Ever rolled your eyes at “You are the company you keep”? Same. But research (and real life) says proximity changes performance. In this solo episode, Austin digs into the research behind peer influence — from Greek philosophers to modern management studies — and shows how freelancers can use positive spillover to their advantage.
Learn how intentional community gives solo freelancers leverage: more focus, better systems, smarter strategy, and less burnout. Hear stories from the Freelance Cake Community and learn why joining the right group might be the best business move you make this year.
Key Points
Notable Quotes
Resources Mentioned
If you’re an advanced freelancer ready to trade burnout for momentum, join a private, paid community that helps you level up faster. Visit freelancecake.com/community to learn more and apply.
Hitting ~$330K should've felt like a win. Instead, it revealed the real bottleneck: complexity.
In this episode, Austin talks about how pruning services, projects, and obligations—less, but better—created the space for saner, more sustainable growth. You’ll get the tomato-plant metaphor (shoutout to Grandmother Martha), insights from Katelyn Bourgoin (“What should you stop doing?”), and even an Apple-style reset moment.
Plus, Austin walks through a practical 7-step Subtraction List to help you focus on the work that actually moves the needle.
(Feel free to grab the free worksheet under Resources)
What You’ll Learn
The 7 Practical Steps
Resources & Links
If this helped you, follow for more systems, strategy, and sanity for advanced freelancers and creators.
Chapters
00:00 Hook — when “more” stops working
01:28 The $330K year (and why it didn’t feel like success)
04:22 Complexity: the sneaky saboteur
06:19 Grandma’s garden: prune for higher yield
09:11 What “growth by subtraction” really means
10:33 Focus beats variety (how to choose)
10:59 Example: Katelyn Bourgoin and “do less, better”
13:27 Example: Apple’s 2×2 and 97% cut
15:54 The 7 Steps: Take inventory → Record decisions
24:39 Summary & next steps
26:04 Invitation to the Freelance Cake Community
What if you feel stuck not because you lack skill but because you’ve snapped on a pair of golden handcuffs? What if you want to go a new direction but can’t afford to lose the retainers you finally stacked up?
This new Freelance Cake episode with Josh Monen is the first one to drop in over 18 months, and I can’t wait for you to check it out.
In it, Josh Monen opens up about his transition from senior copywriter who was booked out but working way too much to fractional CMO with productized offers, more time off, and a business closely aligned to the life he wants.
Josh didn’t need more clients. He needed different ones. He didn’t need more ideas. He needed a clear roadmap with action steps he could put in his calendar. During our one-on-one coaching engagement, Josh put in the work.
Listen to the full conversation.
Key Points
Notable Quotes
“I was booked solid with copywriting and making good, consistent income — but more of my thing was like, ‘Where am I going with this?’ I felt like I kind of plateaued and was in maintenance mode.”
“If you’re making good money but don’t have time to enjoy it — what’s the point?”
“From that very first call, I was blown away. I even told my wife — ‘This guy really listens.’ And that’s rare. That’s one reason I hired you.”
Resources Mentioned
Josh Links
Listen, rate, and subscribe!
For specific beliefs, principles, and practices you can use right away to make the freelance game more profitable and satisfying, subscribe to Freelance Cake podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts!
In this episode, Austin L. Church talks to journalist, freelance writer, and coach Wudan Yan about the art of negotiation. The driving force behind The Writers' Co-op, Wudan tells the story of her transition from journalism to freelance narrative writing and sheds light on the two different cultures with their sets of norms.
Wudan goes on to share how her upbringing and academic background provided very little preparation for the freelance world where negotiation is often necessary.
When teaching freelancers and consultants how to negotiate, Wudan frames back-and-forth as a dialogue or conversation, not a confrontation.
Her personal journey and insights prove that negotiation can be a fulfilling and rewarding aspect of the freelance journey, even if it doesn’t come naturally to you.
If you’ve ever felt uncomfortable during a negotiation or felt like your skills are lacking, you’ll be glad you found this episode.
Key points
Notable Quotes
Resources & Links
This episode of Freelance Cake is brought to you by CrowdHealth
Healthcare in the US is complicated, confusing, and highly personal. Insurance premiums, deductibles, and copays can get really expensive, especially for freelancers and consultants who don’t have an employer paying for anything. Over the last 7 years, my family has saved $60,000+ in premiums, deductibles, and other out-of-pocket medical expenses that we would have paid with our previous insurance policy. Healthcare crowdfunding has been a game changer for us. If you live in the U.S. and you haven’t already explored what CrowdHealth has to offer, take the time to educate yourself. And if you decide you want to give them a try, go to www.joincrowdhealth.com. You can use promo code FREELANCECAKE during sign-up to save $99 per month for 3 months.
Listen, rate, and subscribe!
