Author: Helen Coston

Why it’s happening to you, and how to break free

Do you find yourself alternating between periods of working really hard (and invoicing a lot), followed by stretches of little to no work (and revenue)? Welcome to the world of the feast or famine cycle

It’s a stressful and frustrating cycle, commonly found among freelancers and small business owners.

But it does not need to be a permanent reality.

If you take some time to understand its root causes and then implement proactive strategies, you can build a more stable and sustainable business.

Feast or famine cycle – what are the causes?

The feast or famine cycle is often a result of inconsistent marketing and client management. During busy periods, freelancers or business owners will focus solely on fulfilling current client work, neglecting the need to market or network for future opportunities. Once the workload dries up, they find themselves scrambling to secure new clients, which takes time and leaves gaps in revenue. Worse still, a feeling of desperation sinks in. This can lead you to take on unsuitable or badly paid work, which then leaves no time to find more appropriate work, and so the cycle continues.

Other contributors to the feast or famine cycle include poor cash flow management, a lack of recurring revenue, over-reliance on a few key clients, and unpredictable industries or markets.

The effects of the cycle

The feast or famine cycle is not just financially draining – it also takes a mental and emotional toll.

During famine periods, it’s common to feel very stressed, which leads to hasty decision-making or underpricing services just to secure work. During feast times, the overload can result in burnout, reduced quality of work, and damaged client relationships.

Left unchecked, this cycle can hinder long-term growth and stability.

How to avoid the feast or famine cycle

Breaking out of the feast or famine cycle requires a combination of planning, discipline, and strategic action. This is an area I help my clients with, and here are some practical steps to help stabilize your business:

1. Consistent Marketing Efforts

I would advise you to never stop marketing, even when business is booming. Dedicate time each week to maintaining your online presence, networking, sending proposals, or reaching out to potential clients. Automating parts of your marketing, such as scheduling social media posts or using email marketing tools, can help you stay consistent without sacrificing productivity.

Marketing when you are already very busy can feel counterintuitive, but it is really important to keep it up.

2. Diversify Your Client Base

Relying on just one or two major clients is risky to any small business. To help avoid this cycle I would suggest working with multiple clients and possible across different industries or sectors. Diversifying your portfolio not only reduces dependency but also makes your business more resilient to market fluctuations.

3. Build Recurring Revenue Streams

To avoid major fluctuations in income you can look for opportunities to create steady income. This could be through retainer agreements, subscription-based services, or creating and selling products like online courses or digital templates. Recurring revenue smooths out cash flow and lessens the impact of quiet periods.

4. Master Time and Resource Management

During busy times, carve out time for strategic business planning and marketing. Outsourcing or delegating tasks like bookkeeping, admin work, or even parts of your core service can free up capacity for essential growth activities.

5. Create a Financial Buffer

Establish a business emergency fund to cushion the blow during lean months. Having three to six months’ worth of expenses saved can give you peace of mind and allow you to make more calculated decisions.

6. Leverage Technology and Analytics

Use tools to track your business metrics, predict seasonal trends, and monitor cash flow. This data can help you plan ahead, identify slow periods, and proactively address potential revenue gaps.

The feast or famine cycle : conclusion

The feast or famine cycle can be avoided, as long as there is a consistent approach to sales and marketing, even during busy times.

Building a client base. Selling. Finding people to work with. Negotiating terms. This is NOT what most business owners/freelancers/self-employed folk dream about doing when they start out. In fact, it’s the bit that really puts people off.

I’m a bit of an oddball when it comes to this. I spent fifteen years in sales, marketing and business development roles before running a business and then becoming a consultant. I’m odd because I actually quite like it! I have spent a lot of time studying the psychology of sales, I train teams in sales skills, and I like discussing processes with people in my 1:2:1 business coaching service.

What I don’t like, however, is sleazy sales tactics, pushy people or “pitch slapping” on social channels. I don’t think it works very well, I don’t train people to do this and I would never encourage a client to behave in this way.

But if you’re building a client base, you do need to sell! You need to sell your services, your way of working, and your prices.

