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What about vacation time?

I kind of felt like the question smacked me in the face, mama. Like, I actually recoiled from my screen when I read it. 

Because this question indicates that you’re thinking like an employee — and not like a Free Mama. 

Over the past few years, I’ve had the honor of helping thousands of women start their freelancing careers, and I’ve noticed that the most successful Free Mamas share three critical qualities. 

When you’re a Free Mama, skill you need to be a freelancer? You have to be self-motivated, because no one will ever come and check up to see if you’re at your desk and doing your work.

On the plus side, no one will ever come and check up to see if you’re at your desk and doing your work. 😉

But you have to be honest with yourself. 

• Will you sit down and do the work even when no one is checking up on you?
• Do you want the responsibility that comes with being a freelancer?
• Will you hold yourself accountable?

If you’re not going to be responsible and accountable to yourself, then freelancing may not be the best choice for you. 

Successful Free Mamas are also go-getters, meaning they are willing to go out there and get the work, the clients, and the projects.

They’re willing to get visible, even when it makes them uncomfortable. Even when it scares them. Even when they’re shy and introverted, they get out there and talk to people about what they do and how they can help.

When you’re a freelancer, no one is going to drop a project on your desk and tell you to get it done. It’s up to you to find the work, and you can only do that if you’re going to build connections with potential clients. 

If you’re not going to talk to anyone, then where will you get the clients?

And finally, the most successful Free Mamas have stamina. When things go wrong, they don’t give up.

They get up, again and again. 

They show up every day.

They see challenges as opportunities for growth, and not as reasons to quit. 

If you’re going to see every setback as a sign that you shouldn’t be doing this, you’ll be stuck at the starting line for a long time.

Again and again, these three qualities show up in the Free Mamas who go the furthest. Success has nothing to do with degrees or education. It’s not about certifications or what you did before you had kids or where you grew up. 

It’s about being self-motivated, getting the work, and having the stamina to keep going, every single day.

If you’ve got those qualities, you have what it takes to be a Free Mama. 

So… what are you waiting for?

P.S. Seriously, Mama. If you have what it takes, then it’s time to start your journey. 

P.P.S. Do you suffer from overthinking? You won’t want to miss this Free Mama Radio episode!

Uh, mama?

There’s no way you can keep all those balls in the air forever. 

I know how much you have on your plate right now. 

Kids. Work. Your business. Whatever school is for your family right now. Laundry. Cooking. 

It’s a lot.

And trying to fit everything into your day can feel just about impossible.  Don’t you wish you had a magic genie who could just *poof* give you a work from home mom schedule template that WORKS?

That is why today on FreeMamaTV, I’m sharing my strategy for building a schedule that actually works for you — and lets you get all your work done. 

Imagine if you could fit time for fun into your day without feeling guilty.

Imagine if you had 

• More time for all the things you care about.
• More energy for your family and your work.
• Clearer boundaries between the two parts of your life so that you don’t have to waste time feeling guilty in either area. 

That’s what you’ll find when you check out today’s episode of FreeMamaTV! AND I am going to be telling you how you can snag your very own work from home mom schedule template that we created just for you!

Be sure & to subscribe to FreeMamaTV so you can be the first to know when a new episode airs!

P.S. Did you happen to hear the latest episode of Free Mama Radio? Special Guest Stacy Tuschl is on and she’s going to be giving some tough love on how to stop overthinking and how to start taking action! Listen now!

And if you want even MORE Free Mama TV good, check out last week’s episode on proofreading! Did you know you can get paid to call out people’s spelling mistakes? It’s true! If this is something you would love, definitely watch this episode!

How do you define success, mama?

Do you think about how much money you bring in each month?

How many hours you work each week?

How much you get done in a day?

Well, let me tell you how your CLIENTS define success: by the results you deliver for them.  

Now, we’re going to dig into an unpopular opinion. You might get mad when you hear this. You might want to unsubscribe and go soothe yourself with inspirational quotes from Pinterest and find a Facebook group where you can talk about how mean I am. 

That’s cool — I’m well aware that not everyone agrees with me. 

But. 

Inspirational quotes and vision boards and your commitment to working 2 hours a week will not pay the bills, Mama.

