Freelance Cake Podcast Por Austin L. Church arte de portada

Freelance Cake

Freelance Cake

De: Austin L. Church
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This podcast helps ambitious freelancers get better results with less effort. We reveal the specific beliefs, principles, and practices that give you better leverage. Every episode contains no-hype, non-expiring ideas that you can use right away to make the freelance game more profitable and enjoyable.© 2022 Freelance Cake Economía Gestión y Liderazgo Liderazgo
Episodios
  • Life Plan First, Business Plan Second: How Matthew Fenton Built a 30-Year Freelance Career

    Life Plan First, Business Plan Second: How Matthew Fenton Built a 30-Year Freelance Career
    Mar 27 2026

    At a certain point in your freelance career, the question stops being “How do I get more clients?” and starts being “How do I build a business I actually want to keep running?”

    In this episode, Austin sits down with Matthew Fenton, a positioning and strategy consultant with nearly three decades of freelance experience. Matthew has worked with brands you’ve heard of, launched White Mystery Airheads, hired agencies and independents from both sides of the desk, and built a long freelance career around a simple but weighty principle: Life plan first. Business plan second.

    That idea shapes everything.

    Austin and Matthew talk about what it means to design your freelance business around the life you want, not the other way around. They get into the challenges that don’t get enough airtime, like isolation, self-management, and the discipline required when nobody else is building structure for you.

    Matthew also shares one of the most useful concepts in the episode: your "gig floor." That’s the minimum threshold a project has to clear before it earns a yes. Right money. Right people. Right kind of work.

    They also dig into what actually makes a freelancer rehirable. Spoiler: it’s not just talent. Matthew makes a strong case for reliability, sound judgment, clear communication, and the ability to be a real partner instead of a prima donna with a nice portfolio.

    And yes, they also open a delightful can of worms on why freelancing is not for everybody and why Matthew opted out of the whole personal branding conversation years ago.

    This is a grounded, honest conversation about sustainability, selectivity, and building a freelance business with enough structure and sanity to last.

    Key Points

    • A freelance career can be built for longevity. Matthew has been freelancing since 1997 and has sustained his business by staying focused on strategy, positioning, and meaningful client work.
    • Life plan first, business plan second. The business should support your life, not consume it. That principle gets more important, not less, as your opportunities increase.
    • Isolation is one of freelancing’s hidden costs. Leaving a full-time role means losing built-in social structure and accountability. You have to rebuild those on purpose.
    • Warm reconnection beats cold networking. Matthew doesn’t think in terms of “keeping his network warm.” He reconnects with people he genuinely enjoys, and sometimes work falls out of that.
    • Your gig floor matters. Experienced freelancers need a minimum threshold for what counts as a worthwhile opportunity, especially when demand is high.
    • Reliability beats raw talent. The freelancers who get rehired are the ones who hit deadlines, communicate well, receive feedback, bring perspective, and don’t make the client regret saying yes.
    • Freelancing isn’t for everyone. Some people are better off with a paycheck job, and there’s no shame in that.
    • Personal branding is optional. Matthew argues that people are not brands and that many of the ideas lumped under personal branding are better explained elsewhere.

    Notable Quotes

    • “Life plan first, business plan second.”
    • “The primary reason for your business to exist is to meet your needs.”
    • “A deadline is a promise and failure to hit that deadline is a broken promise.”
    • “Some people are truly better off with a paycheck job, and there’s absolutely no shame in that.”
    • “I think pretty much the entire field of personal branding is nonsense.”

    Resources Mentioned

    • Follow Matthew on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewfenton/ (Let him know you found him through this episode!)
    • Check out his website: https://matthew-fenton.com/
    • Check out Winning Solo: https://winningsolo.com/
    Más Menos
    55 m
  • How Josh Cantrell Creates Demand with LinkedIn, Referral Partners, and Better Thinking