Here’s a few things to think about:

1. It requires work

If you think posting a few times on Instagram or pushing out content on LinkedIn will give you a full client base, you’re probably going to be disappointed. I say probably, because if you have a large network and avid followers then maybe it will work out; but the vast majority of us do need to work at building a client base.

This might take the form of networking, emailing, speaking, podcasting, content creation, email marketing, or so, so many other methods. But it does require work.

2. You’ll need a bucket of resilience

No one likes being ghosted. We never want to hear “that’s not for me”. We hate the thought of rejection. We’re people! We’re social animals and it can make us feel like a failure when these things happen. But it does and will happen to you.

My years of experience have somewhat hardened me to this (but to be honest, I still feel it at times).

Please, take it from me – it’s not just you. And you’ll need to build resilience. Lots of it.

3. Think like an investor

I know. Why would you want to spend money on a project when you’re not sure of the outcome? Or why would you want to spend time (which also has a value) on something that may or may not work? But budget is a need. It could be anything from a few quid on a networking event, through to thousands for a website. The important thing is to have a budget and figure out which purchases will help you the most.

4. Practice makes perfect

I can tell you for certain that no one doing a sales pitch the first time is any good. Sales is a professional skill and an art that needs to be perfected.

If you hate talking about money, practice it. If you can’t talk about your services without stuttering and losing your train of thought, then practice. If you’re not sure what a sales funnel is, then find out more. The more you learn and practice, the easier sales will become.

5. Know your audience

This is a huge topic that would require a huge essay on! But knowing your audience is fundamental to building a client base. If you know exactly who you can help and exactly what their needs are, then building a client base will start to feel much, much easier.

In fact many clients I work with often have this as the number one reason why they are struggling to build a client base.

But a clear target audience in mind, coupled with the right communication and the right service offering will make your client base much easier to build.

My final thought on building a client base is not to worry too much when you fail at something, or when something doesn’t work as you’d hoped it would. Mistakes are part of the process, and the more you get out there and speak, listen, engage and pitch, the more clients you will get.

I specialise in sales coaching for small business owners and teams. I also do a lot of team sales training. If you’re looking at some support and direction why not book in a quick call with me.

If you find yourself dreading those first minutes of a sales meeting, you’re absolutely not alone. Whether you’re a sales professional, running a small business, or freelancing, hosting sales meetings comes with the turf. It’s a high-pressure environment and often, with multiple people in the room, the first minutes can feel overwhelming – here’s a bit more on ice breakers for sales meetings.

So what does it actually mean? Well, quite simply an ice breaker is a game or activity used to introduce people to each other, so they feel more relaxed. But it doesn’t even need to go that far: it can just be as simple as asking a few comfortable questions to get the conversation flowing.

Here’s a few pointers to think about:

Don’t force it

I’ve read and seen lots of ice breakers in action and its an area I cover sometimes in sales training courses. One of the things I don’t recommend is making them feel quite forceful.

People experience a wide range of emotions in meetings, from nervous and shy through to excited and interested. As such, icebreakers for sales meetings need to be well considered beforehand, and in the context of who will be attending.

You’ll also find there are people who are willing to talk (non-stop!) while others give barely one-word answers, which can make icebreakers fall flat or hard to control.

Get to know each other

In sales you’re always selling to a person. People make decisions about what to buy all the time, based on the simple fact of whether they like the person who is selling to them or not. A sales meeting is an excellent opportunity to deepen the relationship and get to know one another more personally.

Icebreakers built around this can be highly effective, but it’s important not to get too personal, too quickly!

If you prefer your ice breakers to be based on conversation and getting to know one another personally, you can ask open questions that will allow the others to talk on their own terms. If you prefer to go down the game or activity route you could do something like:

• Everyone in the room gives a fun fact about themselves
• Everyone in the room says what pet(s) they have
• Everyone in the room says the last book they read
• Everyone shares a recent photo they took and why its important to them

Business background

If you prefer your icebreakers for sales meetings to be more business-focused you can use the opportunity to explore each others’ professional backgrounds.  People often enjoy discussing their professional achievements or how they came into the role that they are in, and this can be an excellent way to kick off a meeting.