You are only as good as the work you produce for your clients. 

You’re running a business here. 

And (this is the unpopular opinion part) people telling you to “charge what you’re worth” may not have your best interests at heart. 

Now, let me be super clear about a few things.

1. I want you to make a LOT of money doing work you love.
2. When you first start out, you might not have a lot of experience.
3. You have to EARN those high paying clients by showing up and delivering VALUE.

If you’ve just discovered the wonderful world of freelancing (and it truly is a wonderful world), you’re probably pretty darn excited. 

You’re getting PAID to manage email, to schedule appointments, to edit photos. It’s AMAZING.

At some point, you might start to crave… a little more. You see people around you selling courses or coaching others and you think, “Huh. I want that.” That’s normal — and totally awesome.

BUT.  If you spend all your time and effort working on the course you want to launch or planning for your new coaching business, that’s time you’re NOT spending on the work your clients are paying you to do — which is NOT going to work out well. 

If you’re being paid to create graphics or schedule social media posts or write copy or organize an inbox, and you find yourself resentful of that work, that’s on you.  

You took on those clients. 

You accepted the terms. 

You didn’t set clear boundaries. 

It’s not okay to simply stop showing up or to do shoddy work. 

If you’re unhappy handling clients and want to move on to the next phase of your business, then be a grown up businesswoman.

TALK to your clients. Put a bow on your final project, and hand over your responsibilities in a responsible way. 

Whew!

That was a lot, and I guess it was weighing on me pretty heavily. 

I don’t mean to scare you away — and this email might not speak to where you are in the journey AT ALL. 

But I’ve been in that place. I’ve been in the place where my client work didn’t fill me up in the same way it used to, and so I recognize it when I see it in others. 

You didn’t come this far, and build this life and reputation and business to tear it down with resentment.

Show up. Be a grown-up. And keep the focus on the results you deliver.

P.S. Are you ready to start or level up in your business? Free Mama LIVE has EVERYTHING you need, whether you’re a beginner OR an experienced Free Mama, and today is the LAST DAY to sign up and get a gift basket mailed to you ahead of the event. Don’t miss out!

P.P.S. Did you know you can get PAID to proofread? It’s true!! Head to the latest episode of FreeMamaTV to learn more!

It’s like my greatest dream came true. 

Okay, picture this, mama:

You’re reading through an email when you come across a typo that makes you flinch. 

Or you’re rolling your eyes at yet another Facebook post where someone can’t grasp the difference between their, there, and they’re.

Or your husband asks you to give his resume a once-over, because he knows that you’ll catch any tiny errors that remain.

If reading those sentences has your heart beating a bit faster, then you HAVE to get yourself over to the YouTubes right now because you can proofread anywhere AND make money doing it!

Today on FreeMamaTV, I’m interviewing Caitlin Pyle, founder of Proofread Anywhere, about how you can get paid to correct other people.  

I know, RIGHT? It’s like a dream come true!

Seriously, proofreading is a very cool way to make a living, and you’re going to LOVE how Caitlin breaks it all down for you! So head on over to FreeMamaTV and watch the interview. It’s totally okay if you’re mentally correcting my grammar the whole time. 😉

Be sure & to subscribe to FreeMamaTV so you can be the first to know when a new episode airs!

For now, you can watch the Proofread Anywhere interview here:

P.S. There is a lot of amazing stuff happening in The Free Mama community!

The Free Mama Movement turned 3 on Sunday, and we celebrated in the Facebook group!

A new podcast episode dropped yesterday, all about why I make to invest in events every single quarter!

I also announced that October 1st is THE LAST DAY to receive your Free Mama swag BEORE the event starts, so get your tickets now!

Last, but not least, this Thursday, I put together this live workshop for you happening on Thursday, October 1 at 12pm CST.

It’s called “How To Earn A Predictable Income WhileWorking From Home (Even During A Global Pandemic) In Just Two Weeks“ and you know it’s for you…

• If you want to know exactly what the successful online business owners know that you don’t…yet!
• If you want to know how you can start your business without working until 4am
• If you want the tools to stay focused and motivated even when you get distracted or interrupted a billion times a day
• If you want to be able to take control of your life instead of feeling like things keep happening to you

No matter how bruised 2020 has made you feel, there’s still time to make this the best year yet! Register here!

