In our final episode, our panel talks about scaling up, whether you should and how to do it: Pros and cons of scaling What you can do to prep Actionable quick tips Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource or something else that they're enjoying & recommend you to check out: Erik: Business Profit 101: A Primer for Freelance Software Developers - DaedTech , The All-In-One People Platform for Payro...
Dec 13, 2022•50 min
In this episode, our panel talks about how to improve your career when you're working on your own: Career development for freelancers vs employees What is career development, really? Self-evaluation – taking time to be deliberate about your practice Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource or something else that they're enjoying & recommend you to check out: Erik: E-Myth Revisited , HS Community...
Dec 06, 2022•53 min
In this episode, our panel talks about knowing when to fold, knowing when to stop freelancing, and try full-time.: Advantages of a full-time job How often should you ask yourself this question/evaluate whether to keep going? Signs that you need to do something different Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource or something else that they're enjoying & recommend you to check out: Erik: TropicalMB...
Nov 29, 2022•49 min
In this episode, our panel will be discussing everything you need to know about handling conflict with clients: Sources of conflict Horror stories Tactical conflict management best practices Avoiding conflicts Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource or something else that they're enjoying & recommend you to check out: Erik: The No Asshole Rule (Book) Erik: This guide to measuring web performanc...
Nov 22, 2022•51 min
In this episode, our panel will be discussing everything you need to know about Customer Service and Client Retention: Why is customer service relevant? Upselling Best practice & more Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource or something else that they're enjoying & recommend you to check out: Erik: a free CRM software | Cobra Kai, the show | A Post about Grafana and Prometheus that We Did R...
Nov 15, 2022•47 min
In this episode, our panel will be discussing everything you need to know about accounting & finance: What does business finance involve in the early days for a freelancer? Should you pay someone to help? If so, when, and for what? Taxes, and more Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource or something else that they're enjoying & recommend you to check out: Erik: FreshBooks Erik: This post we...
Oct 26, 2022•45 min
In this episode, we will be discussing everything you need to know about pricing with our guest, Jonathan Stark. Guest Our guest this week is Jonathan Stark — He is a former software developer who is on a mission to rid the world of hourly billing. He is the author of Hourly Billing Is Nuts, the host of Ditching Hourly, and writes a daily newsletter on pricing for independent professionals. Links Value Pricing Bootcamp Hourly Billing Is Nuts Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In e...
Oct 19, 2022•1 hr
In this episode, our panel will be discussing everything you need to know about contracts and negotiating over them: When does negotiation begin (in the sales/marketing pipeline)? What is negotiation like with different kinds of companies? What might you negotiate? Dealing with contracts Re-negotiation for future engagements Tips and tricks/best practices Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource or ...
Oct 05, 2022•54 min
Once you're done with marketing, how do you actually start the sales funnel with a client? Today, our panel takes a deep dive into everything you need to know about sales. Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource or something else that they're enjoying & recommend you to check out: Erik: E-Myth , Sales blog post , the practice of BDD . Reuven: You're using your dishwasher wrong , Matt Levine: Bl...
Sep 27, 2022•53 min
In this episode, our panel takes a deep dive into marketing for freelancers. All your questions will be answered: What is marketing? Where does marketing stop and sales begin? What are the prerequisites for marketing? What do we do for marketing? Best ways for getting started Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource or something else that they're enjoying & recommend you to check out: Erik: Mari...
Sep 20, 2022•1 hr 2 min
Episode Summary We talk with Philip Morgan, coach & author of 'The Positioning Manual for Indie Consultants', about specialization & positioning - building a defensive advantage around your business by cultivating rare & valuable expertise. Links Philip Morgan Consulting The Positioning Manual for Indie Consultants Guest Our guest this week is Philip Morgan — He helps indie consultants build an expertise moat through experiential learning. He's got a lot of hands-on experience with: ...
Sep 13, 2022•48 min
In this episode, our panel takes a deep dive into preparing your freelance practice and discusses: Their stories of how they got started What they would do differently, and The things to keep in mind when you're actually starting up your practice Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource, or something else that they're enjoying & recommend you to check out: Books - The Lean Startup , Profit First...
