Welcome to the 65th issue of Soloist Sundays, a bimonthly newsletter focused on longevity, balance and success on your terms for independent consultants, creatives and freelancers.

I'm your writer and host, Matthew Fenton. Thank you for being here.

If someone forwarded this email to you – welcome! Click here to subscribe.

Happy Sunday, friends! I hope this finds you putting a bow on a successful '23, looking toward an even better '24, and most importantly, enjoying the holiday season with those you love.

Today's Updated Content: How Do I Choose My Niche?

My goal with this piece, first published in '21, was to write the definitive post on niching for freelancers and consultants. You can let me know whether I hit the mark.

In large part, it was a response to some terrible takes on niching that are far too prevalent:

"Do not niche for the first few years!" In other words, "Don't do something that's been proven to work!" And I'm a little tired of people who speak to new freelancers as if they're clueless; many know exactly which niche they'd like to serve, and in fact launched their business on that basis.

"You can niche by your offer!" No, that's specializing, not niching.

"If I niche, I'll be bored and/or boxed in!" That's really up to you. No matter how sharp your marketing, you'll still attract other inquiries. If you want to do "80% my niche, 20% pot-luck projects," that's your call as a business owner and human being.

"Your niche will find you!" I wouldn't bet on that. Better to make a purposeful, strategic choice.

I recently revised and refreshed this post, to include additional points and counterpoints accumulated in the past two years. Check it out here; it's about an 18-minute read:

​How Do I Choose My Niche? A Guide for Freelancers and Consultants​

​

Thank you again for your patience and continued readership as we get settled here in Oregon wine country. I'll be back in two weeks with a set of new year's resolutions designed just for soloists.

​

Today Is the Day!

If you enjoyed this newsletter, the best compliment you could pay me would be to share it with one person you think would benefit from it.

Matthew Fenton

Founder & Chief Soloist, Winning Solo​

​

If someone shared this with you, you can subscribe here.

With 26 years as an independent consultant, I can work with you to improve just about any aspect of your freelance business. You can learn more about my coaching services here.

​

​Follow Winning Solo on Twitter​

​Connect with me on LinkedIn (Please include a note!)

​