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On a warm July day in 2014, I received a message on Facebook from a former classmate. She asked me if I would have an interest in translating for a local website she worked on. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but I gladly agreed, wanting to earn my first little bit of income online.
This “gig” lasted only three months and I earned lower than $1,000. But this was the catalyst for me as I sat here today – I’ve revamped $17,000,000 for clients around the world and made multiple six-figure sums for myself, all while barely leaving the kitchen.
Even higher, I can plan my days around making memories with my amazing wife and beautiful 15-month-old daughter. Before I inform you how I can live such a comfortable life, let’s take a look at mine fights because it wasn’t all sunshine and roses, especially in the first two years of my freelance profession.
Overcoming early obstacles
After translating, I took up a three-month internal position in China, helping the company expand contacts with diplomatic missions. Even though I loved traveling and exploring the Middle Kingdom, I didn’t enjoy returning to the office. So three months later, when I returned home, I created my first website, a travel and lifestyle blog. Even though I never made greater than $500 a yr, it served as my portfolio when I applied for content writing jobs on Facebook job boards.
Six months after creating a website and trying to compete with a whole bunch of others for every freelance gig I could find, I managed to secure a fairly consistent relationship with a local web entrepreneur. The same guy later called me “the best copywriter in Bulgaria.”
Whether he was right or mistaken didn’t matter. His statement gave me a huge confidence boost. We even became good friends. One thing led to one other, and two years after our first meeting, we launched an Initial Coin Offering (ICO).
The project didn’t work out as I expected, but I gained a lot of precious experience. I was responsible for the whole lot marketing-related – social media content, email marketing, and landing page copy. I helped with branding, led a team of content writers, and even provided customer support.
Around the same time, I made my first $1,000 a month just by writing. Things began to improve, but were still slow.
The power to invest in your development
After a much more successful 2018, I finally had enough money to invest in my development. So in 2019, I spent £1,000 ($1,300) on a copywriting course taught by a guy I’d been following for several years. In 2020, I invested in his group coaching program, which I still participate in today. Plus, I joined Paid Genius and purchased one other high-converting sales page writing course.
By the end of the yr, I was investing close to $2,000 each month in coaching, mentoring, and courses. This allowed me to have my first five-figure month in 2021 and 7.5x my income from 2020-2022. The truth was that if I had invested in mentoring earlier, I probably would have achieved these results much faster.
Five essential suggestions for running a six-figure business from anywhere in the world
I now commonly earn five-figure monthly salaries, I select who I work with, and I can work from anywhere in the world as long as there is Wi-Fi. Thanks to this, I can assist my wife maintain my 15-month-old daughter while leading an amazing lifestyle where we are not tied to any place.
However, it took me over five years to get to this level and I would never have gotten this far without some of the things I did.
So if you too would love to run a six-figure business while having fun with the freedom and flexibility of working from home, the following suggestions shall be helpful. Imagine having the ability to take a long lunch break to go to the gym or meet a friend for coffee, knowing that you could catch up on work later in the day. Want to go on a spontaneous weekend? If you have a laptop and a reliable web connection, you’ll be able to work from anywhere in the world.
Let’s move on to the suggestions.
Be consistent
I don’t know a successful one that is not consistent in what they do. For example, I published on my very own Facebook wall almost every day since 2014. And since 2012, I have been exercising almost continuously. These two things helped me maintain a positive attitude and consistently build my personal brand.
Don’t focus on money. Focus on the craft
Too many people focus solely on creating wealth. This is putting the cart before the horse. Money is a by-product of your skills. If you are not good, no one can pay you to work for them. But when you develop into good, money will come easily.
Get a mentor
There is no faster way to advance in any profession than getting a mentor or coach. Learning from their mistakes so you do not make the same ones and following their expert advice can dramatically speed up your progress. And while it often comes with a hefty price tag, every cent you invest in personal development is value it.
Trust the process
As a freelancer, you’ll inevitably face the dreaded feast-and-famine cycles. Don’t fight them; embrace them. They are a part of the process. They will enable you develop faster, provided that you simply draw conclusions from each period. Because if not? You are doomed to repeat the same mistakes.
Never feel comfortable
Many people make the critical mistake of wanting to feel comfortable. Then they stop investing in coaching. They stop buying courses. And they develop into confident that they know the whole lot.
Unfortunately, this is also when things can easily go south. So if you wish to avoid such unpleasant situations, all the time be curious and open to learning recent things.
Conclusion
They helped me build a consistent, six-figure business that I can run from anywhere in the world. I have no employees, I work lower than 5-6 hours a day, and I don’t even have a virtual assistant (VA).
So if you wish to achieve similar results, follow the five suggestions I shared above.