Sep 06, 2022•49 min
Welcome to the first episode of season 3! In this episode, our panel takes a deep dive into freelancing: What does it mean to be a freelancer? Is it for you? Panelists Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks In each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource or something else that they're enjoying & recommend you to check out: The E-Myth Revisited (Erik) This article about release management in ITIL (Erik) High Conflict: Why We Get Trapped and How We Get...
Aug 30, 2022•45 min
Episode Summary How can you grow your business as a freelancer? Our panel discusses the different paths to grow your business, hiring a team, climbing the value chain, and aligning your growth goals with what you want out of your business. Panelists Erik Dietrich Marg Reffell Kai Davis Meg Cumby Panel Picks Each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource, or something else that they're enjoying and recommend you check out: JonathanStark.com for insight on pr...
Dec 15, 2020•54 min
Episode Summary We talk with Brian Casel, entrepreneur and creator of ProcessKit and Productize & Scale, about how to create systems that bring order to your business and how to productize your services. Links ProcessKit Productize and Scale Guest Our guest this week is Brian Casel — an entrepreneur and product designer who has built multiple self-funded businesses since 2008. Brian runs ProcessKit, a process-driven project management software for client services. He's also Productize & ...
Dec 08, 2020•51 min
Episode Summary Thinking about using YouTube for marketing, promotion and audience growth? Our panel talks about our experiences using this channel and what we'd recommend for people considering adding this channel into the mix for their business. Panelists Marg Reffell Reuven Lerner Erik Dietrich Kai Davis Panel Picks Each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource, or something else that they're enjoying and recommend you check out: Fathom Analytics - an a...
Dec 01, 2020•54 min
The Elusive Work-Life Balance Episode Summary We talk about the struggles we face with the ever-present puzzle of balancing work and life as freelancers and indie consultants and the strategies and mindsets we've developed to have some modicum of balance in our lives. Panelists Meg Cumby Jeremy Green Marg Reffell Reuven Lerner Panel Picks Each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource, or something else that they're enjoying and recommend you check out: Tak...
Nov 24, 2020•36 min
Episode Summary Where can you find leads in the short term if you're in need of work now? What are strategies you can use to find better quality leads? We answer those questions and share resources to help you on your journey to building leadflow and a sustainable business. Links Mentioned The Brain Audit by Sean D'Souza Get Clients Now by C. J. Hayden Ultimate Sales Machine by Chet Holmes The Positioning Manual by Philip Morgan Get More Leads by Kai Davis Fix This Next by Mike Michaelowicz The ...
Nov 17, 2020•48 min
Episode Summary We talk with Alex Hillman about lessons for freelancers and indie consultants from his recently released book, the Tiny MBA. Alex drops a lot of wisdom in this episode about how to tackle and unpack some of the issues we face with money psychology, playing the long game of business, and more. Links Mentioned Tiny MBA 30x500 Indy Hall Stacking the Bricks Guest This episode we talk with Alex Hillman. For more than 10 years, Alex and his business partner Amy Hoy have run Stacking th...
Nov 10, 2020•1 hr 8 min
Episode Summary Today we'll be discussing sales and marketing and how to use marketing to improve the sales experience as a freelancer. Links Mentioned Cold Email Podcast Sales 101 for Freelance Devs — Avoiding the Pain You’re About to Experience (Erik Dietrich blog post) Panelists Erik Dietrich Meg Cumby Marg Reffell Reuven Lerner Panel Picks Each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource, or something else that they're enjoying and recommend you check out...
Nov 03, 2020•55 min
Episode Summary Sales pages. As a freelancer or indie consultant, when does it make sense to use them? What's their "job" for your business? How should you approach writing them? How do you handle creating a sales page if you aren't yet specialized in a particular area? Our panel discusses that and more on this week's episode. Links Mentioned Pain, Dream, Fix Examples: Stacking The Bricks , Nathan Barry Sales Safari 101 Panelists Kai Davis Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks Each episode, th...
