“Shocking Turn of Events at Forbes Advisor and CNN Underscored: What Every Writer Needs to Know to Protect Themselves”
Loss in the freelance world can feel like having the rug pulled right out from under you—sudden, disorienting, and frankly, a bit infuriating. Imagine waking up one day, riding high on the success of a gig you thought was secure, only to find out it’s vanished into thin air! That’s exactly what happened to me with my recent writing position at CNN Underscored Money. But instead of spiraling into a pit of despair, I chose to view it as a stark reminder of the unpredictable nature of freelance life. So, how do you bounce back from such uncertainty? It’s all about shifting your mindset, processing the emotions, and rediscovering your drive to create—no dramatic postmortems necessary. In this piece, I’ll share how I navigated this bump in the road and the lessons I learned along the way. You might just find a spark of inspiration for your writing journey too! LEARN MORE
I lost a good gig, and this is the only time I’ll spend talking about it because I have other writing to do
Just over a year ago, I got lucky and scored a pretty good freelance writing gig. Thanks to a guy I worked with roughly ten years ago, I became part of the team at CNN Underscored Money.
As of a few weeks ago, I am no longer part of that team. The project was abruptly shut down. I wrote that last sentence in the passive voice because I’m not sure exactly sure who shut the project down. And I really don’t care.
Because the second I received the news, I didn’t go directly to a dramatic postmortem. I did what I think every freelance writer needs to do —
- Recognize that this flavor of uncertainty is at least part of what you signed up for.
- Process the disappointment and fear associated with the general loss and, maybe more importantly, the loss of income.
- Double down on the other things you’re doing.
- Don’t beg for another gig on the message boards and social media. Find ways to turn what you’re already doing into something bigger and — with any luck — better.
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