All The Freelance Women Podcast: Recent Episodes
Katherine Gustafson
The podcast that brings you the stories and perspectives of women freelancers of all types from around the world.
I'm speaking with Payal Dhar, a New Delhi-based freelance writer and web designer who has been freelancing for two decades. She started freelancing after severe social anxiety drove her out of an office job in journalism. Over the years she has done academic copyediting, tech writing, web design, and written 10 YA novels. Her story illustrates how to create a varied and sustainable freelance career.
Links
- Payal's website
- Payal's books
Memorable quotes"There have been plenty of ups and downs. There's been years I've barely earned anything, but that's the life of a freelancer.""As a freelance journalist your market is not just limited to your local area, or your state or city or country."
"The freedom of the press is not actually at its best right now. There's been a lot of interference. We have a right-wing government that's doing all kinds of bad things. The same pattern seems to be replicating all around the world right now."
"The one thing that you cannot ever put a value on is the freedom that freelancing gives you... That freedom of being able to decide what you do, where you do it from, and when you do it is priceless. I cannot put a value on it."
Today’s guest is Alaina Dorsey, a creative marketing strategist based in Baltimore who focuses on weed, CBD, and e-commerce. Alaina’s started her involved with cannabis as a patient who used it to help her mental health. Her story illustrates how powerful freelance careers can grow out of very personal experience, as well as how freelancers can incorporate social advocacy and action into their careers.
Links
Alaina’s marketing website: http://alainadorsey.com/
Alaina’s visual arts website: http://lainface.com/
Memorable quotes
“I found the 9-to-5 life kind of suffocating… It’s stifling. Freelancing definitely has helped mental health-wise.”
“There’s a great need for not just content, but content that’s actually good [in cannabis]. There’s a need for branding. There’s a need for SEO… There’s a need for anyone who does social media ads. There’s plenty that’s needed in this industry.”
“Though weed is supposed to make you creative, I don’t seem much creativity happening with a lot of [cannabis] businesses.”
Today’s guest is Morgan Overholt, a freelance graphic designer based in Miami who pulls in an income of almost $200,000 per year from freelancing alone. She is also the owner of Morgan Media LLC, a small graphic design agency, and co-founder of TheSmokies.com, a travel website that covers The Great Smoky Mountains National park and surrounding areas in East Tennessee. Morgan’s story illustrates the power of freelancing to help people earn a really good living while escaping from dissatisfying career paths.
Links
Morgan Media LLC: https://morganoverholt.com/
The Smokies.com: https://www.thesmokies.com/
Study on gender gap in self-promotion: https://www.nber.org/papers/w26345
Blog post by Morgan on mind shifts she made to double her income: https://www.collective.com/blog/small-business-hacks/mindset-shifts-woman-in-business/
Memorable quotes
“I'll tell you the strategy that personally works for me — with the disclaimer that it might not work for everybody — that I started out a little bit lower and a little bit slower.”
“Now I can take a day off occasionally, too, which is really nice. Like, right now my team's working on projects. I see messages going back and forth on Slack. And and I'm here with you.”
“Honestly the sweet, sweet smell of success and that cash in my pocket outweighs anything that a hater could say to me any day of the week because if I listened to them, I might still be stuck in that job that I absolutely hated.”
Today’s guest is Ruthie Wyshogrod, a freelance content writer and the founder of Jiri Content Strategy and Writing, living in Israel. She shifted to freelancing after having several disappointing and even excruciating full-time job experiences, and has moved back and forth between the U.S. and Israel several times in recent years. Her story illustrates the power of freelancing to help people shape their lives, which in Ruthie’s case means having a better daily work life, moving internationally, and pursuing work that fits her passions.
Bio and Links
Ruthie Wyshogrod is a writer and content strategist who helps mission-driven organizations reach their audiences through high quality, engaging content. As the owner of Jiri Content Strategy & Writing, Ruthie offers end-to-end services including pagers, white papers, case studies, blogs and web content, presentations, and message development.
Jiri Content Strategy & Writing: www.jiricreative.com
Memorable Quotes
“Nobody likes to have to get to work at a certain time. And everybody wishes they had more vacation time... it deeply bothered me that I had to count every single vacation day.”
“I really love the lifestyle. I really love the flexibility. I love running a business. It's very empowering.”
“I have the flexibility to change directions, shift directions, and reinvent myself every day… In terms of learning how to navigate as a businessperson, every day is something new, and that is very, very empowering.”
All The Freelance Women Podcast brings you the stories and perspectives of women freelancers of all types from around the world. In this introductory episode learn about your host Katherine Gustafson and what you'll hear if you tune in to the podcast.