Leadership isn’t just for corner offices and corporate boardrooms. Every professional, whether managing a team of fifty or working solo, needs to master the art of leadership. Why? Because true leadership starts with leading yourself – making tough calls under pressure, staying focused when distractions mount, and pushing through challenges when no one is there to motivate you.

Even when working alone, you’re constantly juggling multiple roles: strategist, decision-maker, and executor. You need to set clear directions, maintain high standards, and hold yourself accountable – the same core skills that define great leaders. And when you do collaborate with clients or join project teams, these leadership capabilities become your secret weapon, helping you guide initiatives, influence outcomes, and build lasting professional relationships.

Today’s most successful professionals understand that leadership isn’t a title – it’s a mindset. It’s about taking ownership, showing initiative, and having the emotional intelligence to navigate complex situations. Whether you’re an independent consultant, creative professional, or technical specialist, developing strong leadership skills isn’t optional – it’s essential for standing out and creating sustainable success in your career.

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Why Leadership Skills Matter for Freelancers

Freelancing often means wearing multiple hats: project manager, strategist, communicator, and executor. Unlike traditional employees, freelancers must steer their own professional journey.

A survey revealed that 50% of freelancers chose to freelance for flexibility as personal circumstances prevented them from taking up a traditional job. However, nearly every freelancer agrees that being their own boss requires strong self-leadership and accountability.

Good leadership allows freelancers to:

• Build trust with clients by meeting deadlines and maintaining professionalism.
• Communicate effectively to align expectations and ensure satisfaction.
• Adapt to challenges, like changing project scopes or managing multiple clients.

Leadership is no longer confined to managing a team; it’s about how well you navigate relationships, projects, and yourself.

The Role of Higher Education in Modern Leadership

While experience teaches valuable lessons, formal education also plays a significant role in sharpening freelancers’ leadership skills. For those balancing work and studies, programs like EdD leadership online provide flexibility. These programs equip learners with advanced leadership theories, communication strategies, and decision-making skills that are critical in today’s evolving freelance landscape.

As stated by Spalding University, the best part about EdD online courses is that they are only part-time. This makes it easier to manage your freelance workload along with your studies. Additionally, the coursework can be completed entirely online, providing convenience for those with busy schedules.

Key Leadership Skills for Freelancers

Freelancers need to develop certain key skills to thrive in their chosen career path. These skills not only make them more appealing to potential clients but also help them succeed in the competitive freelance market.

Adaptability in a Dynamic Landscape

Freelancers face constantly shifting priorities, technologies, and project requirements. Being able to pivot swiftly is essential for success. Whether it’s adjusting to a client’s revised goals or learning a new software tool, freelancers who adapt remain relevant and competitive.

Leadership in freelancing means staying flexible, identifying solutions during unexpected challenges, and continuously improving skills to meet market demands.

Emotional Intelligence (EI)

Emotional intelligence plays an important role in managing client relationships and communication. EI refers to how efficiently you can identify, comprehend, and control your own emotions and those of others.

According to research, 90% of outstanding performers had high emotional intelligence scores. While emotional intelligence isn’t a necessary quality to have to be a top performer, the chances of success increase with a high EI.

For freelancers, EI helps:

• Develop long-lasting connections with customers by learning about their wants and requirements.
• Navigate conflicts calmly and professionally.
• Foster positive collaborations with remote teams or other freelancers.

Developing emotional intelligence ensures better decision-making and reduces friction in client interactions.

Effective Communication

Clear and concise communication is essential to effective freelancing. Whether discussing project goals, providing updates, or negotiating deliverables, strong communication builds trust and reduces misunderstandings.

Freelancers often collaborate with global clients, where communication barriers like time zones or language differences may arise. According to Buffer’s State of Remote Work 2023 report, remote teams cite communication challenges as one of their top obstacles, affecting 15% of workers.

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While this was down from 17% in the previous year, it still highlights the importance of effective communication in freelancing. By mastering communication—both written and verbal—freelancers can articulate ideas clearly, ensure alignment with clients, and showcase their value effectively.

Time Management and Prioritization

Freelancers juggle multiple projects, deadlines, and responsibilities. Without proper time management, productivity suffers, and client satisfaction can drop. A survey showed that freelancers work 40 hours a week, on average. However, about 40% of freelancers work more than the usual 40 hours. Burnout may result from this, and work quality may suffer.