Some simple icebreakers could be:

• Everyone in the room says how they got into the industry
• Everyone in the room says what their very first job was
• Everyone in the room says what they most enjoy about their job

Icebreakers for sales meetings

Remember that icebreakers can not only play a role in warming up the room, but they can also provide a fabulous opportunity to deepen relationships and get to know your client more personally.

I’d recommend you consider which kind of icebreakers suit your personality and will complement the tone of the meeting you are about to have. For example, a game of charades followed by 3 hours of charts and graphs might feel a little jarring!

I’d recommend testing out ideas to see how well they work and looking at how people respond so you can refine them for future use.

Go you! Starting a business is not for the faint-hearted. In fact, I’d be prepared – it’s a rollercoaster!

When I started a business back in 2019 I felt pretty ready, but there was still so much to learn. Here’s what you need to know.

Confidence in selling yourself

No sales = no clients! Sorry to say it, but it’s 100% the case. You might have deep experience in a sector, or have a brilliant idea for a new product, but the reality is that you need to be able to sell yourself. To do this you need a strong sales plan and a really proactive approach to winning your first customers.

Feeling nervous? Check out my sales coaching if so – I’ll help you learn the ropes and practice selling.

You don’t need loads of stuff

By that I mean an expensive logo, branding, a website, or actually very much at all. You might need certain software, a laptop, products or legal services, but I’d take time to research what you actually need. Make a list and cost these up. Then make a list of the nice-to-haves. This should help you avoid burning through loads of cash.

Time management

Most business owners I come across are really bad at estimating how long it takes to do things, so if you’re not sure how to quote for your time and projects, don’t worry!

That said, I would try to be really aware how long it takes you to do stuff and then adapt your prices. For example, if you’re offering website building services and you estimate that it will take one week to build a site, but it takes two, then your day rate has effectively been cut in half!

Networking

It’s not what you know, but who you know: in business-owner-land this is actually very true! If you’re starting a business it’ll take a while for people to build up trust in you. In the early days it can feel like a very slow process (believe me, I know!). But taking the time to build a network (either online or in real life) will pay dividends in the future.

People need to trust you

Business relationships (like personal ones) are based on trust. Your clients will need to feel reassured they can trust you to do a really good job for them. Or if you are selling products, people will want to know how others found them. Trust is essential and can’t be rushed. But you can use plenty of testimonials from previous clients to help establish this.

An income plan

Starting a business almost never equates to money rolling in from Day 1 (whatever the “gurus” might tell you!). In fact, many businesses run at a loss for months or years before becoming profitable. I would strongly advise anyone starting a business to have an income plan. This could look like working part-time, saving money ahead of the launch, or having support from friends or family.

Free isn’t always best

Most small business owners focus entirely on the free ways to promote their business, and I really understand that. However, free isn’t always good! For example, if your clients aren’t on LinkedIn, there’s no point dedicating hours to the platform, even if it’s free. It’s best to allocate a little marketing budget to the channels and approaches that will serve you best.

Learn from others

Starting a business is likely to be one of the steepest learning curves you’ll ever encounter. Burnout, exhaustion and loneliness are, sadly, very common. Many of my clients find themselves feeling this way and hugely benefit from the structure of having a coach to guide and support them. There are many ways to connect with other business owners and I’d recommend you join some groups, forums or networks to get some support.

Whether you’re looking to start a business and earn more money, be your own boss, or work less hours, being self employed offers a wealth of advantages.

Becoming self-employed is a huge step to take and doesn’t come without risks. But those who manage it generally find the no-boss lifestyle highly rewarding. Let’s take a look at some of the main reasons why self-employment can be so fulfilling.

5  advantages of being self employed

Ditch the 9-5

Unless you agree to work on a daily basis for a client during business hours, there is absolutely no need to build a routine based on the working day.

Many clients I work with have young children and prefer to set their hours around their family. Some creatives I know prefer to work in the evenings because that is when they are at their creative peak. I chat with freelancers who work early mornings and finish mid-afternoon before heading out to meet friends and family. Undoubtedly the ability to work within self-selected hours is one of the key advantages of being self employed.

Financial freedom

If you’re employed right now, you’ll probably have been told your salary when you got the job. You might have received incremental increases (usually based on inflation), and you may have received pay rises.

