Hi Reader,

Happy Friday!

This has been a very exciting week for me because I've finally had my bathroom renovated... no more looking into the loft while I have a bath (it's been 8 months with no ceiling 😬), and I'm off to Barcelona next week on a Happy Freelancers work + play retreat.

Get me to the sun, sea, and sangria immediately!

P.S. This week on Instagram, I shared how I landed my 3 newest clients. See how here. And don't forget to give me a follow for regular tips and tricks!

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Here's what I've been up to this week work-wise:

👉 I wrote 2 pieces for clients (a case study for DAM tool and a blog for Salsify)

👉 I refreshed 2 pieces for Shopify

👉 I held an interview for the case study above

⏱ Approx hours spent on client work this week: ~1

⏱ Approx hours spent on non-client work: ~2

💰 Total revenue this week: £3,150

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Check out my three practical courses that have helped 500+ people get more clients, earn more money, and create better content.

Friday Freelance Tip​​ ✨ ​

Twelve years ago, I was charging £20 per blog post on Upwork. Yep. Twenty quid. I’d write for hours, editing, over-delivering, researching like my life depended on it, and still come away with barely enough for a weekly food shop.

Back then, I thought if I just kept my head down and did great work, the clients would come. I thought if I said yes to every gig, the right ones would eventually show up.

Now, I make over £250K a year, working less than I used to, with brands like Shopify and Klaviyo. It's work I love with clients who treat me like a strategic partner, not some kind of content vending machine.

So what changed?

I stopped trying to be the invisible freelancer who just quietly “gets it done.”
I stopped pretending I was just a copywriter and started showing up as the expert I already was.

I started building a personal brand.

And yeah, I know that phrase makes a lot of freelancers want to run screaming.

“Personal brand” sounds icky, right?

It used to make my skin crawl, too.

I didn’t become a freelancer to spend all day posting selfies or spouting thought leadership on LinkedIn. I became a freelancer because I wanted to work on my own terms. Quietly. Behind the scenes. Headphones in, vibes on, no awkward networking required.

But, when our entire work life is online, the reality is we already have a personal brand, even if we’ve never posted on Instagram, never touched LinkedIn, and have zero desire to “go viral.”

Clients are forming impressions of you all the time. From your emails, from your portfolio, from your pricing, and even from the way you show up in a call.

Building a personal brand isn't really about becoming an "influencer", it’s about shaping the way people see you on purpose.

When you show up in a certain way, you're telling potential clients:

• What you’re like to work with
• What you stand for
• What you’re great at
• And what you don’t tolerate

What building a personal brand actually looked like for me

It wasn’t one big overnight change. It was a series of small, intentional moves.

Things like:

• Writing about what I believe (and what I don’t)
• Sharing stories from my client work
• Speaking on podcasts and panels, even when I was terrified
• Updating my website so it sounds like me, not a corporate brochure
• Creating resources, templates, and freebies that helped my audience (and positioned me as an expert)

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None of this felt particularly flashy. I wasn’t reinventing the wheel, I was just showing up consistently as myself.

And that’s what made me visible to dream clients.

🎙️ I recorded a full podcast episode on how I built a personal brand that actually feels like me AND attracts aligned, high-paying clients.

​Listen to the episode here or wherever you listen to your podcasts.

We need more Freelance Money Diaries submissions!

As you know, I'm on a mission to bring more transparency around rates in the freelancing world. And, to do that, it really helps to see what other freelancers are earning. I'd absolutely love it (and be eternally grateful) if you share your finances with us (you can do it totally anonymously!).

As always, happy freelancing :)

Lizzie ✨

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