Effective leaders prioritize tasks based on importance and urgency, setting realistic timelines for deliverables. Tools like project management software and calendar apps can help freelancers plan their workdays and avoid burnout.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is emotional intelligence important for freelancers?

Emotional intelligence allows freelancers to handle client relationships more effectively. It helps navigate difficult conversations, address client concerns calmly, and foster trust, leading to smoother collaborations and long-term partnerships.

How can freelancers improve their time management skills?

Freelancers can improve time management by prioritizing tasks, setting clear work schedules, and using tools like Trello, Asana, or Google Calendar. Effective time management increases productivity and ensures deadlines are consistently met.

How can freelancers position themselves as leaders in their industry?

Freelancers can position themselves as industry leaders by delivering consistent, high-quality work, sharing insights on platforms like LinkedIn, and showcasing success stories through testimonials. By building a credible personal brand, they demonstrate expertise and attract more opportunities.

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Modern leadership is no longer exclusive to CEOs or managers. It’s a skill every freelancer needs to thrive. From adaptability and emotional intelligence to effective communication, leadership helps freelancers navigate challenges and maximize opportunities. By continuously improving their leadership skills, freelancers can unlock their full potential and drive long-term success in an ever-evolving professional landscape.

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Business habits have changed my trajectory of success over the last five years and it can completely revitalize and infuse your freelance business with growth if you do it right.

Probably like you, I used to be way into setting new goals in January. Did you set some this year?

Well, I didn’t.

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I have found that business habits—instead of business goals—are what really move the needle in my own small business.

While setting goals in your business can be a very powerful tool, I’ve found business habits are infinitely more powerful.

I’ve used these non-goals to not only grow my own side-hustle into a full-time business supporting me, my family, and a small team, but also to lose 70 lbs and keep off for over a year.

In my opinion, if you want to experience real, lasting change in your life or in your business this year, there’s something you should focus on way more than goals:

Habits.

Business habits include setting daily routines, schedules, or tasks that MUST be completed no matter how “into them” you feel on a given day.

After a while these business habits become so ingrained in your schedule, they almost happen automatically.

And automatic growth and progress is simply magical.

In this article, I’ll explain a few things I’ve learned (through study and personal application) about the power of habits to change your life and your business.

Goal/habit expert and author of Atomic Habits, James Clear, explains:

“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”

While seemingly cynical at the outset, James’ observation makes a lot of sense.

In January, we begin the year with lofty resolutions to double our revenue or get more clients. But by mid-January (or even for the best of us, before the end of the first quarter) we find ourselves back in our old business habits—doing work the same way we always have.

So why do new years resolutions fade so quickly?

James suggests they may just be too big. Instead, he recommends focusing on small, consistent business habits that can make a big impact in the long-term.

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“We often dismiss small changes because they don’t seem to matter very much in the moment.”

How might this look for a freelance or creative entrepreneur?

Let’s say your goal is to find 2 new clients each month in order to keep your client pool fresh and thriving.

Instead of simply setting the goal with no real consistent, easy-to-follow habitual plan to get you there, try setting a weekly (or daily) business habit by creating a calendar event for yourself in which, no matter what you’re doing, you’ll stop and search freelance job boards, send email pitches, follow-up with in-person connections, and more.

By converting your goal of finding 2 new clients a month into regular business habits, you almost guarantee the outcome you desire.

Allow me to share two real-world experiences of my own to further illustrate the point:

My own personal small business relies a lot on web traffic for success. Freelancers visit my blog where we help them as much as possible and then some readers join our paid membership program.

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But none of this works if new people aren’t regularly finding our blog.

So instead of setting a goal to do more guest-posting, I brainstormed a few business habits. Here’s what I landed on:

I dedicated an entire half-day almost every Wednesday last year to writing guest-post articles (you’re reading one of them right now).

At the end of last year, I realized I had written over 50 guest posts (two years ago, that number was zero) and 46 of them were published before year-end.

This business habit has provided a steady new stream of readers to my blog which, in turn, brought new customers to our membership site.

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Overall, this small business habit has played a major role in our 87% revenue growth last year. That’s almost 2x as much revenue year-over-year.

Not bad for one little business habit.

Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Charles Duhigg wrote a book titled The Power of Habit. In his book, he explains the power of habits to improve our willpower.

