365 days a freelancer

What I've learned in my first year going it solo

This week marks a year since I went freelance and almost a year since I launched this Substack. Where did that time go?!

For those who might be new here, this time 12 months ago, I was at a career crossroads. I’d spent nearly six years working for an incredible team at the Telegraph’s sport desk and, after deciding to move to Barcelona, it felt like the best time for me to leave that safer, supportive space and go it alone. I can say now, in hindsight, that moving countries and quitting your job around about the same time isn’t the easiest move. I can’t say I’d completely recommend it. But thinking back to how nervous I was this time last year, catastrophising about everything that could go wrong, I realise now that the old cliche about stepping out of your comfort zone is actually very true — it’s the best way to grow.

My freelance anniversary has put me in a bit of a reflective mood and I often get asked about moving away from a full-time, stable job in journalism (or, as stable as a job can be in journalism), so thought it might be useful to share my main takeaways from the past year.

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One colleague who has been freelancing for more than a decade warned me early on that the first year is the most challenging. It’s the one where you’ll take time to settle into the unknown nature of it all, figure out what work is out there, what work you actually want to do, and (crucially) what work will really pay the bills. They sagely told me to use this year as a tester season, don’t get too flustered (especially when people in the industry ask you why on earth you’d quit a job at a top newspaper), trust myself, and push on from there. I referred back to those words often over the last few months.

As an immediate caveat, I’m well aware that there’s huge privilege in being able to make the decision I did. I have a close knit family who encouraged me to do it (and would be there for me if I failed), have no dependants relying on my income, and I had the benefit of years working for a top media outlet (which gave me the contacts, experience and financial security to draw upon as I embarked on freelance life). Though freelancing definitely wouldn’t suit everyone — especially in the current media climate — for me and my circumstances it felt right.

So, if you’ll indulge me, I wanted to share what this first year has taught me.

In conversation with Bagel’s Stuart Brumfitt and Grigor Dimitrov | credit: Bagel Magazine/Snapblast

1. There’s freedom to be found in taking a risk. When I first started telling friends, family and colleagues of my decision to go freelance, I was met with a few wide-eyed forced smiles, some baffled frowns and a lot of well-meaning, if intense, questions. How was I going to earn a living? Was there enough work to keep me going? Did I have a foolproof plan in place? Was I absolutely sure? It was a bit overwhelming as, for the most part, I didn’t have the answers. I was stepping into new territory, still figuring out exactly what direction I wanted to steer my career, and there were a lot of unknowns for me. As it turns out, the three months between handing in my notice and officially leaving my role at the Telegraph were actually much scarier than the three months that followed. Anticipating the move was much harder than actually making it.

   All my worst fears failed to materialise: the world didn’t stop turning (phew!), my ideas didn’t suddenly become stale and boring, I didn’t immediately become irrelevant, people still thought I could offer up interesting work, and I miraculously got commissioned. I also gained the freedom to decide what I wanted to write about, who I wanted to work for and when I wanted to take breaks too. That freedom doesn’t mean it was all plain sailing. I learned that the term “freelancer” can be conveniently misconstrued by some editors/potential employers as a person who is willing to work for free (and I had to put some people straight on that point). But I also discovered that life beyond the role I had occupied for six really enjoyable years was not so bad after all.

2. One of the first good decisions I made was setting up this Substack. At first I thought I’d do it just in case no one actually wanted to commission me, so at least I’d have an outlet to write for every week. As someone who was writing multiple articles per week for years, the idea of potentially losing that flow was really worrying. Keeping my finger on the pulse of the sports I reported on was key and I wondered how easy it would be to do that if I didn’t actually write as often as I did before. Having this Substack kept me thinking creatively, trying to offer up a perspective that readers wouldn’t be able to find elsewhere; it kept me accountable and working to a routine; a couple of pieces even got commissioned by newspaper editors who spotted me sharing my work; and it opened me up to this brilliant community of subscribers who have continued to support my (almost) weekly musings. I still can’t believe so many people continue to sign up and, in moments of doubt, the readership on Substack has been a real source of confidence for me.

3. Self-promotion is painfully awkward, but a necessary evil. It’s uncomfortable to put yourself out there again and again on a public forum. It can feel incredibly cringy and goes against many of my main instincts, but the result can mean new clients and experiences. While I used to be a regular Twitter user, posting links to my work to people who followed me (so had actively shown an interest in what I did), that platform has fizzled away due to Elon Musk’s toxic takeover. I’ve had to branch out beyond that previous comfort zone, where so many journalists used to share their work. Instead, I’ve actually got a lot of work through LinkedIn posts where I’ve described some of my new experience, ideas or recent pieces. I’m definitely not a slave to the algorithm, and I’m lucky that I’ve never relied too heavily on social media engagement to boost my career prospects (because that must be very, very stressful), but using online platforms to promote my work is a no-brainer. If a couple of people think I’m a bit of a knob for the regular self-promotion, then so be it. A girl’s gotta work!