Self employed life is very different. For a start, there is no guarantee of what you’ll earn and you may find peaks and dips in income. Your income will rely on you finding work, then doing the work, and then invoicing for the work. This is often the bit that puts people off becoming a business owner. But if you have a niche, can build a roster of paying clients or have a natural ability to sell yourself, you should find that you’ll be earning far more.

If you’re stuck on how to build up a client base, check out my online sales coaching page to see if it might help you.

Enjoyable work

Work takes up a huge proportion of most people’s lives. In fact, if you were to work from aged 20 – 60, with 5 weeks of annual leave per year, you’d work a total of 8,000 days of your life. That is a LOT of time spent working! Self employed folk have somewhat of an advantage as they get to decide what work they will take on – ideally, something interesting and fulfilling.

I’d recommend anyone just starting out to think deeply about the kind of work they want to do and will feel passionate about, as the can make a real difference to the enjoyment factor of self employed life.

Kiss goodbye to office politics

If you find yourself irritated in boring meetings, complaining about your co-workers, or generally fed up with office life, then self employment might be for you!

In fact, pretty much every freelancer and business owner I have spoken to has said that this was one of their number one reasons for going self-employed. If your workplace is toxic, you have a useless manager, or your day looks like a black hole of meetings, you’ll know what I mean.

I have been self-employed for five years and the person I share my office with is my dog. It’s bliss.

Meeting new people

The ability to meet new people and make friends in one of the big advantages to being self employed. People are a little surprised when I say this because they usually associate self employment with working alone from home. But the reality is that there are massive networks, memberships and communities for self employed people and wherever you are, you’ll be able to find something that suits you.

You can show up and get to know others like you and make friends, connections and clients. Or if you can’t travel, you can try online groups.

Most self employed people I know have far better social lives as a result of working for themselves.

Or, of course, you can work your business around your leisure activities and hobbies.

Self-employed life

Working for yourself is not always easy, and many struggle with the responsibilities of being a business owner. But if it suits your personality you can most certainly reap the advantages!

If you spend any time on social media, chatting with freelancers or just asking your friends and family, you’ll know already that opinions differ widely when it comes to how much money you can earn from freelancing.

There are freelancers out there shamelessly boasting about their six-figure business: how they earn thousands per month through passive income and only have top-paying clients. There are also freelancers saying how hard it is to scrape a living from freelancing.

As an online sales coach I have worked with many freelancers and also run a lot of training courses, so I’ve seen “under the bonnet” of many, many freelance businesses. I work with freelancers to help build a client base and ultimately earn more money from freelancing.

So, how much money can you earn from freelancing? Let’s dive in

Working out your day rate

Lots of freelancers work to a day rate (they charge an agreed amount for a day of their time) for their clients. If you work, or plan to work, in this way, figuring out how much money you can earn is a fairly simple sum.

Let’s say you charge your clients £300 per day for your services. You work 5 days a week. This means your weekly income is £1500 per day. Say you work 45 weeks of the year, then you can expect your annual income to be around £67,500. But that doesn’t allow any time for unbillable work. By that I mean time spent marketing your services, admin, invoicing, financial planning, intro calls and so on.

This kind of unpaid work is unavoidable for any freelance business and needs to be factored in. As a rough guideline, I would allow at least 10% of your time to be spent on unbillable work. This means your weekly earnings are more realistically going to be £1350, making your annual earnings around £60,750.

You can dramatically reduce your time spent on unbillable work to increase your profits (for example, by investing in software to speed up your processes), but it will never be zero.

If you are stuck on what your day rate should actually be, I’d advise you to look at what you’d be earning as an employee doing the same role and multiply it by 2.5. So if you’re a graphic designer and the average salary is 30k, multiply by 2.5 to get to £75k. Divide this by the number of days you intend to work in a year (e.g 45 weeks at 5 days a week is 225). 75k divided by 225 is £333 per day.

Most freelancers undercharge when they start out, often due to a lack of confidence

It’s important to remember that there will always be people charging less than you and there will always be people charging more. Your day rate should feel comfortable but exciting so you work hard for the clients you win.

Project fees

Many freelancers don’t charge a day rate, but instead work to a project fee instead. For example, a website builder might charge a flat fee to build a client’s website, rather than charge a day rate. This often suits a client more as they know the price for what they are getting, rather than getting hit with a larger bill they weren’t expecting.

