Let me guess. You have big plans for your freelancing business in 2017 but there’s something holding you back.

It’s a niggling feeling you can’t quite put your finger on.

Maybe you can’t seem to find or land the clients you dream of working with or maybe you don’t really know where to start.

Whatever it is that’s holding you back, I think I know why.

It all boils down to one word: confidence.

Let me tell you something. When I first started freelancing, I would hover over the “send” button for hours at a time, my heart racing, my hands clammy. What if the person on the receiving end laughed at my pitch? What if they thought I was stupid or silly or every other negative thing I could think of?

In reality? No one laughed at me. No one thought I was stupid or silly (at least, they didn’t say it to my face).

But it took a good few months, maybe even years, to get my head around the fact that I was a professional and to become confident in what I was doing and who I was helping.

I got there in the end, but I still have days where I question my abilities and whether I’m capable of doing the great work I tell my clients I can do for them.

So, under the brand new glow of a brand new year (hello 2017!), let’s take a look at how you can use the next few months to get really confident with your freelance business which will, in turn, lead to better clients, more money, and a business you’re proud of.

1. Start Small and Create Something You’re Proud Of

The dream of going freelance is a lofty one. Most people who toy with the idea are entrepreneurs at heart, wanting to do it all and wanting to do it all now.

By making goals that are too big for you and your business in the beginning, you’re setting yourself up to fail – ergo, take a hit to your confidence.

The key to starting off strong is to start off small.

Instead of opening up hundreds of different services to clients, open up just one and really work on making that the best service you can.

When you’ve nailed what it takes to create a great service and have garnered an interest in it and maybe even landed a client or two, then you can move onto the next thing.

This works with other parts of your business, too.

Instead of working on your website, your social media, your pitch, your services, and your marketing strategy all in one go, focus on just one thing and do it well.

When you really take the time to create something that’s good and not half-assed because you’re doing a hundred and one other things at the same time, you create something you’re proud of – ergo, confidence boost.

Take it Back to Basics…

If you’re feeling incredibly overwhelmed already this year (January has a way of doing that, right?!), take a step back and strip things back.

1. Figure out what exactly you need to run a freelance business. It’s likely that’ll be a website, a service, and a marketing plan.
2. Focus on one of these things at a time until you’ve got a system that works.

I know plenty of established freelancers who struggle with confidence issues, too – it’s not just new freelancers.

And guess what? It shows.

Clients can tell when you’re not feeling your own services and they will run a mile, trust me. Being confident in yourself means giving your clients confidence in you which, in turn, means they’ll pay you more and respect you more.

The sign of an under-confident freelancer is someone who’s all over the place. They’re quick to offer all sorts of different services because they want to please everyone. They’re quick to lower their prices because they don’t have the confidence in their work. And they’re quick to take on clients they don’t vibe with because they don’t see how great they are.

Action point:

Pick ONE service to work on for the next two weeks and make it really good.

Focus on:

1. Researching your target audience to find out what they need and creating a service around that need.
2. Creating an awesome sales page for this service that highlights how it will help your clients overcome their main struggle.
3. Shopping the sales page around in places where your target clients hang out.

I go into this in much more detail in Skyrocket Your 2017, a 3-day video workshop that will help you improve your business this year by landing clients you LOVE and boosting your revenue every single month.

2. Network

If you’re anything like me, the thought of standing in a room of people and talking about your business absolutely terrifies you. It scares the living bejeezus out of you, so you avoid it at all costs.

But you’re really doing yourself a disservice here.

The more we talk about our businesses, the more confident we become it what we do and who we do it for.

I’m not saying you need to get yourself a super-polished elevator pitch and spout it off at everyone you see. Instead, you want to practice describing what exactly it is you do and who you help which means, unfortunately, that networking is hugely important for boosting your confidence.

Here’s the good part, though: you don’t have to stick solely to in-person meetups.

I know how draining these can be, especially if you’re an introverted socially awkward person like me.

Instead, you can hit up some Facebook groups that are relevant to your niche, or join some online groups and forums that your target audience use or that fellow freelancers hang out in.

If this sounds like something you’re interested in (and you should be if you want that all-important confidence boost this year!), I’ve got a whole post on networking here.

3. Fake it Until You Make It

Urgh, this phrase, right?!

On the one hand, I really hate it because it’s basically giving people the go-ahead to lie and elevate themselves into positions they’re not really ready for.

But on the other hand? It can help us kick-start our confidence.

Confidence is a funny thing. All it takes is for one person to say your work is awesome and you suddenly feel on top of the world. Or vice versa, all it can take is one person to say your work is rubbish and you feel like the worst person on the planet.

Which is why, if you’re lacking confidence, it’s okay to fake it until you get that first surge of positive feedback. You can then use that as a stepping stone to drive your next piece of confidence-boosting feedback until you don’t need to fake it anymore.

Like I said earlier, clients can smell someone with low confidence a mile off. In order to land that first client (and, ergo, get yourself on the first rung of that ladder to confidence), you need to act confident so you don’t put anyone off.

Confidence is something we don’t place enough emphasis on. When we’re feeling low or like we’re not good enough or business suffers and it becomes a vicious cycle.

So, as it’s a new year and a time for a new you(!), why not give these confidence boosting tips a go?

And, if you’re really ready to give 2017 a kick up the backside to get things going, I’ve got just the thing for you. Skyrocket Your 2017 is a free 3-day video workshop that will show you:

• How to create a set of services that clients literally can’t say no to
• How to nail your messaging so you attract AMAZING clients time and time again
• How to set up an easy-peasy marketing strategy to keep leads coming in every single week

Get the first video to your inbox right away by clicking here.