Book your ticket for FML 2020 and get an AMAZING bonus gift box!

I’m SO EXCITED, mama, and I have to spill the beans.

If you caught yesterday’s BIG ANNOUNCEMENT, you know that Free Mama LIVE 2020 is almost here, and you STILL have time to snag your ticket. 

And when you get your ticket, you are not only getting access to an AMAAAAAAAAZING two weeks’ worth of KILLER training and content…

…you’re getting even more. 

Basically, I convinced (read: BEGGED) some of our speakers to come join us in the FML pop-up group and spend some EXTRA time teaching and training you, so that when October gets here, you’re in the best possible place to take advantage of everything we’ll be sharing. 

It’s pretty freaking great, and I’m super excited. 

Like, Free Mama Favorites Abbi Perets, Violette de Alaya, Kathryn Jones, Ryann Dowdy, and are coming in to teach you:

• How to write a REAL power pitch that gets clients fired up to work with you
• How to connect with people like a human and build amazing relationships
• How to showcase your skills and package them up in the most powerful way
• What to say on the discovery call to close the deal

Let’s be clear. All of these trainings are happening in our exclusive, private Facebook group BEFORE the actual Free Mama LIVE event. So by the time the real thing starts, you will ALREADY have mad skillz (as the kids say? right?) and be READY to TAKE MASSIVE ACTION. 

And I’ve brought in some BRAND NEW FRIENDS to speak at FML. People you don’t know yet. People you’ve never seen speak anywhere else — even though they’re making 7 figures and doing incredible things. Check out the featured speaker lineup, go stalk these people in all the places, and then get ready to have your mind BLOWN by what they share with us in October.

ALSO, did I tell you about the gift boxes? 

OH MAMA! The boxes, if I may say so, are a WORK OF ART. They are SO SO SO SO good. BUT. If you want to get your box, YOU MUST GET YOUR TICKET BY OCTOBER 1. 

Let me repeat that, in case you missed my shoutiness. If you want a gift box in your hands at FML (and you do, TRUST ME), you MUST get your ticket by October 1.

Mama, let me spell this out for you.

FML is designed to give you EVERY. SINGLE. THING. you need to set up your freelancing business, even if you’re still not sure what freelancing is. This is going to be THE BEST online training for mom entrepreneurs!

We’re covering ALL of it:

👻 Scary taxes and legal stuff

🔥 Big dreams

💪🏻 Action plans

👩🏼‍💻 Marketing

💰 Landing clients

💥 And MORE

And by the way…

… if you’re already working and earning steady money, I’ve got some EXTRA goodness for you:

💰💰💰 High-ticket sales coaches who can help you 10X your offer

🔥🔥🔥 A PRIVATE masterclass ONLY open to women earning a certain amount

💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻 Mindset coaches who will help you leap to the next level of greatness

Basically, you need to be at FML. And you need to get your ticket BEFORE October 1. So do it NOW. 

See you there!

P.S. I can’t stress this enough. You want a gift box? GET YOUR TICKET NOW and be a part of the the best online training for mom entrepreneurs!

I’m just going to say it. Loom is the best free resource ever. If you’re not using it yet, you need to start now. Let me introduce you to my FAVORITE tool for business owners.

Yes, there is a thing that I love even more than I love my calendar, and it’s Loom, a one-click screen recording tool that makes it super easy to share information, tutorials, and so much more with your clients. 

Today on FreeMamaTV, I’ll show you a Loom Tutorial how to start using Loom — or how to kick up your Loom knowledge and really wow your clients.

Even if you’re already using Loom, you don’t want to miss the expert tips in this week’s Loom Tutorial episode of FreeMamaTV.

Be sure & to subscribe to FreeMamaTV so you can be the first to know when a new episode airs!

P.S. Did you catch my latest blog post? I am giving you REAL, tangible advice on how to add value to a Facebook group so that you can actually land clients while you’re spending time online networking!

And if you want MORE Free Mama TV, check out last week’s episode all about the skills that every VA should have – email and calendar management! You won’t want to miss it so you can watch it right here!