The 6-Figure Freelancer Podcast | Freelancing | Entrepreneurship | Clients | Finances | Motivation | Personal Development | Mindset – Détails, épisodes et analyse

After 243 episodes, The 6-Figure Freelancer podcast is coming to an end.

Manifesting your future is something that I talk about regularly, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t follow that advice myself, as I move from being a six-figure freelancer to a seven-figure CEO. 

In this final episode, I want to say thank you to all of you who have listened and supported this podcast, as well as talk a little bit about why I’m ending the show and what’s next for me and my team. 

“I'm sure one day I might go back and listen to all my podcast episodes, see how I've changed as a public speaker, as a podcaster, as a teacher, as someone who shares things with people. You know, it's going to be so cool to see how I've changed and how I've grown. And I'm glad that this little place on the internet can be that archive, that little memento from the time where I ran a multiple-six-figure agency.” ~ @AvaniMiriyala

• When something is out of alignment, recognize it, and take the steps needed to fix it. 
• I’m no longer a six-figure freelancer which is why I’ve decided to end this chapter of my life. 
• Sharing is a huge part of learning. I’ve learned so much from the process of making and sharing this podcast. Every time we share something or teach something to someone else, we learn it even more, and that is a magical process.
• As you move into different patterns of your life, it’s important to protect your energy, set boundaries, and invest in yourself so that you can show up for your team. 

• Podcast Royale

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Selling a business is something many entrepreneurs dream about. While some are content to own and operate their own business for the long-term, others set out with the goal to eventually sell or exit the business to pursue other interests. But just because you’re ready to sell your business doesn’t mean it’s the right move or that the process will be easy. 

Josh Hall, the founder of Josh Hall Design, joins me today to talk about how he built and sold a design business, and the journey he took to get to this point in his career. 

As with many web designers, Josh’s path was a seemingly unlikely one. He started out as a cabinet maker for custom tour busses while he was also pursuing a career as a musician. But when the financial crisis in 2008 hit, he was laid off from his job and started diving into design as a way to create his band’s merch. 

Through word of mouth, Josh was getting freelance design gigs, which turned on a lightbulb for him: he could actually make money doing the design work he enjoyed so much. He started researching business concepts and marketing and his business took off. 

Now that Josh has sold his design business, his focus is on creating courses and a community to help coach other web designers on how to create and run a profitable business. 

In this episode, Josh and I talk about his perspective on selling a business, how to put the right barriers in place while building a business, and what to look for when you are thinking about changing paths. 

“For anyone who's interested in selling a business, I heard this analogy a while back and I love it. They call it income vines. It's like you're swinging from vine to vine. And if you're going to leave this vine and jump over to this one, you want to make sure it's strong and you're not going to go plummeting to the ground.” ~ Josh Hall

• There’s no right path. Everyone does their job differently and everyone can create their own futures and carve out their own niche.
• Look for red flags that are telling you to change direction. There’s no rule that says you have to stay married to your business forever. 
• When you sell something, it has to be able to work without you. If you’re building a business and it’s all about you, it will be hard to sell. 
• Be cautious when you quit your 9-5 job for your personal business. If you don’t put barriers in place and schedule appropriately, you might end up working 24/7 instead.
• If you plan on selling your business or otherwise exiting, make sure the new “vine” you’re planning on swinging to is strong enough to meet your financial needs. 

• Josh Hall
• Josh Hall Web Design Courses
• Built to Sell: Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You by Josh Warrillow 
• Josh on Facebook
• Josh on YouTube

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We’ve spent some time talking about taking your quantum leap in your life and business. But how do you get yourself ready to do that? To set the stage for success, let’s talk about how to prepare for your quantum leap in life and in business. 

If you’re unfamiliar with the quantum leap, it’s essentially a shift in mindset that allows you to operate as a desired version of your future self, today.

I’ve had some interesting things align lately and much of that was possible because I spent time preparing for that shift. There have been a lot of behind the scenes changes, internal growth, and a lot of new habits that I've been cultivating. These tips and tricks will help you start your quantum leap today.

