Writers who come from the “per word” pricing world tend to think in terms of incremental improvements.
Maybe you started with $.20 a word as your internal rate, and now you’re at $.35 a word.
“Well,” you think to yourself, “it’s not much. But at least it’s moving in the right direction!”
I agree. Any kind of improvement is a good thing. And I’m all about celebrating improvements!
But that’s not what’s at issue here.
What is at issue is this: When you only think in terms of incremental improvements, you miss opportunities to make “quantum leap” changes that can really impact your business.
Bike vs. Car
To explain what I mean, let me illustrate with a metaphor.
Say you live in a community where you can run all your errands using a bike (amazing, right?!).
It takes you about 30 minutes to get from point A to point B to run one errand. And another 30 minutes to return.
That hour takes up a good chunk of your day. You want to speed things up. So you start thinking about how you could reduce the amount of time it takes.
Maybe if you start working out, you could pedal faster. That might shave off a couple minutes.
Or maybe you could buy a new, more efficient bike. That might give you another minute or two.
Or perhaps there’s a shortcut you could take that would speed things up a bit too.
Even with all these changes, you might shave your time by six minutes each way. Which is fine.
But it’s still going to take you 48 minutes to do the route.
There are only so many improvements you can make. Because, at the end of the day, you’re still running this errand by bike.
But what if you started to think about the problem differently.
What if instead of by bike … you started to run this errand by car?
I know, I know … you’d miss out on the exercise, but just bear with me here. 😉
In a car, this trip might now take only three minutes each way! For the entire trip, that’s only six minutes.
This isn’t just an incremental improvement. It’s a massive improvement!
Start Looking for Exponential Changes
This is what I mean when I talk about “quantum leap” changes.
Instead of increasing your income by 5% or 10% (for example), you increase your income by 2X or 3X. Sometimes even higher!
When you start thinking in those terms (“What would I need to do to double my income?”), you’re forced to look at things differently.
You’re no longer looking at minor adjustments here and there.
You’re looking for fundamental changes.
What would this look like in practice? Maybe something like this:
- Instead of reworking your existing website copy slightly, you rethink your positioning entirely — and you act on that change.
- Instead of sending out a couple more LinkedIn connection requests, you put in place an aggressive warm email prospecting plan — and you execute it. Or you start deploying a smart inbound marketing effort with all kinds of breadcrumb trails to your website.
- Instead of raising fees 5% with your existing clients, you start looking for a whole new level of client — and you don’t stop until you’ve gradually replaced your current roster of low-paying clients.
I challenge you to think bigger than you’re currently thinking.
Because in order to get quantum leap improvements in your business, you have to play the game differently.
By the way … whenever you’re ready, here are 4 ways I can help you grow your freelance business:
1. Grab a free copy of my book for ESTABLISHED writers/copywriters.
You’ll discover how to quickly and predictably reawaken dead leads, generate new client opportunities and convert not-yet-ready prospects into freelance writing clients. — Click Here
2. Download a free copy of my new book for writers who are NEW to freelancing.
I’ll show you the 3 things you need to do to get your business off the ground safely and land your first paying client faster. — Click Here
3. Join my implementation program and be a case study.
I’m putting together a new implementation group this month. If you’d like to work with me to grow your income quickly with better clients (and become one of my new success stories). Just email me at [email protected] and put “Case Study” in the subject line.
4. Get a 1:1 strategy call with me.
Are you a 6-figure writer who’s trying to earn more in less time with less stress? Let’s jump on a quick call and brainstorm some ideas for getting you there. Just email me at [email protected] and put “Brainstorm” in the subject line.
