are interested in your offer directly to their inbox.
3. Keep informed
Keeping up to date with developments in your field of expertise, niche, or industry is a helpful habit to adopt.
Whether it’s a daily review of industry news or keeping your ear to the ground via social media, knowing about current developments will mean you can help clients with their issues, develop solutions and products that solve them, and generally be known as the go-to expert in your field.
Just make sure you don’t get sucked in for hours on social media unless it’s doing something productive to help your business.
4. Have a routine
To be as productive as possible, it’s essential to set priorities by having a schedule and a to-do list in place. Otherwise, you can be easily thrown by other distractions or work that comes in. In addition to your to-do list and priority schedule, consider blocking off time for deep work so you can stay focused on one thing.
You could also consider developing a ritual for starting your working day. It could be something like ensuring you have your favorite beverage, some relaxing music, or the first task you cross off your to-do list. Likewise, at the end of your working day, consider a ‘final task’ so you know you are transitioning out of the working day – this is especially useful if you are working from home.
5. Review systems, processes, and workflows
If you regularly review processes and workflows, you’ll be better able to swiftly identify any potential roadblocks, productivity sucks and time wasters, as well as any systems that need to be updated. You’ll then be better positioned to determine what you can outsource, automate or hire a VA to perform – saving you time and, therefore, money.
Take invoicing, for example. The last thing you probably want to do at the end of your busy working day is time-consuming paperwork – even if it involves invoicing your clients so you can get paid!
Fortunately, good invoice software makes invoicing simple, seamless, and fast.
Invoice Ninja is a leading free invoicing software for small business invoicing, online payments, tracking expenses and billable tasks. It also includes attractive, professional invoice template designs you can customize with your logo and brand colors.
Try Invoice Ninja for free at the link here.
6. Ask for testimonials
After you’ve worked with a client (or even during), always remember to ask for a testimonial.
This should be a natural part of your workflow. Testimonials can be a super powerful way of promoting your business, social proof, and winning even more business. You don’t have to limit yourself to written testimonials, either. You could ask for a short video testimonial, create a case study, or ask for a referral.
If your client hasn’t got the time to provide a testimonial, you can draft it yourself and get them to approve it. The benefit of this is that you can ensure the testimonial is about the results and wins you got for your client – as opposed to them just writing something nice and flowery about your personality alone.
7. Declutter your workspace
Taking time to ensure your workspace is decluttered and tidy is a great habit to get into. Working in an unorganized and messy space can slow you down and even lead to errors.
You don’t have to go completely minimalist, either. Just ensure things are neat and tidy and you know where everything is – this also goes for your online files.
If you need help with this, you can hire a professional organizer to help.
8. Review your prices
Schedule time to review your prices on a routine basis. It could be at the start of the new year or some other fiscally relevant date. Otherwise, you could be undervaluing and undercharging for your services.
Likewise, a change in your industry may mean you are no longer competitive or the services you offer need to change. Keeping on top of pricing is a key determiner of retaining a positive and healthy cash flow.
9. Plan time out
Finally, don’t forget to reward yourself for all your hard work and schedule time to take time out and focus on your health and well-being; this is all part of being a successful, well-rested and nourished freelancer and this, along with all the other habits will contribute to your further success.
But remember, with all the above, to make them habits, you need to be consistent.
To your success!