“The best way to strengthen willpower … studies indicate, is to make … a habit. As people strengthened their willpower muscles in one part of their lives—in the gym, or a money management program—that strength spilled over into what they ate or how hard they worked. Once willpower became stronger, it touched everything.”

This proved true for me. As I developed more will-power at work through business habits, I found I was able to do the same for my health and fitness.

So with no actual goals (only habits) to fuel me, I set out to get healthier.

You might have heard about the cliche S.M.A.R.T goals. And the goal to “get healthier” certainly wasn’t specific, measurable, or time-based.

But since I had tried to lose weight and get more fit using S.M.A.R.T goals in the past, I thought I’d give habits a try instead.

And the results have been amazing.

Nearly two years later, I have lost over 70 lbs (and maintained that weight-loss for an entire year) and I just ran my first 10k a few months ago.

Just like my company grew using business habits, my fitness has completely changed thanks to a few critical health habits:

1. Walking/Running almost every weekday morning.
2. Skipping high-preservative foods; going easy on cheese/bread; and limiting sugar to 1 day/week (most weeks).

That’s it.

I’ve done all kinds of “diets” and tried just about everything. But it wasn’t until I let the power of habits take over that I have seen real, lasting results.

This is the power of habits.

To wrap everything up here, I want to share 3 reasons I believe you should try focusing on your business habits this year instead of setting lofty goals or resolutions.

(PS: If you insist on setting goals and resolutions, that’s fine. But you should take it one step further by identifying the business habits that will help you achieve your goal.)

Have you ever set a really big goal only to fall short of it and feel like a complete failure?

I have.

The nice thing about a business habit is: you can’t really fail at it.

With business habits, your progress is less of a sprint (running a race in a matter of minutes) and more of a marathon (running a race in a matter of hours).

That means if one Wednesday (using my example above) I had family plans and missed out on writing, it was no big deal. I made up the work on Thursday or—worst case scenario—I picked up the business habit again the next Wednesday.

In terms of healthy eating, it meant that I could have a bowl of ice cream or a slice of pizza every now and again—as long as it didn’t become a habit. The daily observance of my healthy habits made up for any small moments of indulgence I experienced.

With business habits, you never fail. You just keep developing and improving on your business habits and the results follow.

Sticking with my examples from above, I always knew what I’d be working on each Wednesday afternoon (writing guest posts for quality sites) and what I’d be having for lunch (a nice salad on a warm day; chicken stir-fry on a cold day).

That removed at least 2 decisions out of my day, freeing up my mind for more important tasks.

James Clear explains: “It’s only by making the fundamentals of life easier that you can create the mental space needed for free thinking and creativity.”

The good news is: your mind and body are naturally looking for ways to save themselves added work.

Charles Duhigg explains: “Habits, scientists say, emerge because the brain is constantly looking for ways to save effort.”

So lean into your mind and body’s natural desire to develop positive business habits. And once you’ve got them rolling along, enjoy the extra headspace to help you grow your business, spend time with loved ones, or make progress on other important elements of your life.

To quote Charles Duhigg one last time: “If you want to do something that requires willpower—like going for a run after work—you have to conserve your willpower muscle during the day.”

Charles explains that willpower, just like any other muscle in the body can be exhausted and require rest before it can be used again.

By determining your business habits ahead of time (like knowing you’ll write on Wednesdays or that you’ll have a salad for lunch), you conserve willpower for the moments that matter the most.

As a freelancer or creative entrepreneur, that could mean having the willpower you need to finish out an important client project on a Friday afternoon when you’re already tired of working for the week—which, over time, could make all the difference.

Thanks for taking the time to read my experience with business habits. I hope it’s been helpful as you consider ways to grow your business this year.

I’m curious: what business habits do you think could help you make real progress on tough objectives this year? Share them with me in the comments.

Good luck and Happy New Year!

This article was originally published on the HoneyBook blog.

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Being a freelancer is all about the hustle, saving money, and getting paid. As an established or even a new freelancer, it is important to offer the most convenient payment methods to your customer.

In today’s day and age, nothing should be complicated, especially payment methods.

Paypal is currently one of the most popular ways to send and receive payments. It is a quick way to invoice and collect payment from a customer. For a while, it was one of the few options that allowed for international payments, so it was heavily used in the market.

