Making money & business more approachable for
self-employed creatives
Who reads this? Freelancers, artists, YouTubers, solopreneurs, musicians, and more
Read time: 2 minutes or less
Join 1,632 other creatives getting it in their inbox every Saturday morning:
.png)
It's easy to let money become a hidden centerpiece in your day-to-day, influencing nearly every decision.
To help with this, I created a set of guidelines for myself.
These rules keep me on track with decision-making and they reduce the amount of time I spend thinking about money overall.
They aren't perfect, but they work well for me:
Rule 1) If it saves time, spend the money
Rule 2) If it creates a memory, spend the money
Rule 3) Maintain a one year cash reserve
Rule 4) Budget & aim for monthly travel
Rule 5) Insure for security, and nothing more
Rule 6) Invest (or save) at least 10% of income
Rule 7) Always tip at least 25% (aim for double)
Rule 8) Reduce friction, stay organized, & simplify where possible
Rule 9) Avoid non-cash flowing debt
Rule 10) No more than two actively used credit cards
Rule 11) One to rock, one to stock
Friendly money & business reminders for self-employed creatives
• With old retirement accounts, you may be able to roll them over into an IRA so that you only have to manage one account - which can save on fees and paperwork
• Further reading: How to consolidate retirement accounts
• With bank accounts, I like to have one primary checking and then a couple of savings accounts designated for specific goals
• For credit cards, I like to keep it simple, stick with one or two primary cards, and that's it
• Take a few minutes to upload new work to your portfolioUpdate your "copyright" text in the footer to reflect 2023
• Review your contact info and social links to make sure they're still accurateI've seen this a lot recently with personal brand websites, but you want to make sure that your site has a security certificate or visitors may not be able to access it.
• Also read: How to Create a Contact Page that Attracts Better Clients
🎯 Six systems to build a 7-figure creative business
🎥 Watch: College kids launch TV shows on TikTok for less than $5,000
✍🏼 Freelance Finds: Why you should hire a virtual assistant for your freelance business
One of my favorite newsletters to read each week. Creatorbread will help you finally get control of your finances as a creator.
If you're a freelancer interested in learning about personal finance, it's worth subscribing. It's made especially for people like us and it's easy to read. I promise—no long, boring newsletter
Love the blog and read every single newsletter all the way through - can't say that about many!
One of the few newsletters I check out when it arrives in my inbox! I love the format and there is always something interesting to read
I consider your newsletter among the few ones that provides me with tremendous value.
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
