You might already be successful.
Feeling down because you didn’t reach your 2021 freelance revenue goals?
Take heart my friend because you’re more successful than you realize – you’re just ignoring the three other milestones of freelance success that aren’t bragged about on social media.
After reaching the 6 figures per year mark in my freelance business, I’ve realized there are far more valuable indicators of success…
And I had hit them far before my revenue goals.
Revenue is only one metric
If all you do is base your success on the dollars you earn each month, you’re ignoring the main perks of freelancing.
You started freelancing for loftier goals didn’t you? So why only use this one benchmark for your progress? When you think about it, freelancing offers a wide variety of metrics we can use to determine how well we’re doing year after year.
Free Time
You value your freedom. So why don’t you track the amount of free time you have?
If you’re making progress, this number should be going up with each passing year, allowing you to have more time for family, side projects, and self-development.
Creative Freedom
Micromanaging bosses and having no say in the tasks you do each day (shudder)
Remember how much you hated working for someone else? Being a freelancer means you have more creative control over the projects you work on. The ratio of creative freedom to task fulfillment should be a key metric you track in your level of success.
Client Trust
“Just do what you do best – I trust you!”
How we ache to hear those words from our clients. The level of trust your clients have in you grows over time – and should be a clear indicator of your progress. It might be tougher to track, but this metric makes a huge difference in your quality of life as a freelancer.
It’s not ALL about the Benjamins
While I’ll never say revenue doesn’t matter, there are some decidedly more important perks of being a freelancer. These metrics often show up far more frequently and – more importantly – sooner than revenue in our freelancing.
These three are the indicators which show you’re doing far better than you realize.