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For the first time so far, May felt (almost) like a full month in terms of elapsed time. I don’t think that I got as much done this month as in previous months, but that could just be a natural slow-down of settling into “real work” with the main hurdles of setting up the business out of the way. So let’s take a look back at May, and plans for June!
The Business
Here’s what I managed to achieve in May, it’s not a particularly long list this month I’m afraid!
- Completed 1 client project
- Won 3 more client projects
- Spent a day working remotely for the first time
- Finally got my business bank account sorted
- Got my company paypal account set up and verified
- Coded up the first part of the new design for this site
- Took on my first full-time employee, Melqui
In Detail
This has been a slightly strange month, I think I got my first taste of burn-out – and I didn’t like it! May felt a little bit like just “another month” – which wasn’t cool at all. Thankfully I think (hope) I’ve pulled myself out of that one, but just to reinforce it I’m going to set myself some really hard goals for June to keep me on my toes.
This biggest news by far is that I’m now (4 months in) no longer a one-man-band. I now have the first full time member of Lyrical Media staff, and with that comes great responsibility. I’m not just putting food on the table for myself now, I have to make sure that the business is turning over enough money each month to make payroll.
Is it scary? Absolutely! I almost didn’t do it. But no risk = no reward, so rather than bitching about how many things could go wrong, I’m going to work twice as hard to make sure that they go really right.
Finally, I’m finding myself stuck between a rock and a hard place. My original goal was to take on staff, move into a nice office, and build up a really successful web agency. But since reading The 4 Hour Work Week (Amazon links: UK, US), I’m wondering if I wouldn’t prefer to build up a network of outsourced staff (like Melqui) and work remotely so that I can do ‘whatever I want’ without being tied down to a single location.
We shall see.
Reviewing Goals for May
There’s a whole lot of Fail here I’m afraid. Only managed a 50% hit-rate this month!
- Code up and release the first Lyrical Media newsletter – Fail
- Review the Rockstar Freelancer Book on this blog – Fail
- Get new business cards, letter heads, and stickers printed – Fail
- Grow my twitter account to 2,200 followers – Success! Got 2,700
- Grow my rss subscribers to 100 people – Success! Got 136
- Take on a virtual assistant – Success! But got a full web designer rather than just an assistant.
Goals for June
Some agressive goals for this coming month, and I think I might stick them to my wall to make sure I don’t forget about them.
- Complete 3 client projects
- Relaunch this blog with the new design
- Win 3 client projects
- Grow twitter account to 4,500 followers
- Grow rss subscribers to 200 people
- Write a book proposal (more on this another time)
- Design a WordPress theme for release on ThemeForest
What Are You Up To?
Let me know what you’re doing this month and if you have any exciting projects coming up, and I’ll be more than happy to mention them here!
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I love the fact you set goals, and learning from your mistakes.
I am sure you are going to do better this month, ( I hope )
Simon
Great post John,
Setting goals is a good thing. I like the idea of you posting the goals on the wall but why not use a bulletin board or white board. Take some colored tape dived it off and then you can place whats important in one column, etc.
You could even do it with your client jobs. What needs to be done first, etc. I can’t wait to see the design.
It’s nice watching your progress John. I’d be nervous as hell to take on an employee. You are a brave man!
With that said I think priority #1 would be to get new clients!!!
Nice sharing! Wish u all the best for June and the upcoming months! ;)
I’m definitely a fan of the “month in review” posts : )
I’m most interested in hearing more about how hiring your first employee turns out. I’ve been in business as a solo act for a while now, and still haven’t committed to paying a full-time salary to others. My goal for the coming months is to focus on more outsourcing to other freelancers and expand the business that way. Similar reviews to come on my blog…
“Get new business cards, letter heads, and stickers printed – Fail”
Since printing mine a year ago, I’m surprised at how little I have used my business cards. Everything’s online these days. But I plan to ramp up the in-person networking skills, so I’ll be redesigning the card stock soon.
Always a great post John! I’ve taking some time to read a few more books here lately.
Since I’m slow I like to help a few non-profits and sharpen my skills some more.
Well done John… seems like things are moving along nicely for you now, hang on in there and im sure you will do great.
I really love these posts. It inspired me to do something similar, but as I’m full time employed my goals are just for what I do in my free time & scheduled for the rest of the year. It’s brilliant for motivating and staying focused, especially as you are putting it “out there” for everyone to judge!
You are bloody brave to take on an employee, I’m certain it’ll be great and you’re never going to look back. Don’t underestimate the fun that working in an office can be though – being surrounded by talented folk in a relaxed environment is very rewarding. Whatever direction you decide upon, I wish you all the best with it!
These are my favourite posts, I think :)
As I’m just starting out with my own business myself, I find it very interesting and useful to see your progress. Especially as you’re so candid about it!
Love your work, John. If I can help you make any of those goals for June, let me know!
The goals looks great! I do the same even I am not freelancer. I set up goals almost for every day and even if I do not reach them I just move them forward. So nothing is forgotten and everything will be done, sooner or later.
This is a great inspiration for us others who are thinking about freelancing.
Keep up the good work.
By the way remote working is amazing. I spent almost every weekend in some park or caffee with my MAC. Those places are full of energy and that is what we need to be creative, right?
I just got through reading all your month reviews and it’s been fascinating. I’m also giving freelancing a try and just started a blog a few weeks ago. It’s been great to see how you’ve done over the first few months. Do you find most of your business locally or through the web?
Hi Alex,
It’s a mix really, I get quite a lot of local people come to me from small businesses who want to meet face-to-face prior to making an investment – but I also get a fair amount of international business thanks to things like this blog, and twitter.
Glad you’re enjoying reading, thanks so much for commenting! :)
Thanks for the reply. It’s nice to hear that you’re finding clients online. I’m trying to head in that direction because I don’t want to be tied to a specific location. Just signed up for your RSS feed so I can continue to see your progress. Best of luck!