Four and a half years ago, I wrote a blog post. And amazingly, I still get people asking me about it to this day.
by Ben Capper
It was on the one-year anniversary of becoming a freelance comms consultant that I wrote it.
It seemed to resonate at the time and since. If you type “becoming a comms freelancer” into Google, it’s the first thing you see. (It’s true! Go and try it!)
I still have people DMing me asking me about it and asking for a chat for more advice when they’re at the beginning of their freelance careers; and I’m thrilled it has had such an impact and helped so many.
But I thought it was time for a follow up. As you can probably tell, I’m still doing it. But the past four and a bit years have included a global pandemic, some projects I’ve loved, some happy moments, some frustrations, some lessons (learned the hard way), and some great memories; so I thought it was about time to make some new reflections and observations:
Pretty much everything I said 5 years ago still applies
My job has changed a bit in five years. I now rarely call myself a “freelancer” anymore. I’ve been through the mindset shift to be an owner of a comms consultancy, that I also happen to be the lead consultant of. I talk in terms of “we” rather than “I” a lot more than I used to, as I do have a brilliant team of regular associates working on projects now, that I didn’t have at the beginning.
But whilst there has been change and growth, the basic fundamentals of that blog post remain the same. In particular I still absolutely live by the maxim of “be good, be nice, be visible”. This is something that I remind everyone of – and keep reminding myself of. And so far it seems to be a formula that works.
“Balance” – the eternal conundrum
It’s important to keep reminding yourself why you’ve embarked on this way of making a living. It might be down to pure naked ambition. But more likely it’ll be to do with how you want to live, and to create the right work-life balance.
When you’re pulling regular all-nighters and writing proposals on a Sunday morning, it can be difficult to remember those things. But it is important.
The problem is, achieving true “balance” remains very elusive for me at least.
You want enough work to feel financially secure. But not too much that you feel overwhelmed. You want a work life balance, but not so much tipped to “life” that you start worrying about where the next contract is coming from.
It’s basically like the process of eating an un-ripened avocado, where:
“Not ripe > Not ripe > Not ripe > Briefly Ripe > Rotten.”
becomes:
“Not enough work > not enough work > not enough work > Enough work > Too much work.”
I have come to an accommodation with the idea of balance. And for me it works like this:
When I’m working, I commit to it 100%. I think about it all the time, and work until I fall into bed shattered. If working all night is what it takes, that’s what I’ll do.
But when I do have time off; I guard it jealously. I switch off completely. I don’t check emails. I don’t reply to WhatsApps.
It’s the only way, so far, I’ve figured out how to do the “balance” thing.
Maybe you have a better way. If so I’d love to hear about it…
A note on “Ghosting”
As consultants, it’s something we have to deal with a lot, and it can be really frustrating.
It works a bit like this: you send a proposal in on the back of a really positive conversation. All the good vibes are there, and then…… tumbleweed. Indefinite tumbleweed. Weeds tumbling inexorably into the eternal void.
The thing is: I / we understand that things change. Sometimes the quote is too expensive. Sometimes, there’s a change of plan, or a change of heart. Sometimes, the decision is delayed.
Whilst it’s always a bit disappointing when you get a knock-back; at least you can deal with it, reflect, take positives from it, and move on. It’s the not hearing anything, the ignored emails, the void, that is really hard.
So my plea to our lovely clients is: if a quote or a proposal isn’t fitting the bill, or there’s a change of plan, please just let us know. We can handle it, and we can try to do better next time.
And my advice to new consultants is: this is a frustrating part of the job that you may need to get used to.
There are good weeks and bad weeks – they both pass
I highly recommend this career move to anyone. But like any job, it has its ups and downs.
I have had moments where I have questioned whether this was the right career for me, no doubt. But these have passed.
I’ve had a lot more moments where I haven’t been able to believe my luck. There have been a few “pinch me” moments where I really feel like I’ve truly “made it”. But these have passed too.
And that’s the point, nothing is permanent in our world. The good times pass, as do the bad times. The trick is to make the most of the good, and learn from the bad.
And try to have more good than bad.
Sometimes a project just isn’t right for you
Over the past five and a half years, I’ve taken on probably 50-60 different projects.
Of these 50-60, I can point to 2 (two) that for various reasons I’ve pulled out of half-way through.
I don’t think that’s a bad record in the grand scheme of things. But I do still spend a long time stewing over those 2 projects.
My opinions on them and why they went awry are for private conversations. But fundamentally, you do just have to accept that sometimes, a project just isn’t quite right for you.
Ideally you should come to this conclusion before you take something on. But if not, it might just be that there’s a personality clash. That’s rare, but it does happen. It might be that the practicalities just don’t work out for you. As much as you might wish them away, things like taking on a project that requires regular in-person meetings in Cornwall when you live in the Orkney Islands are inevitably going to cause issues.
So it happens. It’s not worth beating yourself up over, but it is worth learning from.
Thoughts, Ben?
One feature of being a “business owner” in a particular location with a profile on LinkedIn stating as much, is the seemingly endless deluge of spam emails you get from “appointment booking” people – promising they can secure meetings with hundreds of perfect clients, with big, open wallets.