Whether to charge a project fee or day rate depends on your services and how you like to work, but it’s worth considering both options.

If you are going to charge a project fee it’s important to remember that you may have clients calls, project management work, emails and so on that you’ll need to factor into your time working on the project. As you do more projects you’ll get better at estimating the true time involved.

Removing time for money

Project fees and day rates both connect time with money, i.e. you sell your time in exchange for a fee.

Many freelancers offer products that are not time-based and this can really help you earn more money as a freelancer.

For example, if you are a freelance SEO expert, you could offer courses in SEO that clients can buy. Technically the sky is the limit in terms of earnings in this case!

I would caution that there is a serious time investment into creating courses and other digital products, as well as possible platform hosting fees.

That said, freelancers who have successfully built this kind of business can earn serious amounts of money.

Scaling up

I have coached freelancers who want to scale up their business. Often this looks like taking on work and then outsourcing to a fellow freelancer. In principle this could earn you a lot of money as you can take a margin on every piece of work without actually doing it yourself.

But remember, this means finding trusted partners who will enhance, rather than damage your reputation. It also means you’ll be managing people, as well as client expectations, and you’ll need to have a strong strategy to your cashflow in order to pay your suppliers while possible being paid late by clients.

One client I had went from £20k a year to £95k by taking this approach.

To read more about how to scale a freelance business check out my post here.

How much money can you earn from freelancing?

I would advise you to flip this round and think about how much money you actually want to earn from freelancing. I’d then work backwards to how this can be achieved through your products and/or services.

Many people laugh when I ask this and say “well obviously I want to earn millions of pounds a year”! While I’m sure that is true, I would say to be realistic about your needs and other commitments!

Remember that putting in the time and effort to build that kind of business could come at a cost to other aspects of your life, and you could run the risk of burnout. If it’s the right moment in your life, though, a sky’s-the-limit approach could be right for you!

Really, you can earn as much as you’d like, but you need a strategy and a super solid business plan.

Summary: How much money can you earn from freelancing?

https://youtu.be/mQcKOxMKobY

I’ve worked for myself since 2019 and my prior knowledge in sales and marketing gave me a huge head start in my own quest to build a client base, but I still had a lot to learn! Whether you’re just starting out or a few years into your freelancing journey, here’s my inside knowledge on how to get clients as a freelancer.

Niching down

To niche or not to niche is a question many freelancers ask themselves. Personally, I swear by it. Having a niche helped me to not only be really clear about what I was offering but who it was for.

It also helped my to focus my time and highly limited marketing budget. I joined specialised groups, created free industry-specific masterclasses and got to know key industry experts.

Social media

Social media originally did very little for me. I posted sporadically and didn’t have much of a plan. But after a few years I took it much more seriously. I enrolled on a couple of courses and learned some basic design skills. My LinkedIn followers grow to over 4k and played a key part in my client acquisition process.

An important part to remember is that social media is social. Sounds obvious, but salesy content doesn’t work too well here. It’s more about showing people who you are and what you can offer. Those interested will follow you and want more content from you.

Content

People need to know, like and trust you before they will buy from you and content plays a key role in this. When people ask me how to get clients as a freelancer, I always say content is king. Whether you want to host free classes, a blog, a newsletter or videos, your content will help educate and remind people about what you do – and why you’re good at it.

The type of content that will be most effective depends on your audience. For example, if you’re a freelancer wanting to attract the MDs of large corporate businesses in London, your content approach won’t be the same as a freelancer who wants to attract HR managers in small businesses. MDs of large corporates and HR managers in small businesses won’t have the same interests or behaviours.

Before spending a lot of time and money on content creation I’d look at where your audience hangs out and what kind of content would be best suited to them.

Ability to sell

Freelancing has become a crowded space. To be on of the freelancers winning work you need to be able to sell yourself. That doesn’t mean adopting sleazy tactics! But you should be able to confidently discuss your expertise, write a professional-looking proposal, and posses pitching abilities that will drive engagement and conversion rates.

The majority of freelancers shy away from “selling” because they don’t like the thought of it. But it is part of the job and being able to sell is the single most important part of how to get clients as a freelancer.