4. Life outside your comfort zone is actually very fun. Okay, it can be scary and sometimes I wonder why I sign up to things that make me deeply uncomfortable. But this past year I made it my mission to get over some of my irrational fears — including my stage fright. I did it by throwing myself into the deep end, hosting two panels at London Tech Week and collaborating with Bagel Magazine to host an evening with Grigor Dimitrov at Lacoste’s flagship Regent Street store.

   

   Leaning into the fear at London Tech Week with Ali Donnelly (More than Equal/RFU) and Zipporah Allen (Strava) | credit: Seb Higgins

   Those are things that, as someone who always feared public speaking, I could never have imagined doing before. But freelancing meant saying yes to opportunities that challenged me and seeking them out for myself too. I met some really cool people in my industry and discovered that I actually enjoyed facilitating conversations in front of large live audiences. Who knew the power of a Britney mic?

5. Lean on your circle. Me leaving my job meant meant I was technically going it alone, and the day-to-day of freelancing is much more individual than my previous working life. I definitely miss being part of a team you can constantly bounce ideas around with. But I can also confidently say I’ve had so much support this year from former colleagues and new connections I’ve made too. Freelancing forces you to expand your circle as you take on new clients and build new working relationships with editors, outlets and organisations, but the power of the people I already knew, respected and worked with was key to me succeeding this year. I’m really fortunate to have some solid, integral mentors in the industry who have continued to offer their guidance throughout this past year and stepped up for me in a big way. Some existing colleagues also actively reached out to introduce me to their editors or other contacts that might lead to work. I’ll always be grateful to them. Cold calling or emailing editors with pitches and ideas became a regular part of my week too. As a journalist you learn that getting ghosted by potential sources or contacts is an common hazard of this job, so I’ve got pretty thick skin and was prepared for nos or being ignored. Luckily, most people were kind enough to give feedback or even commission me.

6. Accept the FOMO. When you’re working for a big organisation, you’ve got their backing to attend tournaments and events. As a freelancer, you’ve got to weigh up what’s possible and which trips are worth the investment of time and money. Inevitably, that’s meant I’ve found myself at home during some events I would have loved to be at, keenly feeling the pangs of FOMO (fear of missing out). But focusing on what I’ve been able to do, rather than what I haven’t, has been key to me shaking off that feeling.

   

   Covering my first Wimbledon as a freelancer was a highlight | credit: Sky Sports

   I covered my first Uefa Women’s Champions League final in Bilbao (something that wouldn’t have happened in my previous job, as I wasn’t the women’s football reporter). I went to my first Olympics (not a guarantee in my previous role), thanks to a last minute tip from a fellow freelancer (shout out Ben Bloom) and some great friends that put me up for the week. I covered the Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup Finals with the ITF, including interviewing Rafael Nadal in one of his final interviews as an active player. And I still got out to plenty of other tennis tournaments during the clay and grass court seasons too. It’s not a bad first year by my measure, and I’m manifesting (read: working really hard to get to) completing my career Grand Slam at the Australian Open in 2026.

7. Invest in yourself. When I started my podcast Off The Bench back in 2023, it was with the intention of creating a space for meaningful, long-form conversations with women athletes, broadcasters and administrators. I wanted it to be fun, insightful, and I wanted to veer away from some of the cheerleader style content I see so often when people cover women’s sport. I think I did achieve that side of things, but I can still admit that I had other goals I haven’t reached yet around audience figures, brand partnerships and consistency. It’s been entirely self-funded up to this point, so when I went freelance I wondered if it was worth the risk, knowing I probably wouldn’t be seeing returns in the short-term. But I’m so glad I kept at it with the resources I had. My episodes over the past year were with some impressive guests, the conversations sparked new connections and were a real source of energy for me personally too. It helped me become comfortable in front of a microphone and it also led to more work that might not have happened without it. I’ve gained so much from the process that went beyond those initial goals.

8. Time and space to think is a luxury. At the start of 2025, I was quietly panicking. My January was slower than previous months and work was a bit harder to come by, as the tennis world was Australia-facing while I was still in Europe unable to make the trip happen this time (did I mention the FOMO?!). I found myself with time to spare, but was spending a lot of it at my laptop, frantically worrying about having too much time to spare. With a bit of perspective, I could have remembered that, actually, the sporting calendar is cyclical, and certain points of the year are always going to be less busy than others. Really, I should have maximised that time by being creative, or I could have just tried to take it a little easier and not be so hard on myself. When you’re in a full-time job there’s often far less time to just sit and think carefully about what you want to do next. Forward planning is harder when you are constantly churning out work. While I’m still full-time as a freelancer, work doesn’t always exist as a steady stream in the same way. Sometimes my cup spills over, other times it’s going to be closer to empty. It goes against every instinct most journalists have, but the reality is that slower periods can lead to some of our better ideas. I need to come up with original angles and takes on stories, to justify editors commissioning me over their existing writers. For me, the slower periods have actually led to longer-term work and projects that are taking my career in new directions. Note to self: embrace the quiet.

If my musings have been fun to follow this year, and you’re able to, consider upgrading to an annual membership — half price at just £20 — via the link below:

As ever, thanks for reading,

Molly x