“Feelings can turn around an entire day. They can turn around an entire week, a month, a year. They can turn around an entire life, and that's why holding the vision and trusting the process, knowing that all you need to do is feel the feelings you want to feel is important.” ~ @avanimiriyala

• Look inward and have affirmation rampages. Journal, reflect, and spend some time with yourself to know what kind of person you want to be after your quantum leap. 
• Things won’t change unless you change them and you won’t be able to do the same things that got you to where you are today to take you to the next level. 
• Create an action plan. Sit down and write out your steps for going through this process. 
• Hold the vision. Trust the process, know that it's working out, and know that everything's happening in your favor. 

• Amanda Frances

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We’ve all had coffee meetings where we sit down with someone just to “pick your brain”. Today, we’re talking about why those meetings are actually super important, and how you can maximize your ROI from a simple get-together.

We’ll dive into some strategies to help you make sure your meetings have a purpose, and both parties get value. While these meetings are important, you want to make sure that no one leaves feeling like it was a waste of time or that it was all give and no take. These meetings should be mutually beneficial. It is totally possible to make these kinds of meetings mutually beneficial and valuable for your business.

“Prepare ahead of time and go into this meeting with a list of questions and ideas that you want to discuss and talk about. You should be going into that meeting knowing exactly what to say and how to say it confidently.”

Why are you asking this person to meet? You need to know exactly what you want to walk away with, and it’s important to begin with the end in mind because you don’t want to waste your time or theirs.

Go into this meeting with a list of questions and ideas that you want to discuss and talk about. Don’t get caught saying, “um”, and “uh”, when you’re in front of someone that you’re asking for advice. You should be going into the meeting knowing exactly what to say and how to say it confidently.

You called the meeting, you lead the meeting. This will come naturally if you prepare ahead of time, but don’t make it feel like the person you’re asking advice from needs to keep the conversation going. Lead the meeting confidently so you get what you want out of it.

If you’re prepared, go back over your questions and make sure that they’re intelligent. These questions need to be crafted so that you can extract as much information in as little time as necessary. No one likes to sit around and talk about the weather.

This person took time out of their busy schedule to talk to you for a set amount of time. Don’t make them feel like they are the ones that need to wrap up the meeting because you’re talking so much. Have a plan to end the meeting so they don’t feel like they have to.

A “thank you” goes a long way. I recommend thanking them on the spot, and then sending a follow-up email thanking them for taking time to meet with you. They’re giving you the gift of information, and that’s worth saying thanks for. This will give you the bonus of being remembered by that person in the future.

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You are your own boss, so why are you still working the same hours as a corporate gig? Today, we’re going to talk about why the 40-hour work week is obsolete and inefficient. As entrepreneurs, we just don’t need it any more. You can get as much work done (if not more) in less time! Why are we holding ourselves to a standard that is obsolete and doing it in our businesses where we’re our own bosses?

The standard work week is built on early industrial organizations where it was more efficient for companies to operate within a set number of hours, and owners wanted to get the most physical possible from each employees. This is not the age we live in any longer. Automation and technological advancements have made this mindset outdated and obsolete.

These six simple steps will liberate you from an old-fashioned working stigma and put your wants and needs first.

“Let’s make sure that we have a life and we design our lives in a way that our business fits in and not the other way around.”

In this episode Avani talks about:

• Where the 40-hour work week came from and why it’s irrelevant in today’s world.
• How you, as an entrepreneur, are different than a 9-5 employee.
• Why you need to take back your time from work, and how it will benefit your life.

I think theme days are really game changing because it allows us to focus on certain things and think a certain way on those specific days. If you are constantly switching the way you’re thinking, you’re losing energy! Try and group all your similar tasks for one day, so you can make the most of your mindset.

Take a step back from your busy schedule and find out what is important to you, then design your week around that. Life is too short to be completely consumed by your work. Put yourself and your health first.

We’re not always going to have great ideas or feel creative, and that’s ok. It’s ok to work during nontraditional hours. If you feel that creative surge coming on, take advantage of it and get some work done, even if it’s outside regular business hours.

Take charge of your time and don’t procrastinate. If you’re at your desk, eliminate distractions and focus on your tasks. One hour can be equivalent to three hours of a typical 9-5 employee if you concentrate.

This one is critical. If you don’t put a hierarchy around your tasks, there’s no way you will be able to organize what you need to be working on right now. Figure out the ROI for your tasks and organize them appropriately.