If you’re struggling with this, check out my online sales coaching and I can help you learn the basics and build your confidence.

Referrals

Word-of-mouth is really powerful and many established freelancers need to do very little marketing, because they have so many clients through word of mouth. As you gain more experience (and clients) this will happen to you. But in the early days I’d recommend you tell everyone you know what your services are (friends, old colleagues, previous bosses, local neighbours). Literally everyone! Even if they don’t need your services, they may know someone who does.

If you want to make a giant leap forward, why not invest in some coaching with me? I specialise in working with small business owners as well as larger sales teams and can help you fast track your way into building a client base.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgaJAsQ7eug

As a sales trainer I have had close contact with many different sales teams. Before I became a trainer and coach, I spent fifteen years in sales and business development roles. As such I experienced working in different teams. If you’re a business owner or manager with a sales team, it’s crucial to remember that their performance is directly linked to company growth and profitability. A high priority, therefore, should be to continuously assess their performance and skills, and crucially, figure out how to actually motivate them.

How to motivate your sales team

Sales professionals often share a particular set of personality traits. Often they are extroverts, good communicators, intelligent and highly competitive. To truly motivate your sales team you need to understand the drives of your people and what will make them feel energised and keen to succeed.

Here’s my top 5 ways to provide motivation.

1. Company brand and culture alignment

I have seen many sales managers hire excellent staff without taking the time to integrate the new hire into their business. If you want your staff to represent your business to the best of their ability and demonstrate passion and enthusiasm for your products or services, they need to feel a strong emotional connection to the business.

To make this happen, you should have a well-structured induction programme for new starters.  This should include meeting fellow employees from other teams, product knowledge sessions, and a chance to get to know their close team members.

It’s also important to include your sales team in discussions, new ideas and growth conversations on an ongoing basis: after all they will be the ones selling your services!

I would always recommend two-way feedback in which a sales executive can voice his/her thoughts. They should feel listened to and respected and will, in turn, feel much more confident and involved when selling.

2. Targets

Almost all sales team will have sales targets. But to truly motivate your sales team to achieve these, they need to buy into the whole idea.

I have witnessed managers plucking a figure seemingly out of thin air, and then expecting their team to work tirelessly to achieve it. I have also witnessed business owners changing the goalposts by increasing sales targets without consultation, which is highly demotivating.

When setting targets, I would always encourage the person setting them to explain to the team why the sales target is what it is and how you expect them to be able to achieve it. I have seen that a narrative around previous years’ sales, industry changes, company investments and staff recruitment really helps a sales professional to feel motivated. The reason is that they have a much greater understanding of what their role is and why they are being asked to hit a certain target.

3. Incentives

Harvard Business Review published an article about some research which indicated that people’s satisfaction with their salary is mostly independent of their actual salary.

This isn’t to say that this applies to everyone, but sales team incentives are generally highly focused on monetary incentives (such as commission and bonuses).

And while these can work well, there should be other incentives to motivate your sales team. Schemes such as additional days off, vouchers, or employee of the week can seriously boost motivation, wellbeing and job satisfaction.

4. Training and investment

Many salespeople are expected to perform at a high level with surprisingly little training or educational resources. The way people buy and want to be communicated with has dramatically changed in recent years. I have seen how much sales and refresher training courses can significantly boost motivation and skill. Furthermore, the actual act of being on a training course boosts motivation. Employees feel invested in. And they are given an opportunity to mix with their team and share ideas. The cost for training is comparatively small given the results it can bring in terms of motivation.

5. Resources and software

Many salespeople I have trained are not given appropriate resources to do their job effectively, which results in feeling overwhelmed and demotivated.  This includes a CRM (plus appropriate training on how to use it effectively), sales materials, a company phone, laptop and car (if necessary). This kind of support seriously motivates sales professionals to perform at their best.

All materials should be regularly reviewed with input from the team, so they feel they have the best resources to do their job.

In conclusion, it’s important to make your team feel empowered, valued and understood. And that is how to motivate your sales team.

If you’d like some help and support with your sales team, please contact me.

Looking to make money from a hobby?  Welcome to the world of being a business owner!

