I built a six-figure remote business and walked away from the 9 to 5 at age 46. Every Tuesday, I email a story, tip, or idea to help you climb down the corporate ladder and live life on your terms.
I turned down a freelancing job this week...here's why
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A few weeks ago, I mentioned that one of the themes for my work this year is to "bloom where I'm planted." As a freelancer, this includes being able to say no to opportunities that aren't the right fit. Even if the money is good. Because if you say yes to every opportunity, you may have to say no to other, better ones down the road. I'll share a recent real-life scenario I encountered to provide a clear example. ___________________ I recently began writing YouTube scripts for one of my clients, who owns multiple seven-figure businesses and is a Wall Street Journal best-selling author. I've enjoyed the YouTube work, and mentioned this to a friend I was chatting with. She told me she knew someone looking for a YouTube script writer and suggested I contact them, which I did. After jumping on a Zoom call with this person, I discovered that the YouTube channel's primary subject matter was "legal defenses." The popular YouTuber is a lawyer who explains how the law applies to various scenarios in layman's terms. It's very interesting stuff. My first thought was that I could make LOTS of money!!! I asked them to give me a few days to watch some of their videos before deciding. But as I thought about it more, I realized how much time I would spend researching the different topics, not to mention the time it would take me to write about a subject in which I have no expertise. I also remembered my commitment to bloom where I'm planted, aka, stick to my strengths. And so I declined the opportunity. It might have made more sense had the YouTube Channel been finance-related, but this was way out of my comfort zone. __________________ Coincidentally, the following day, I received notice that my first-ever article pitch had been accepted. You read that right. I've been freelancing for 6 years, and this was the first time I've pitched a client. I'm earning over $1000 to write a 1000-word article about investing, one of my ACTUAL areas of expertise. My point is that it was an immediate reminder of why it's okay to say no to perfectly fine opportunities if it means being able to say yes to even better ones. - Colin Also, in case you missed last week's email, I'm speaking at Raising Generational Wealth, a virtual summit from May 2-4! You can get your free pass here. (A paid upgrade unlocks several freebies, but the free pass gives you access to all the presentations). There are more than 20 amazing personal finance experts. I'm speaking for about 25 minutes, sharing my 7-step roadmap to Escape the 9 to 5. I hope to see you there! |
9-5 Escape by Colin Graves
I built a six-figure remote business and walked away from the 9 to 5 at age 46. Every Tuesday, I email a story, tip, or idea to help you climb down the corporate ladder and live life on your terms.
Happy Tuesday! I'm back to my weekly schedule after taking an unplanned break for a few weeks. A few of you reached out to see what was up — thanks for checking on me! : ) All is good! I thought I'd share an update on what's been happening this summer and my plans for the fall... Ottawa trip Laura and I were in Ottawa at the end of July for a few days to see my parents and attend a "cousins" reunion. I have 34 first cousins on my Mom's side of the family, and a few of them decided to plan a...
Happy Tuesday! While doing my once-per-month scroll-through of Threads this week, I was reminded why you should never look to strangers for advice on social media. (If you're unfamiliar with Threads, it's Facebook's parent Meta's version of Twitter). As I scrolled through my feed, I came across the following "Thread": "I NEED MULTIPLE STREAMS OF INCOME. What's your best side hustle?" Over 150 replies followed their question. I scrolled through about 20 or 30, stopped, and shook my head....
Step# 2 in my "Roadmap to Escape the 9-5" is to start a side hustle or business that can eventually replace the income from your day job. However, most people struggle to come up with a side hustle idea. There are likely a few reasons for this: They're focused on the wrong thing (money) - never chase the money They lack confidence in their abilities They're afraid to start Indecisive/ can't think of a 'good' business idea Regardless of the reason, if you're struggling to find the right side...