“I made so much unexpected progress that I ended up making myself too busy! I just celebrated my first $100k!”

SUSAN, SALT CREATIVE | MASTER FREELANCER GRADUATE

Susan: I wasn’t clear in my offerings and who I wanted to serve. I was really bogged down and overwhelmed, and I’d become this people pleaser who just agreed to everything.

When I started The Master Freelancer, I didn’t really know what my business vision was, but I knew it wasn’t this. I felt like I was trapped in a fog, working really hard for all the wrong people. I was making ends meet, but I wanted more profit with less stress and more purpose, and more vision and clear strategies to make that happen. I wanted to work with people who would excite me AND pay me what I’m worth.

I was not at all confident in my pricing and the way I’d packaged up my services, and I knew that was holding me back. I needed some validation that it was ok to charge what I wanted to charge, but I knew I also needed help with structuring those prices, so I wasn’t just plucking numbers out of the air.

Susan: Well, I’d been following you for a little while, and it was like every time you put out a new resource or piece of content, I felt like you were reading my mind. I had all these notes from stuff you’d said or written, and I’d always go sniffing around your website it I needed help with something. You ended up DM’ing me about something on Instagram and I replied within about 30 seconds.

It wasn’t actually on my radar to do anything like this, but I saw a few bits of content about it and I realised that I really needed to actually invest in something like this. Everything you’d said and written really resonated with me, so when you DM’d me, I knew that this program would be perfect for me. I also felt like you were really down-to-earth.

So many other coaches have this real sales-y “ick” factor, but you were just a real and humble human being.

S: I went into it really wanting to be clear and confident in my pricing and then use that to pitch to new clients, but once I started The Master Freelancer , all these other goals started to appear. I remember filling out one of the worksheets and realising that there were other things that needed my attention first, like focussing on who my ideal clients actually are and figuring out who could actually serve me in the ways that I needed.

I made so much unexpected progress that I actually made myself too busy and then spent the last few weeks of The Master Freelancer making sourdough during the classes lol.

S: I was making money, but I had to work a lot harder because they weren’t the clients that I wanted. I’m now doing $7 – 8k months and I’m quickly working towards $10k . (spoiler alert, since this interview Susan reached a massive milestone of reaching $100k in her biz!)

I’m almost exclusively working only with clients that I want, and one of my current goals is to stop working with the wrong clients all together. I no longer say ‘yes’ to everything and everyone and can be really picky about who I work with. I’ve also got a steady flow of clients and know how to replace each one when the project wraps up.

When I look at where I was before The Master Freelancer compared to where I am now, I’m sooo much closer to reaching my business goals.

S: Having the confidence and strategy to pitch ideas and stuff, and to create an environment that works for both the client and for me.

I don’t really have that fear or uncertainty of being told ‘no’ or changing something and then losing the client. Working with you has really given me a reframe of things and I now know how to replace a client if I do lose them, and that maybe they weren’t having in the first place. I remember specifically learning about the different types of leads (like warm VS cold) and how to use that to grow the business.

What you taught me was stuff I’d never considered but it’s completely changed my business and allowed me to never run out of work.

S: Being part of a wider freelancing community and always having a safe space to ask questions. It might be me harassing your DMs to hear some wise words or reaching out to other alumni for feedback and connection. Even though I’m a freelancer and I work alone, I now have this community of peers and it’s incredible. Shannon and I try to catch up every so often to help keep each other accountable and bounce ideas and stuff.

S: Umm, like two weeks into the ten-week program lol. Every week I was working on something relevant, and the wins just kept coming. Every Wednesday when we’d do the ‘Wednesday wins’, I always had something to share. It also created a new routine for me where I’d dedicate time each week to work on the business.

That started because of The Master Freelancer and it’s something that’s ingrained in my business now. I do it every single week, and it’s something I just never made time for before. It’s been six months since we wrapped up, and I’m still focussed on implementing things I learned in the program.

S: Clarity on my target audience, knowing exactly what I want to be doing, and then knowing the steps I have to take to get there. I just didn’t have any of that before The Master Freelancer.

S: So in week two of the 10 week course, I had a 20 min brainstorm chat with you over DMs. During that chat, we came up with a plan to solve a problem that I had, and that plan resulted in an immediate return on the investment. I literally made back the entire $2k (and then some) that I’d invested to do The Master Freelancer.

Since then, I’d say I’m up to 4 x my investment but there’s so much more that just can’t be valued in a monetary way. I now know exactly what to do each day to make sure my business serves me in the best way possible, and that’s honestly a priceless investment. The Master Freelancer has given me sustainability and longevity.

T: People can find me at @salt_creativestudio on Instagram or visit my website at www.saltcreativestudio.com