    How Josh Cantrell Creates Demand with LinkedIn, Referral Partners, and Better Thinking
    Mar 13 2026
    Josh Cantrell didn’t set out with some polished master plan.He got fired.What could have become a long, discouraging detour ended up becoming the first step in building a self-employed career with more ownership, more leverage, and more intention.In this conversation, Josh talks through the evolution of that journey.Early on, he did what many freelancers do. He said yes to whatever paid. Alongside marketing work, he flipped storage units, ran an eBay store, and DJ’d weddings to keep the lights on. Over time, though, he realized he didn’t just need more work. He needed a clearer way to create value.That’s where frameworks entered the picture.Josh shares how discovering StoryBrand gave him a structure he could lean on, not just to do better work, but to explain his reasoning, package stronger offers, and shift client perception. Instead of feeling like he was winging it, he had principles. Instead of selling tasks, he could sell outcomes.We also dig into the mindset shifts that came with experience.Josh talks about moving from scarcity to abundance, from thinking the world was small and stingy to realizing there’s plenty of opportunity out there. He explains how raising his standards changed his behavior, financially and professionally, and why standards often shape results more than motivation does.Another major theme in this episode is relationships.Josh has become increasingly intentional about building what he calls IRPs: ideal referral partners. Rather than relying on random lead gen or posting into the void, he focuses on real conversations with people who already know the kinds of clients he wants to serve.We also talk about LinkedIn, but not in the eye-rolly, “optimize your content funnel” kind of way.Josh uses LinkedIn as a conversation starter. He posts consistently, follows up with people who engage, and looks for chances to turn digital attention into human connection. That approach has led to podcast invites, referral relationships, and new opportunities.And beneath all of it is a simple but important truth: Clarity comes before amplification.If your message is muddy, more marketing just means you’re mumbling into a louder microphone. Josh explains why great content starts with great thinking, and why helping prospects believe the right things may matter just as much as writing the right words.If you want to specialize, strengthen your positioning, create more demand, and build a business with better leverage, this one is worth your time.Key PointsJosh started in survival mode. After losing his job in 2017, he pieced together income through freelance marketing, weddings as a DJ, an eBay store, and whatever else kept the lights on.Confidence followed competence. Early “imposter syndrome” had less to do with being broken and more to do with lacking reps, clarity, and proof.Frameworks changed the game. StoryBrand gave Josh a structure for making decisions, justifying recommendations, and packaging higher-value offers.His business evolved slowly but meaningfully. He moved from general marketing services into messaging, positioning, copy, and later more strategic engagements, including fractional CMO-style support.His mindset shifted from scarcity to abundance. Instead of treating every lost client like a verdict on his worth, he learned to see the market as big, generous, and full of opportunity.He now works from standards, not hope. Revenue standards, relationship standards, and service standards all shape how he shows up and how he grows.Ideal referral partners are a major growth lever. Josh aims to build relationships with peers and adjacent experts who already serve the kinds of clients he wants.He treats LinkedIn like a system, not a stage. Post consistently, follow up with engaged people, start real conversations, and see where the thread leads.He’s prioritizing documenting over performing. Lived experience, experiments, humor, and observations from real life make better content than sterile “5 tips” posts.A dream client already believes messaging matters. Josh does best with B2B companies selling something expensive, complex, or confusing that understand clear messaging must come before louder marketing.The deeper opportunity is belief change. Great content does not merely attract attention. It upgrades thinking. It creates demand by putting a fire in people’s minds about better ways to solve old problems.Notable Quotes“Confidence comes as a result of competence.”“If we’re spending money on marketing, but the message isn’t clear, we’re just mumbling into a microphone. We’re just louder.”“When you’re creating demand, it’s about putting a fire in someone’s mind about opportunities and possibilities and new ways to solve old problems.”Resources MentionedFollow Josh Cantrell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshcanCheck out his website, Signal Brandworks: https://signalbrandworks.com/Join the Freelance Cake Community: https://...
    Más Menos
    55 m
  • How Much Is Enough? Fear-Proof Freelancing + Non-Icky LinkedIn DMs with Rachel Bicha

    How Much Is Enough? Fear-Proof Freelancing + Non-Icky LinkedIn DMs with Rachel Bicha
    Feb 27 2026

    Should freelancing feel easier by now… or is the hard part kind of the point?

    In this episode, Austin talks with Rachel Bicha (content strategist + founding Freelance Cake Community member) about building a freelance business that’s sustainable because it’s intentional. Rachel shares how her offline community gives her the psychological safety to do things that scare most freelancers—like DMing interesting people on LinkedIn without feeling weird about it.

    They unpack the “safety net” Rachel built before going full-time (six months runway, ~50% income on the side, and real boundaries), plus one of her most underrated tools: defining “enough” with minimum and maximum income targets, seasonal goals, and even the occasional sabbatical.


    You’ll also hear why Rachel’s marketing works: it’s relationship-based, rooted in hospitality and curiosity, and designed to connect with real humans (not “leads”). And yes—print is back. Rachel closes with the whimsical monthly print newsletter she sends out, featuring everything from zines to bingo cards to advent calendars.

    If you’ve ever struggled with fear, overworking, marketing that feels misaligned, or wondering whether your work actually connects with real humans… this conversation is for you.

    Key Points

    • Why hard things matter: sometimes friction is the feature — remove it and you remove meaning.
    • Rachel’s path into freelancing: in-house → side freelancing → full-time, plus the mindset shift that made it possible.
    • Managing fear with systems: she waited until she had ~50% of income on the side + six months runway.
    • Defining “enough”: minimum + maximum income targets, seasonal goals, and saying no even when it’s tempting.
    • Avoiding overbooking: tracking time, setting boundaries, and using reflection to notice patterns before they become problems.
    • Relationship-based marketing: hospitality + curiosity beats transactional networking (and feels better, too).
    • LinkedIn outreach that doesn’t feel gross: curious DMs, “owning” the cold pitch, and writing like a real person with real fingerprints.
    • Confidence vs. risk tolerance: Rachel isn’t “confident” — she’s willing to look foolish and survive a flop.
    • Print is back, baby: analog trust, finite media, and why tangibility matters more as the internet gets weirder.
    • Dream client sweet spot: small teams/startups building a repeatable marketing engine through experiments.

    Notable Quotes

    • “I don’t think I ever really got less scared… I have a lot of systems… that help me feel like things aren’t going to crash and burn.”
    • “I want my marketing to feel like… hospitality… a nice, open, cozy space.”
    • “I would not describe myself as somebody who has a lot of confidence… but I have a high degree of risk tolerance.”

    Resources Mentioned

    • Follow Rachel on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-bicha-44080/
    • Check out Rachel’s website: RachOnTheWeb.com
    • Subscribe Rachel’s email newsletter: https://the-creative-side.kit.com/signup
    • Subscribe to Rachel’s print newsletter: https://rachelbicha.notion.site/welcome-to-the-creative-side
    • Join the Freelance Cake Community: https://www.freelancecake.com/community
    Más Menos
    47 m
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