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Paypal, however, does have its downsides. For example, it is not available in every country and it charges fees on every payment made, which can quickly add up or cut into your profits if that fee is not being passed to the customer. It also does not offer any options to send proposals and track projects in real-time as it is limited to just sending and receiving payments.

Thankfully, technology has continued to advance and more methods to collect payment and state-of-the-art freelancing tools are available. Listed below are 7 Paypal Alternatives for Freelancers to Collect Payments.

#1 Google Pay

Android Pay and Google Wallet joined forces in 2018 and became Google Pay. Google Pay is a good payment option as it charges no fees in most of its transactions. An added benefit is that Google Pay can be used on a mobile device, which would allow the user to not have to carry their cards everywhere.

Google Pay is easy to set up and start using, and it has a very high level of security. All payment details and other information are stored on Google’s secure servers, so you may rest assured your banking information is kept safe.

The downside of Google Pay is that it is not always compatible with all mobile devices and is not readily accepted in all locations so you may be limited in whom you can send money to or receive money from. Google Pay also only offers services for making and receiving payments, so it has limited use to freelancers.

#2 Plutio

Plutio offers an extensive platform to meet all the business needs of freelancers. For a nominal fee, you may create proposals, send contracts, manage tasks, track time and get paid.

For freelancers, this is a great tracking program as it allows you to see how much time you spent on a project and evaluate whether your current fees are what you need to be. You might realize you spent more time on a project than another if you are using their tracking system, which will, in turn, allow you to charge your customers more or less depending on the scope and past outcomes.

If you are new to sending proposals, contracts or invoices, you should rest assured because Plutio has several built-in templates for you to work off to create your own, unique documents.

To receive payments, all you need to do is create a quick invoice and send it to your customer. Plutio partners with several third-party apps such as Square, Stripe and Paypal so there is a wide array of payment options for the customer.

Accessibility is the name of the game, and that is exactly what Plutio offers.

#3 Quickbooks Payments

QuickBooks is an integrative software that offers methods for income tracking, estimates, customer invoicing, among other things. It has a relatively easy-to-use interface so you may quickly learn how to use the system. It also offers good accounting reports which are important for analyzing the current financials of the company.

It can, however, be a little more complex to use and it is definitely on the more expensive side of programs. Quickbooks also lacks invoice design tools, so you are limited in what you may send to customers and their data is not always backed up, so you could potentially lose important information about your freelance work.

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#4 Stripe

Stripe is a fully integrated suite of payment products for businesses. It offers online and in-person retailers, subscriptions businesses, software platforms, and marketplaces among other options.

It helps companies avoid fraud, send invoices, issue virtual and physical cards, get financing, manage business expenditures, and many other options.

Stripe is another convenient way for freelancers to send invoices and receive payments from their customers. Stripe does not have monthly fees, however, it charges on the percentage of each transaction, which can accrue pretty quickly depending on your revenue.

#5 Wise

Wise is essentially an electronic account option for sending and receiving payments. Wise does offer the option to make and receive payments through international transactions.

If you are sending a payment to Australia for example, all you need to do is input the USD amount that you would like to pay, and it will automatically show the conversion to AUD. This is an easy way to ensure you are sending the appropriate amounts.

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Wise does not have monthly fees, but like Stripe it charges per transaction. Wise offers international payment options, but only in the following currencies: AUD, CAD, EUR, GBP, HUF, NZD, RON, SGD, TRY, and USD. For a monthly fee, Wise also offers the option to receive account details in the same 10 currencies.

#6 Xoom

Like Wise, Xoom is also an electronic account option. It allows users to deposit amounts directly into bank accounts, send to debit cards, send cash for pickup and cash directly delivered to the client’s door if needed.

Xoom is available in 160 countries so it does reach many, but not all, places.

The recipient does not need to have the Xoom app to receive money, so that is a bonus. It also has low transfer minimums, so it is possible to send lower amounts of money at a time.

A few downsides are that fees are generally higher than the competitor’s fees, the delivery may take longer to some destinations and the exchange rate may be on the lower end of the market.

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#7 Zelle

Zelle is a payment option that is possible through the Zelle App or eligible online banking apps.

Zelle is a free transfer option, so it is a safe and free way to receive U.S. payments for freelancing services with Visa and Mastercard. It is available on many bank account apps, and you do not need the bank account number to send or receive money through the app.