If you’re looking to make money from a hobby, the good news is that it is more accessible than it has ever been before – but that does mean you may be facing more competition. Let’s dive in

The digital age

You may not be a fan of every aspect of the digital age that we’re in, but a serious advantage is that there are now many platforms and sites that offer ways to make money from a hobby.

Whether you’re looking to set up a creative shop (check out Etsy), sell your books (Amazon could be for you) or turn your hobby into a paid service (think Instagram), there are countless ways to get started.

It’s well worth spending time researching what others are doing, what is popular, and what sells, to try and gauge how much market demand there is for what you do. This will really help you to establish whether you can make money.

Think local

I have coached small business owners who started offering their products and services on a very local level, whether through selling crafts at your local fair or setting up a local Facebook page. You don’t have to go international from Day One! This is also a great way of finding out what people think of your services or products and, really importantly, how much they are willing to pay.

Thinking like a business owner

Having a hobby is fun and a leisure activity (that’s what a hobby means!) But making money from a hobby becomes a different ballgame altogether: to be profitable, you’ll need to get your business brain into gear.

If you need supplies, it’s important to cost these out. You’ll need to consider how much time you’ll be spending and how you intend to sell.

If you’re opening a website, a physical shop space or online store, there will be running costs involved that will have to be covered before you can make money.  

Making a profit

If your hobby is baking pastries and you’re looking to make money from it, you’ll need to consider whether you will enjoy doing this over the long term. There’s a big difference between making pastries as and when you have friends over, versus making them day-in and day-out. If you aren’t sure, then take a week off and spend it doing your hobby continuously. If it has sucked the passion away, maybe it’s best to stick to the day job!

How much money can you make?

For many people, their hobby can turn into a neat side-hustle that gives a monthly employment salary a good boost.

But it is entirely possible to become very wealthy from your hobby and have this as your sole source of income.

The people that are really success will begin to think like a business owner and put together a business plan.

If you’d like to do this, you’ll need to consider your branding, target audience, financial plan, marketing strategy, and what you will do when you’re on holiday or sick.

If you’re earning money from your hobby you will also need to ensure you’ve registered your new business or organised your personal taxes. It’s best to check your local area and what you need to do.

There are many rewards to starting a business which go beyond just financial gain – check out my blog post on the rewards of starting a business.

Learning to sell

Learning to sell is something that really differentiates hobbyists from business owners and if you’re serious about making money, you’ll need to get comfortable with it. Whether you’re selling at a local fair, managing online sales calls or heading into meetings, the ability to negotiate, build rapport with clients and sell at the price for you will all make a huge difference to your business success. Check out my online sales coaching if you’d like to get some 1:2:1 support with this area.

Congratulations! You’re thinking of starting your own business, which is an exciting thing to do. Whether you’re in the planning phase or up and running already, there’s so much to think about. But what will your new venture bring for you? Let’s look at the rewards of starting a business.

Profit

Income is the driving force behind many business start-ups. Financial independence is without doubt one of the major rewards of starting a business.

Many freelancers and business owners find themselves earning a lot more money than if they stayed in employment.

As with all new businesses, there’s never any guarantee of success. Money will often need to be re-invested into the business for months or even years before the profits start to come in.

Lifestyle

Whether you want to work remotely, around childcare, or part-time, a major bonus to being the boss is that you get to pick and choose your hours.

Millions of people have gone into freelancing in the UK because of the lifestyle it brings them. In fact, it’s often the primary reason for starting a business. If you are employing a team or managing staff you’ll have to plan your routine to fit the business, but in principle you can build the lifestyle you want.

Business skills and success

Starting a business comes with a steep learning curve. If you’re starting a business alone you’ll need to acquire all the basic business skills, such as sales, marketing, financial planning and management. This can be really daunting and so getting to know other business owners is beneficial.

The ability to run a business opens up many opportunities for the future including scaling up, selling your business, or taking on other senior roles in the future.

Personal development

Launching and running a business is a major achievement. For many business owners it is highly rewarding. Many new business owners choose to hire a sales coach to help them navigate the initial months and create a strategy that will help them to achieve goals. If you’d like some support check out my online sales coaching to see whether it may be a good fit for you.