Moonlighting Your Way to a Full-Time Copywriting Career
If you are moonlighting as a copywriter and want to go full-time, you can. But be sure to have a plan in place first. Owning your own business can be great, but not if you fail to plan for the first year's up-and-down income.
1. Be sure you know why you want to go full-time.
Reason: "I want more freedom and flexibility."
Full-time copywriting is great for more flexibility during your workweek, but taking longer breaks like vacations can be tricky. You will need to plan for this.
"I'll make more money as a full-time copywriter than I do as a [fill-in-the-blank]."
You well may! Full-time copywriters easily earn from $50,000 a year to $85,000 and many of them earn more. It is not uncommon to earn $120,000 a year for an in-demand copywriter, and this is NOT the stratosphere. But be aware that it takes some time to get there! Plan to buy your own health insurance and plan to get slammed with self-employment taxes. And cash flow can be very challenging.
"I have always wanted to own my own business."
Good for you! It's a fantastic way to go, especially for parents who want to be more available to their kids. Go for it, just plan for it.
2. Make a financial plan.
- Have clients ready to go so you know you will get paid right away. If you've been moonlighting as a freelancer, then this should not be a problem. You will need to ramp up to full-time, so ramp up your networking and marketing outreach.
- Whittle down the expenses. Boat, 2nd mortgage, credit card debt... you do not want to get into working for yourself and be laden with debt at the same time.
- See if you can add your employer as a client. It happens more often than you think.
3. Make a timeline.
Plan your planning! Decide when you are going to have your financial plan ready, including when and how you are going to cut out unnecessary expenses and/or pay off debt while you are still employed. Then plan your marketing and pump up your client list. You will be really busy for a while until you quit your job, so take care of your health!
Then write that resignation letter! Be bold, dream, don't be afraid. You can do this!