Hi Reader,

Happy Friday!

This has been my first "official" week back at work and it's been very productive. Sure, it took me a good few hours to remember how to do my job, but for the most part it's been positive.

I've had 2 new enquiries this week (one of which just accepted my rates without question - love it when that happens), and I've been asked to do a talk at a university. So, it's off to a good start I'd say.

How about you? How are you finding the start to the year?

P.S. This week on Instagram, I shared some scripts for reaching out to past clients. Check them out here. And don't forget to give me a follow for regular tips and tricks!

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

👉 I wrote 3 pieces for clients (an influencer marketing tool, Klaviyo, and a new PR client)

👉 I refreshed 2 pieces for Shopify

👉 I had a call with a new client about an ongoing contract

👉 I landed a new client in just 2 emails (might be a record)

⏱ Approx hours spent on client work this week: ~20

⏱ Approx hours spent on non-client work: ~3

💰 Total revenue this week: £3,450

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Friday Freelance Tip​​ ✨ ​

I put a Story up on Instagram the other day that asked for the challenges you think 2026 might bring.

One of the common themes that kept coming up was "thriving as a freelancer in 2026".

If you're anything like me, 2025 felt a bit like a survival year. I was working month to month, losing clients, gaining them, and basically just trying to claw my way through. Loads of changes happened and it felt like the entire industry was just really... struggling.

This year already feels a bit better. I've had two enquiries this week and landed a new client for Feb already and my existing clients that went quiet at the end of last year are back with strong Q1 plans.

It feels... positive?

I daren't go too hard into that sentiment though, because we all know how quickly these things can change.

But for me (and maybe you?), I'm hoping 2026 is a year for us freelancers to ~THRIVE~ and I'm here for it.

Okayyyy... but what exactly does that mean?

It means not scraping by month-by-month, having a pipeline in place, and, you know, just generally feeling like you're not a hamster on a hamster wheel.

So, here's what I think it'll take to thrive as a freelancer this year.

Finding what works for you

First things first, I'm a big believer that all our journeys are very different. What works for me might not work for you and vice versa.

I will never say "you need to do this" because none of us need to do anything that doesn't work for us.

This year, run little experiments with outreach and marketing to see what works. Do 2-3 week bursts of, say, posting on LinkedIn regularly to see if that generates any leads, trying different types of outreach, or booking in coffee chats with other freelancers.

Find your sweet spot and then...

Be consistent

I really struggle to be consistent. My brain gets bored easily and I hate, hate, HATE repetitive tasks with a fiery passion.

But I also KNOW that I need to be consistent to see results. You can't do something for a day and hope it's going to change the whole trajectory of your business.

So, when you find something that works for you, stick at it. Bake it into your schedule like your life depends on it.

People are your biggest asset

AI has really done a number on us, right?

While it can be good for some things, it's also really shown us how much we crave personal, human connections. This year, I'm making a huge effort to meet up with people, connect with other freelancers and potential clients, and generally expand my network.

When times are tough, these are the people you can lean on for support and work.

This might look like going to networking events, scheduling coffee chats, commenting on LinkedIn posts, DMing people and starting organic convos, getting more visible in relevant circles, joining and participating in Slack channels, and so on and so on.

Treat your business like a client

One of my top hacks is to treat your own business like a client. Schedule (and commit to) a few hours a week where you focus on outreach and any admin tasks you need to do.

I've found that when I do this I feel way more comfortable and secure and less like I'm scrabbling around trying to keep up.

Yes, it's hard making this time for yourself, especially because you're not technically getting paid for it... but that WILL pay off in the end, I promise. You can start small to begin with, like an hour on a Monday morning and ramp up from there.

Don't get sucked in to the vortex

Look, I love LinkedIn, but it can be a vortex of negativity. I noticed that the more time I spent on there last year, the more uncertain I felt about the future of freelancing.

Remember, you are way more than your work. You have friends, family, hobbies, interests, and other things that make up your life. It's important to remember this when you're feeling overwhelmed by the state of freelancing.

That being said, I think we're on the up.

I'd love to know how you're feeling about 2026 as a freelancer. My inbox is always open and I ALWAYS love hearing from you.

This week, we have a freelance software developer from Vienna sharing their numbers.

Where are you based? Vienna, Austria.

How long have you been freelancing? Almost 5 years.

What do you do? Software Developer / Automation Consultant in the architecture niche.

What was your 2025 revenue? €35,000.

This person freelances full time and this was not their highest earning year.

How much did you take as a salary? €1.7k/month.

How much did you pay in taxes? Social Contributions ~€7.2k, Income Tax: Estimated €500-1k.

What are your business expenses? ~€650 a month. This person also paid for a conference (booth, evening Galas, transport etc.) for €2k.

Do you contribute to a pension?

Austria has a government scheme. Also doing personal savings of ~€300/month into ETFs right now.

Do you have any hot money-management tips?

At the end of 2025 I learned more about budgeting and tracking my money. Also learned more details about taxes, social contributions etc. to help with estimating the upcoming year. Helped me stress a lot less about everything :)

We need more Freelance Money Diaries entries! I'm forever grateful to anyone who shares their finances with us (you can do it totally anonymously!).

Click the button below to do yours!

As always, happy freelancing :)

Lizzie ✨

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