Developing a Successful Freelance Writing Mindset

"What the mind of man can conceive, it can achieve"

That particular saying is attributed to both Napoleon Hill (1883-1970) and W. Clement Stone (1902-2002). Regardless of who said it first, they're both right.

Here's another one:

"Whether you think you can or not, you're right" - Henry Ford (1863-1947).

The common theme with both of these motivational quotes is that your own MIND can actually help or hinder your progress as you build your freelance writing business. The choice is yours which option your mind takes.

Let me paint you two scenarios and tell me if you identify with either of them.

Scenario One:

Writer 1 visited so many forums and social networking sites trying to find a way to make money online, but everyone she spoke to said that the best you can expect is 2 cents per page view on some revenue-share site. She gives it a shot and follows their advice and sure enough, she earns the quoted 2 cents per page view. It's not even enough to buy a cup of coffee at the end of the month.

She's now become very cynical about all those people falsely claiming that it's possible to earn any kind of real money from this writing thing. After all, everything she's looked into is either a scam or so low-paying that it's not worth the time or effort. She wakes up each day believing that it can't be done - and guess what? She's right.

Scenario Two:

Writer 2 decided to try and find ways to seriously generate an income. She visits a few forums and reads some comments from a few professional writers who really are earning generous amounts of money online from their writing activities. She tries to find out how they're doing it and she sets out to find ways to make sure she's earning that kind of money too.

She's quite excited by some of the opportunities she finds and understands that there are more and more great-paying writing opportunities all around her every day. She wakes up each morning believing this really is achievable - and guess what? She's right.

As Henry Ford said: "Whether you think you can or not, you're right"

Which writer did you identify with the most?

These are overly-simplified examples, but they highlight a specific mindset within so many writers I meet from all over the world. When you begin searching for writing opportunities and job markets and submission guidelines with a negative mindset, guess what you're going to find?

You're going to find all the low-paying, time-wasting, scam-listed writing cr@p available on the internet.

However, I also meet a lot of writers who are eager to search out the valid opportunities, the real job markets, the higher-paying gigs. They're willing to recognize that freelance writing is the same as any other job in the world and that you get back out of it exactly what you put into it.

A positive mindset and an optimistic viewpoint can mean that you begin to see things that might have been right in front of your face all along. You might have been blind to those same things previously because your negativity was getting in your way and allowing you only to see the less-attractive options.

When it comes to developing a successful freelance mindset, it's important to avoid the things you DON'T want to influence you. If you're reading posts and comments from novice writers that tell you you can't earn more than $2 per article or 2 cents per page view, you have two choices.

1) you could follow them and end up earning the same as they're doing

or

2) you could avoid those types of comments and go in search of more positive influences

Let me try and word it another way:
- Would you take investment advice for your money from someone who's on unemployment and has filed bankruptcy?
- Would you take medical advice from a vacuum cleaner salesman?
- Would you take legal advice from the girl at the checkout-counter at Walmart?

Of course you wouldn't.

So why is it that people will look for ways to take advice on freelance writing from people who are doing everything EXCEPT freelance writing?

When you surround yourself with positive information that is focused and motivated, you begin to develop a sense of positivity about what you're doing. You begin to believe you can achieve what you've set out to do.

My little blog is just one blog among thousands of similar blogs. There are also thousands of freelance writing forums and hundreds of freelance writing websites focused on teaching writers how to get started, how to build your business, how to find clients, how to increase your income.

How many great tips have you read to get your writing income going and thought "Oh, that's great, but I couldn't do that..." ?

If you keep telling yourself that you can't do that, then guess what? You're right.

Try telling yourself the opposite things. Tell yourself if a single mother from little-old Australia with a bad, cliched-sounding name like Bianca Raven can do it, then so can YOU. Believe it. Then see what happens.

Leave me your comments on what your mindset is doing right now. I'd love to see how many of my readers have which particular mindset - positive or negative.

Vent your negativity at me. Go on - really let me have it. Tell me how hard you've got it and how difficult it is for a newbie to break into freelancing. I won't argue with you. I'll probably agree with you. After all - if that's what you think, then you're right.

Of course, I'd also like to hear about your really big goals and dreams. Really get it off your chest and tell me what you know you're capable of achieving. If you tell me enough about what you really want to achieve, if you really believe in those big goals and dreams, if you truly believe YOU can achieve them, then I'll do my best to help you find ways to reach that goal.

:)