One Year of Career Freedom in the Books
You know that tingling feeling when you take a deep, cleansing breath and you can feel the oxygen reach all the way down to your toes?
It’s how I’ve felt ever since July 19, 2019.
July 19, 2019, was the last day I worked for someone else and the first day I began working for myself. The last day I had a boss and the first day I chose to be my own instead. It was the last time I had actual coworkers, manager one-on-ones, performance reviews, team-building exercises … and most importantly, it was the first day of the rest of my life outside a cubicle.
I was done. Not in the sense of, “I hate working for other people and the corporate environment can suck it,” (though there is a bit of that, too); rather, being done meant, “I have learned what I needed to learn in order to serve others in a way I believe is good, equitable and smart.”
Being done also meant that I had built the experience and knowledge to confidently help clients with their writing and editing projects.
It was time. My time. And I took it.
I allowed myself to take control of what I wanted out of my life, rather than letting a company dictate what that looked like for me.
And guys? It’s pure, 100% oxygen. Every damn day.
ONE YEAR!
It’s officially been a year since I took on lonna.co full time, and if you’ve read this far, I’m sure you realize that the number of regrets I have about the decision is a big, whopping zero. Even during this time of the coronavirus pandemic when there’s so much uncertainty with jobs and clients and contracts and the future and how to plan for it, I have zero fear.
I’m not totally sure why, but I do know that I’m a completely different person to work with as a freelancer. For example, whenever I worked in a corporate environment, I was always worried about how I was performing, not performing, stacking up against my peers, who liked me and who didn’t. I was always nervous, never confident in my abilities.
Coincidentally, the most common feedback I get as a freelancer is what a calming presence I am and how at ease I make others feel when they’re faced with big business and marketing decisions.
I mean, me? A calming presence? I’ve always been the intense one — easy to blush and fluster over the teensiest of quandaries, though always ready to solve the problems and get down to business.
What I’ve realized after a year as a fear-free, full-time freelancer is this:
I’ve always had the talent, skills and know-how, but to fearlessly follow a dream took years of building my own confidence. This is not an innate characteristic of my being. Becoming confident is something I earned through years of winning, but more often through failing. Yes, failure is good for the mind, heart and soul.
And perhaps the most important thing I’ve learned as a full-time freelancer is how amazing clients can be.
Thank you to all my amazing clients
I can’t thank my clients and partners enough for trusting me and allowing me to serve them as their writer and editor. A roll call, in no particular order:
Cheers to Year Two, everyone!
Thanks for reading and supporting lonna.co. I cannot wait to share what’s ahead in 2021 with all of you.
July 20, 2020
June Content Achievement Award: Josie Danz
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lonna@lonna.co
Photography by:
Julianna MB Photography
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