A million emails can feel overwhelming. You need to go through and triage your inbox and figure out what is actually important and what is just stressing you out. Figure out who needs responses and what can go in the trash. It will lighten your load significantly.

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If you’re anything like me, you’re a perfectionist. This is great in a lot of ways and can really help your business grow, but sometimes you need to throw caution to the wind and stop being a perfectionist and people pleaser.

In this episode, we’re going to talk about five ways you can stop being a perfectionist and why it matters. Carve out some time to listen to this episode even if you have work to do because you need to hear it!

“We can ditch the idea of being a perfectionist and get better. We should strive to be imperfect.”

In this episode Avani talks about:

• Why you should learn to put yourself first in a non-selfish way.
• How she learned to deal with letting people down.
• How focusing on yourself sometimes can benefit others.

You can’t hold yourself responsible for other people’s actions or feelings. If you say no to a client, you don’t need to feel bad that they have to find someone else. You are going to let some people down and you need to be ok with that.

If you’re an over achiever, sometimes it’s ok to take the easy route and do the bare minimum. I guarantee no one will notice. It’s a great way to eliminate some of your stress.

Everyone is human. Your clients will understand if you need a break, you’re sick, or if you’re on vacation. Give them the opportunity to accommodate your “you time”. They will understand.

It’s ok to take a long lunch. It’s ok to not work 40 hours a week. It’s ok to breathe! Make sure that you are taking some time and not working yourself to death.

Vacation is important. It’s a great way to recharge and your clients will understand that you’re out of the office. You don’t need to punish yourself to please them, so get out there and take a trip!

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In this episode, we’re talking about one of my favorite things on the planet: Instagram. More specifically, Instagram Stories.

I was checking my numbers and I realized that in the last 12 months alone I have had $35,000 of work come in just through Instagram stories. That is a crazy amount of money! I truly believe that stories are the most valuable part of the whole Instagram platform.

Today, I wanted to talk about exactly how that’s working for me, what I do in order to create relationships with people through Instagram Stories, and how you can play the long game on Instagram.

Instagram doesn’t have to work the same for each and every person. It depends on who you are and what you like and what you’re hoping to accomplish with your business and the platform itself. This is just what has worked for me.

“Clients or prospects feel like they know you and they like you because they keep watching you and they want to work with you somehow. So when you show them ‘hey, this is what I do on Instagram Stories’ and show behind the scenes, they’re going to be wowed.”

Consistency is key. It doesn’t matter if you have great content or not, it could be something basic or simple. Just make sure that you are posting something that your audience can engage with.

Anything interesting that you experience in your day-to-day you should document. You don’t need to make something super interesting, just capture what’s going on in your every day life.

Videos with sound have very high rates of engagement on IG Stories. So it’s important to show up on video, with sound, with your face at least a couple of times a week. And remember that analytics are important and you should be checking them.

Your brand is who you are. You need to live it and show it off on Stories if you want to keep engagement up. People are interested in the little personal things that make you your brand. Make sure to show off bits of your day that make you, you!

Instagram has a lot of ways to get people engaged. Whether its polls or sliders or anything else they have, use these so that people will interact with your content. Post these frequently so that you stay at the top of people’s minds.

Don’t just let comments and messages fall by the wayside. Respond. It’s not hard to explore people’s profiles and find out a little bit about them and craft a meaningful response to something they said. This is how new clients are made.

• Get The Client Magnet Roadmap
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Today’s guest is Ashlee Hightower. Ashlee is an attorney for creatives and the owner of Contracts for Creatives as well as Cobalt Chronicles. In this episode, she talks about what we’re missing in our contracts as freelancers, as well as what we need to do to protect ourselves, protect our businesses, and make sure we’re getting the most out of our contracts.

Ashlee began her career as an attorney working at a large, national law firm. After a few years, she moved into the corporate world (freeing up a lot of her time) and began reading local blogs to find out about things going on in her city, Washington D.C.

Intrigued by the idea of a blog, Ashlee started her own travel and wellness blog. This foray into the creative world allowed Ashlee to connect with more creatives in the D.C. area. She soon realized that many of them were having trouble with contracts, or were afraid of them, because they seemed to complicate the creative process.

As people began to come to her with questions about contracts, word got out and her new business, Contracts for Creatives, was born.