For specific beliefs, principles, and practices you can use right away to make the freelance game more profitable and satisfying, subscribe to Freelance Cake podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts!
In this continuation of “The 4 Stages of Freelancing,” Austin L. Church explores the last two stages: Lifestyler and Diversifier. After they’ve navigated through the Moonlighter and Hustler phases, freelancers reach a level of maturity where challenges become more complex. Meanwhile, opportunities for growth and personal fulfillment expand.
Austin highlights the motivations, challenges, mistakes, and questions at each stage, as well as the key breakthroughs and financial goals.
Are you a Lifestyler eager to earn the same or more while working less? Or are you a Diversifier interested in creating new revenue streams?
Regardless, this episode will help you figure out where you currently are in your journey and what to focus on next.
Key points
Notable Quotes
Resources
This episode of Freelance Cake is brought to you by CrowdHealth
Healthcare in the US is complicated, confusing, and highly personal. Insurance premiums, deductibles, and copays can get really expensive, especially for freelancers and consultants who don’t have an employer paying for anything. Over the last 7 years, my family has saved $60,000+ in premiums, deductibles, and other out-of-pocket medical expenses that we would have paid with our previous insurance policy. Healthcare crowdfunding has been a game changer for us. If you live in the U.S. and you haven’t already explored what CrowdHealth has to offer, take the time to educate yourself. And if you decide you want to give them a try, go to www.joincrowdhealth.com. You can use promo code FREELANCECAKE during sign-up to save $99 per month for 3 months.
Listen, rate, and subscribe!
For specific beliefs, principles, and practices you can use right away to make the freelance game more profitable and satisfying, subscribe to Freelance Cake podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts!
You’ve surely heard of the corporate ladder, but what are the career progressions for freelancers? Those of us who sell creativity in some form usually freelance part-time at the start, and those who stick with it eventually think, “Hey, why shouldn’t I be one of those people who make money while they sleep?”
In this episode of Freelance Cake, Austin L. Church discusses the moonlighter and hustler phases of freelancing, shining a light on the motivations, challenges, mistakes, and questions at each stage, as well as the main breakthrough and financial goal for each.
Whether you're reflecting on your current stage or aspiring to reach new heights in your freelancing career, this episode offers practical insights and guidance tailored to your unique stage.
This episode is part of a two-part series, and in the next installment, we'll explore the lifestyler and diversifier stages of freelancing. Don't forget to tune in for that one as we continue peeling back the layers of the freelancing journey.
Key points
Notable Quotes
Resources
This episode of Freelance Cake is brought to you by CrowdHealth
Healthcare in the US is complicated, confusing, and highly personal. Insurance premiums, deductibles, and copays can get really expensive, especially for freelancers and consultants who don’t have an employer paying for anything. Over the last 7 years, my family has saved $60,000+ in premiums, deductibles, and other out-of-pocket medical expenses that we would have paid with our previous insurance policy. Healthcare crowdfunding has been a game changer for us. If you live in the U.S. and you haven’t already explored what CrowdHealth has to offer, take the time to educate yourself. And if you decide you want to give them a try, go to www.joincrowdhealth.com. You can use promo code FREELANCECAKE during sign-up to save $99 per month for 3 months.
Listen, rate, and subscribe!
For specific beliefs, principles, and practices you can use right away to make the freelance game more profitable and satisfying, subscribe to Freelance Cake podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts!
In this episode, Austin explores the root problem freelancers face and the constant battle to ignore distractions in the midst of an overwhelming number of to-dos: marketing, client projects, website updates… No wonder many freelancers are burned out!
The truth is, we don’t really want to get more done. No, we want to focus on the right things at the right time, and push the unimportant stuff to the periphery.
So how can freelancers and consultants get clarity, reduce complexity, and build momentum faster?
You create an actionable plan you believe in.
If you want to do that and make minimum viable to transform your freelance business, be sure to grab the free 30/60/90 day plan template Austin mentions at the end.
Key points
Notable Quotes
Resources mentioned in this episode:
This episode of Freelance Cake is brought to you by CrowdHealth
Healthcare in the US is complicated, confusing, and highly personal. Insurance premiums, deductibles, and copays can get really expensive, especially for freelancers and consultants who don’t have an employer paying for anything. Over the last 7 years, my family has saved $60,000+ in premiums, deductibles, and other out-of-pocket medical expenses that we would have paid with our previous insurance policy. Healthcare crowdfunding has been a game changer for us. If you live in the U.S. and you haven’t already explored what CrowdHealth has to offer, take the time to educate yourself. And if you decide you want to give them a try, go to www.joincrowdhealth.com. You can use promo code FREELANCECAKE during sign-up to save $99 per month for 3 months.
Listen, rate, and subscribe!
For specific beliefs, principles, and practices you can use right away to make the freelance game more profitable and satisfying, subscribe to Freelance Cake podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts!