October marked the 1-year anniversary of me going freelance.
It’s been an interesting transition, with a lot of ups and downs and lessons
learned along the way. I decided to work from home so that I could have a more
flexible schedule for my kids.
I’m not shy to admit that I’m good at my job. I am deadline-driven and self-motivated, so I have no problems getting up in the morning and getting right to work. I set a goal for myself each day, and when I achieve that goal, I’m done. Some days I’m done super early, others I work my full 8 hours. The great thing about being freelance is that I have that ability. I don’t have someone looking over my shoulder and breathing down my neck or a set schedule that forces me to be in an office.
While there are some amazing things about freelancing, there are some cons—as you can imagine. The biggest one I’ve seen is expectations. For some reason, there seems to be this notion that as a skilled writer, I should also be perfect, that my work should always pass by editors needing little correction.
I’m not sure where or how this idea got started, but it’s amazingly false. I mean, isn’t that why editors exist in the first place? To catch mistakes before things go to the client or get published? I get that I have to do a read through before I sent my documents along, and I do, but things will still slip by. I’m human. It’s part of my nature.
While I’m happy to say that I’m good at my job, I’ve never once claimed to be perfect at it. I have good days and bad, and on bad days, I struggle to write. My sentences come out sounding like complete garbage. I try to fix what I can, but—again—isn’t that why we have editors?
I love my relationship with editors. They are amazing people who make me sound coherent and smart. Working together, we create a piece that audiences want to read. The key here is working together. Both of us have to do our parts.
I understand that editors get overwhelmed and busy. I’ve been there, done that. But to expect that a writer is going to turn in perfect work every single time, that’s just unrealistic. And getting upset and rude about it isn’t going to change the situation.
One of the amazing things about freelancing is that I have the choice of who I work with. Even online, you will find toxic people (what?! That’s just crazy talk!). However, since I can move from one job to another, I don’t have to stick around and put up with their abuse. It’s a big world out there, and people always need a dedicated writer.
I’m not sure when “skilled” became synonymous with “perfect,” but it’s not something that only exists in the writing world. I’ve seen it other places as well. When you expect employees to be perfect, you’re always going to be disappointed.
Instead, look for someone who is willing to learn from their mistakes and improve. Everyone has bad days. Everyone is going to turn in shite at some point in time. The goal isn’t to berate or disrespect them. The goal should be to let them know what needs to be fixed and give them the tools to learn. That is going to go a lot further than threats.