This episode is crucial. It’s one of those things you don’t want to mess around with in your freelance business and that’s why I brought Ashlee onto the show. She has all the education, the background, the knowledge to give us the right advice to create the best contracts we can.

“In the creative space, it’s very important that the intellectual property rights are outlined thoroughly in your contract and that you’re aware of what rights you’re giving away to a client.”

• Her background in law and how she ended up in the creative space
• What a contract is in its most basic form and the biggest mistakes creatives are making in their contracts
• How freelancers can keep themselves safe through their contracts

• A contract is just a simple document outlining the collaboration between two parties. Make sure every detail, especially payment plans, are in your contract and that there is no confusion on what you’ll be delivering and how and when you will get paid.
• Be very specific about details in your contract and make sure that you give yourself a way out.
• Expect red lines (changes) to the contracts that you send over to your clients. It’s a normal process and can actually benefit you. Pick your battles and decide if it the changes are worth potentially losing a client.

• Cobalt Chronicles
• Contract for Creatives

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What does it mean to really listen to our clients? Have you ever gone back to a client asking for more clarification or a seeking a better understanding of the project even though you’ve already had a meeting?

Here are fives strategies that I think will change the way you listen to your clients. They are effective, easy steps you can take to impress your clients right from the get go, and make your freelancing life a lot easier.

“Listen to them [your customers] in order to deliver better, higher quality work that actually moves the needle for them. And then, in turn, you.”

Questions don’t make you look dumb, they make you look like you care, and that you want to deliver the best possible product you can. So, ask away, because you will need that information.

Don’t assume your clients are writing things down. Take notes in every meeting and even send out action items afterward if needed. Taking notes is critical in making sure you’ve captured all possible, relevant information that was given during a meeting.

A great way to show that you’re listening well is to repeat back in your own words what you hear your clients saying (a good way of asking questions as well). This shows them that you grasp the concept and you understand what you will be working on with them.

Interrupting shows that you’re thinking about what you want to say and not what the client is saying. Wait for the right break in the conversation to make your point, but focus on listening!

Sometimes, even after implementing all your listening strategies, you need to look for what’s not being said. Connect the dots and dig a little deeper with your client so that you can get a full picture of their needs.

• Seven Thousand Ways to Listen: Staying Close to What Is Sacred by Mark Nepo
• Chris Sacca’s Tweet on taking notes

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Today’s guest is Shaylene Cameron. Shaylene is a sales consultant for service-based entrepreneurs, helping them transform their limiting beliefs around success, and teaching them how to sell high-ticket services without feeling “salesy”.

Shaylene started in the health and wellness industry as a personal trainer, quickly moving into a management role. Over time, she hired 12 trainers and drove one million in sales. At that point, she envisioned climbing the corporate ladder in that space and moved across the country to pursue that path.

However, she quickly lost interest in the corporate world, so she jumped ship and started her own business. Not something she ever intended on doing - at least not so early in her life.

Today, she helps female entrepreneurs develop the mindset and habits necessary to have a high performing business without having to sacrifice who they are or what it is that they want. She’s passionate about helping others understand their limiting beliefs about themselves and money, and works to help her clients create an abundance mindset.

We talk about the limiting beliefs we have around money, and dive into some tips on how to throw out those beliefs and create a healthy relationship with money.

“Whether somebody is really wealthy or somebody doesn’t have a lot of wealth, we should be able to come to a place where we’re fairly neutral about how we feel about our finances.”

In this episode Shaylene talks about:

• Why our relationship with money is important.
• How to change your limiting beliefs around money.
• Recognizing toxic thought patterns and how to shift away from them.

• As entrepreneurs, we don’t always have the benefit of a steady paycheck, so it’s important to satiate our fundamental need for security by understanding where our money comes from and how it works.
• Write down your limiting belief, and then the opposite of that belief. Support both with three pieces of evidence and then rate them zero to 10. This will help you create new space in your mind for a positive attitude about money.
• Money doesn’t buy happiness. If you find yourself defining your worth by your earnings, check it and work to shift it toward a more abundant mindset.

• Shaylene Cameron Mentoring
• Shaylene on Instagram
• Real Business | Real Talk
• Happy Pocket Full of Money
• Mind Your Business Podcast

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