They all make cursory attempts at personalisation: the classic of the genre being an email with a subject line that says: “Thoughts, Ben?”
Some of them get a bit more sophisticated with stuff like:
“Great work you’re doing in marketing and communications in Liverpool, England, with Grey Fox Communications & Marketing Ltd”
I even got one recently that started with “Really excited to see how Liverpool FC perform this season in the English Premier League.” They were lucky I don’t support Everton.
These emails do seem remarkably resilient to Junk Mail filters. I must learn their secret…
It’s not impolite to chase the money you’re owed
One thing I can confirm after five years is that the basic formula of of “find work, do work, get paid, repeat” very much remains central to everything.
You do ultimately have bills to pay and at least one mouth to feed. And as things grow, so do your expenses. Some of them may relate to people you’ve brought into projects. Some of them may relate to our good friends at HMRC.
All of these expenses are non-negotiable. You don’t have the choice of paying them late.
So you shouldn’t be expected to be paid late either.
As part of my rule to “be nice”, I always make sure I agree a payment schedule up front that works for the client, and I’ll always be as flexible as possible to ensure that they’re happy with what we agree. I do also understand that sometimes navigating procurement systems in large organisations can be (almost) as frustrating for them as us.
But if something is behind schedule, or looks like it might become behind schedule, I am not remotely squeamish about chasing the payment: and do become like a dog with a bone over the issue until it’s resolved.
As a small (very small) business, predicting cash flow is vital to our ongoing survival, so if our clients want and need us to keep supporting them with all the expertise, creativity and vigour that we do, we need to be paid on time.
And there’s nothing wrong with (politely, respectful, but confidently) reminding people of that, when necessary.
The freelance consultant community continues to blow me away with its generosity, brilliance, and general loveliness.
I’ve made new friends and colleagues during this journey, and it hasn’t felt lonely at all.
There is a particular group of us that share our successes and frustrations via a WhatsApp group, and Zoom gatherings, that continues be a source of inspiration, good humour, and occasional off-loading.
It was a lifeline during the pandemic, and continues to be a source of comfort knowing that there are others out there with similar worries, and motivations.
So I asked them to contribute some of their reflections to this blog post too:
Tamara Makoni – Create your own routines
Allow yourself to break out of old habits and establish routines that work for you. For instance, it took me a long time to break out of feeling like I had to be behind my laptop from 9-6, even if I'd finished everything on my plate by 4. The joy of not having a boss is getting to set your own rules! (It's also having to take full accountability when things don't go to plan, so be kind to yourself and remember humans aren't wired to get everything right first time Allow yourself to break out of old habits and establish routines that work for you. For instance, it took me a long time to break out of feeling like I had to be behind my laptop from 9-6, even if I'd finished everything on my plate by 4. The joy of not having a boss is getting to set your own rules! (It's also having to take full accountability when things don't go to plan, so be kind to yourself and remember humans aren't wired to get everything right first time
Menna Davies – Make time to talk
Make time to talk to other freelancers, to share ideas, thoughts, frustrations. It's so helpful to talk things through.
Georgia Turner – Believe in yourself, daily
Don’t lose sight of why you opted for a freelance life. Whether that’s choice over clients and work focus, a better work-life balance or to experience increased variety of workplace cultures and environments - or something else. And believe in yourself daily, even during the quieter times, because you will have them.
Joanne Ford – All the conversations
Have all the conversations, whether that’s with potential clients/collaborators, or fellow freelancers to share experiences and ideas.
Try to resist (if you can afford too) saying yes to everything that comes your way and have a clear sense of what you DON’T want to do
Amanda Coleman – Be clear on your values
Be clear on your values and check them over time. Mine have changed since I started this. And to have a dogged belief that you can make it work.
Paul Masterman….(via Alex Horne)
Don’t worry, it’ll be alright
Darren Caveney – My top three tips
1. Making it happen: I really believe you just know when you want to work for yourself. Do as much prep and planning as you can. Look, listen, take advice (join our consultants group) and if you believe that you can make it work financially just go for it. Don’t be like me and put it off for two years because of a mortgage and mouths to feed.
2. Have a plan – What is different about you and your offer? There are a lot of consultants out there so nailing what is unique about you is important. Don’t be shy with your day rates, build up a portfolio, understand what organisations need and – most importantly – identify the work you really enjoy/are best at and present your offer clearly and confidently.
3. Keeping afloat – My goal was always simple: Work with people I like, on projects I love and don’t let the house get repossessed. Nine years on as a one man band I have managed all of the above (touches wood) and never regretted the switch for a single moment.
…and here we are.
Five and a bit years into a journey, that continues to keep me awake at night, drive me crazy, and give me access to amazing opportunities and work with great people.
If I can make it past five years, so could you…
Ben Capper is founder and lead consultant at Grey Fox Communications and Marketing Ltd
*Sign up for the comms2point0 eMag*
The comms2point0 eMag features exclusive new content, free give-aways, special offers, first dibs on new events and much, much more.
Sound good? Join over 3.4k other comms people who have subscribed. You can sign up to it right here
image created by Ben via AI in Canva