Zelle does have payment limits and does not offer fraud protection, so you need to be certain that the person receiving or sending this payment is a reliable source.

What Should Freelancers Keep In Mind When Choosing A Payment App

There are many different methods to receive payment from customers. In a way, it might feel overwhelming to know which one to choose. The truth is that each freelancer must evaluate what their business needs are and how it fits into freelancing needs.

If you are a freelancer who is new to the business, perhaps you might want to start out with something simple.

However, if you know your business will grow quickly, it is important to try and make the right choice at the beginning so you may continuously track the growth of your business.

Attorney Percy Martinez from Percy Martinez P.A. advises that you should investigate the safety of any app you use to receive payments thoroughly. Safety is key when decided which app to use.

Payment Options Should Be Practical

As a freelancer, you probably work a flex schedule and more hours than the traditional 9 to 5 jobs. Every day is an adventure and filled with the possibility of new opportunities.

It is important, however, to choose a payment app that will not take up a lot of your time. Whichever option you choose should be hassle-free so you may send an invoice, receive payment and quickly move on to the next project.

Nothing is worse than losing what could have been billable hours to a customer because you have difficulties with the payment app you chose.

Therefore, new as well as experienced freelancers should take a good look at payment apps and their features before committing to one.

Payment Options Should Be Unified

Although having several different payment options and, consequently, options may seem like a good option, the truth is that will make the business side of things more confusing.

If you use 4 or 5 different methods to collect payments, when the end-of-the-month close-out arrives, you will have to go into each app and track invoices and payments received to balance out the end of the month.

If you find that you are spending entirely too much time tracking down payments to ensure that you have received every payment request you sent out, you are cutting into your time that could be used going after new opportunities.

A good option in this scenario is to find an app that will allow you to offer more than one payment method to clients. The best thing you can do in your freelancing journey is to simplify processes.

Having just one payment option will be beneficial to giving the clients flexibility in how they pay but also ensure that how you receive payments in a way that is convenient to you.

As a freelancer, you always want to portray professionalism in every aspect of the business. Things such as professional e-mail sign-offs, branded invoicing and proposals, digital business cards, well-placed QR codes on print materials, and unified payment options are important to showing professionalism.

Payment Apps Can Be More Than Just Receiving Money

When you first start freelancing, having a payment app that only allows you to send and receive money may seem like a good idea. And in truth, for a while, it may be a good idea.

However, what will happen when you grow your business and suddenly it seems like you are making money, but you are not really sure how much that is?

Some of the payment apps listed above offer more services than just the sending and receiving of money. Plutio, for example, allows you to track projects and your current status on them.

If you are a freelance graphic designer working on a design project for a customer, you may send them a contract, or invoice, and monitor which phase of the project you are on, along with how much time you have spent on the project.

If you bill the customer by the hour, this is an easy way to know how much to invoice them. If you have charged the customer by the overall project and not the hours, knowing how many hours you did spend on the project will allow you to bill the next project more accurately and efficiently since you have the actual data of how much time you spent.

Narrowing down on the right payment app is crucial if you want to save yourself time and appear professional. In the long run, the monthly fee you spend on a good app will pay you back tenfold.

Payment Apps Should Be Safe

As a freelancer and business owner, you know how important it is to be protective of your assets. Having a lawyer you can call and making sure you have liability insurance properly set up are just two examples of how you may keep your business and work safely.

Another important way is to ensure that whatever payment app you choose also has secure servers where the information is stored. You will want to rest assured that any stored data is safe within the app so you will not need to worry about it.

Customer Service Is Essential

Every now and then, you may have an issue with the app that you choose. Regardless of the choice, you will probably have to contact customer service at some point and time.

Before you commit to a payment app, take into consideration what the app’s customer service is like. Is it all automated where it is hard to reach someone? Or are you actually able to directly chat or send an e-mail to their customer service for assistance? Knowing whatever issue you may have will be resolved quickly and efficiently is primordial to choosing a payment app.

Analyze Which App Is Best for Your Freelancing Needs

Every app is going to have pros and cons. Each freelancer must be able to analyze their current needs and decide which payment app is best for their business. Being able to start off with the right app, or knowing when you should be switching to another app is essential to a successful freelance business.

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