Oct 27, 2020•52 min
Episode Summary Our panel chats about what building expertise and becoming an expert looks like as a freelancer or indie consultant and some steps you can take to better build and demonstrate your expertise. Panelists Kai Davis Meg Cumby Reuven Lerner Jeremy Green Panel Picks Each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource, or something else that they're enjoying and recommend you check out: Stock and Flow - article by Robin Sloan (Kai) This Day in Esoteric ...
Oct 20, 2020•43 min
Episode Summary We chat with Annie Duke about her new book How to Decide: Simple Tools for Making Better Choices, in which she teaches how you can improve your decision making process to ****feel more confident, second-guess yourself less, and ultimately be more decisive and be more productive. Guest This episode, we talk with Annie Duke. Annie is a former professional poker player and now a consultant in the decision-making space and the author of Thinking in Bets and the newly released How to ...
Oct 13, 2020•1 hr 26 min
Episode Summary Today our panel chats about proposals — including tips, techniques and tactics we've seen that makes the difference as you grow from freelancer to indie consultant and beyond. Links Mentioned Value Based Fees by Alan Weiss Hemingway Editor Full Proposal Guide by Margaret Reffell available on the BOF mailing list Panelists Marg Reffell Erik Dietrich Kai Davis Panel Picks Each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource, or something else that t...
Oct 06, 2020•1 hr 3 min
We're chatting all forms of client communication / account management this week, how to get better at it and make it less awkward — even enjoyable — for everyone involved. Links Mentioned Reply All Episode - Email Debt Forgiveness Day Panelists Margaret Reffell Kai Davis Reuven Lerner Panel Picks Each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource, or something else that they're enjoying and recommend you check out: Podcast: Against The Rules - Season 2 on 'coac...
Sep 30, 2020•41 min
Onboarding new clients Episode Summary Our panel dives into client onboarding — what it means, how we've approached it in our businesses, and how you can customize and improve your onboarding over time. Panelists Kai Davis Meg Cumby Erik Dietrich Panel Picks Each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource, or something else that they're enjoying and recommend you check out: Badass by Kathy Sierra (Kai Davis) Calendly (Meg Cumby) The Expanse by James S. A. Co...
Sep 08, 2020•46 min
Episode Summary We talk with Dave Hulsen about the wild world of responding to Requests for Proposals (RFPs) and why you may (or may not) want to consider diving into it. Links https://rfp360.com/resources/ https://twitter.com/rfp360 Professor Mark Wolters: https://www.youtube.com/c/ProfessorWolters/featured Guest This episode, we talk with Dave Hulsen, Co-Founder and the Chief Operating Officer of RFP360, which offers software to streamline the RFP process. Dave has an extensive history of issu...
Sep 01, 2020•52 min
Episode Summary Our panel discusses signs that client isn't worth taking on and how you can guard against bad fit clients, saving yourself time and headaches in the process. Panelists Reuven Lerner Margaret Reffell Jeremy Green Erik Dietrich Panel Picks Each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource, or something else that they're enjoying and recommend you check out: The Pumpkin Plan by Mike Michalowicz (Erik Dietrich) Tales from the Loop (Jeremy Green) He...
Aug 25, 2020•51 min
Episode Summary We're going to talk about our experiences with burnout, what are the non-so-obvious signs of burnout, what's worked for us to buffer against it and how we make sure we're taking care of ourselves. Panelists Jeremy Green Margaret Reffell Kai Davis Erik Dietrich Reuven Lerner Panel Picks Each episode, the panel (and guest) share their picks: a book, app, service, resource, or something else that they're enjoying and recommend you check out: Calm (Kai Davis) eChineseLearning (Reuven...
Aug 18, 2020•47 min
Our panel talks with Baz Baruah about Profit First — a cash-management system for your business designed by author and entrepreneur Mike Michalowicz. We discuss using the methodology of Profit First to build a reliable business, being a freelancer versus a business owner, and Baz's journey to becoming a Profit First coach. Links https://clientrobot.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/rahoulb/ https://clientrobot.com/product/how-to-write-proposals-that-convert-into-sales/ https://profitfirstbook.com ...
Aug 11, 2020•50 min
