10 Habits of highly successful writers

Being a freelance writer has many benefits. One of the many is knowing that you can make your own schedule. This can be remarkably easy if writers know how to set up a schedule and most importantly FOLLOW IT. Not one freelance writer will ever get rich or make a descent living only investing an hour of their time writing a day, while playing around in the computer.

10 Habits of successful writers, and how to achieve them.

1. They set a schedule and follow it: Do you know what you do all day? If you say you write "all day long" check your work, and check how much you are earning a DAY. Do the numbers match? If the answer is NO, then your best bet is to make a schedule so you can treat this job like a regular job, so you can start seeing progress along the way. It may be a bit hard to set up a schedule, and be able to follow it from home, but this is the best way to start taking this work seriously.
2. They make writing goals, and achieve them. How much do you write? Do you make it a point to write at least one article a day on your Blog, website, or even here on Hubpages? If so, do you achieve your goal? If you cannot answer these questions promptly, then you need to set at least one writing goal a day. This is a great way to make sure that you start building up your freelance career, if that's what you want. Or like many other freelance writers, make sure that you earn money like the pros.
3. They write about what they know. You can write about any topic you please. Just make sure that you know your topic inside and out. One thing that successful writers do know how to do is RESEARCH THEIR TOPICS left, and right. They make sure that they gather any all and information about the article topic that they have in mind. WHY? They want to get loyal readers. When you know a topic, your readers will notice, and they will keep coming back. This is how you attract the attention that you want online. If the article is good enough online, you won't need to market it as much!
4. They make time for themselves. It can be pretty easy to get lost in the world of writing. There have been many instances when I have been so caught up with my work or deadlines that I forget about the simplest things such as eating, or sleeping. This can happen, but it does not mean that you have to let it happen. The best writes will take the time to sleep, eat, take a shower, and so on.. If you get sick, you will not be able to get work done, and then you will really be losing out on money. Make sure that the most important client (that being YOU) is happy!
5. They know what their time is worth. We all need money. This is a fact. There is no denying it or getting around it. So, do you know what your time is worth? If you are anything like me, you are constantly wondering if you are getting paid enough, or if you need to hike the prices on your work. In any case, you may need to. The best, and most successful freelancers will know exactly what their time is worth. Meaning, they will know how much, and How to charge their clients. This in turn, will leave freelancers making a profit in a week.
6. They don't put all their eggs in one basket. This is a good thing to remember when you either start your freelance career, or you are thinking about taking your career to the next level. When you start to write, you have to remember that there are MANY things that you can focus on. Many freelancers start their blogs, research the best ways to get freelance jobs, and stay there. This can be a problem. What happens when they can no longer get a job online, or when their blogs aren't making enough money? Writers have to learn all of the venues of making money online besides blogging, and content mills. This way, when one source of income is down, they can always count on the other one to help them out with their bills.
7. They are constantly marking their brand (their name). When you say: "I'm working online" What are you doing? Are you writing? Are you going on social bookmarking sites, and talking to other writers hoping to get more traffic to your websites or blogs? The one thing that all successful writer have in common, is that when they are not writing, they are actively talking to other writers trying to find the right connection for themselves. Too many writers think that by simply posting a link on Twitter, or any other social bookmarking site, they can easily get the traffic that they need. In reality, it takes a bit of socializing from writers, and a lot of patience after that.
8. They have constant leads. The most successful writers, didn't make money because they had one great writing gig when they started to write. They are successful because they were constantly applying for jobs. They researched, asked, and even sign up to any and all job board where they could check out the jobs that were available. To date, there are well over 20 job boards for freelancers. Many of which are constantly being updated. From problogger, freelancejobs.com to Ifreelance.com. All of these are useful for freelancers who are looking to get a job TODAY. If writers constantly apply online to more than one job ad, their chances of making money are greater.
9. They make sure they lead by example. One more than one occasion, one or more writers have come to me asking for advice on freelancing. Most of the time, I write about the topics that I find useful or helpful. However, there are many other topics out there that can also help writers, and these are the topics that writers should also focus on. Basically, write about the things that Newbies want to know about TODAY. Yes, there are topics that are years old, but still make money. However, remember that we do not just write about the things that people wanted to know a while back, but about the things that are as of right now! Lead by example. Keep you content up to date, and ready to be searched for!
10. They create chains to help people find them. If you are findable, then the chances of people searching for you online, and finding your work is greater. When you create chains online, it means that regardless of what page, website or social bookmarking site you are on, readers will be able to find more than one link to your work. If this is done, then traffic to your work will increase by nearly 90 percent. So, if you are used to getting 100 views a day on your blog, Website or Hubpages account, then that number will double or even triple almost overnight. Think about that! Sometimes leaving more than one link can make all the difference in your freelance business.

These are just some of the habits that come to mind when it comes to being successful in the freelance business. I'm sure that there are many more. If you think of more, or have other habits of your own that you would like to share, please do!