We were lucky to catch up with Quincy Bulin recently and have shared our conversation below.

Quincy, appreciate you joining us today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

More than anything, you have to care. Not about success, but everything that precludes it—you have to care about the work, the client, the consumer, the skill, etc. I realize you can receive some level of success without checking all the boxes, but to me it’s impossible to accomplish long-lasting, holistic success if you don’t truly care.

Quincy, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Hi! I’m Quincy. I’ve been writing professionally for a decade now. My career has taken me from a media startup to fashion brands and now self-employment, always focused on product and lifestyle.

My work varies a lot, and that’s what keeps it fun. Sometimes I’m interviewing sources or doing roundups for legacy media, and other times I’m writing product descriptions, website copy, etc. for brands. I also do content strategy, SEO, and ghostwriting for bloggers, and have even started diving into public relations and internal communications. Some people may think that makes me a jack of all trades and a master of none, but I’ve found that each one actually informs the other. Similar to two sides of the same coin, it’s kind of like six sides of the same die.

Through it all, my job is to market information in an engaging, efficient, and effective way. I write for smart women who strive to make informed decisions and go out of their way to invest in quality. As a naturally curious person whose home and wardrobe are the very definition of bougie on a budget, it’s a dream demographic.

When it comes down to it, I’m just proud to call this a somewhat lucrative full-time job. Every time things start to slow down, a new opportunity comes up assuring me that I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be. I’m especially grateful that people trust me to join them in their work—that’s what gets me the most excited.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

While working as a copywriter and content strategist for a major fashion brand, a co-worker (now dear friend) recommended me for a couple of freelance gigs. I will always be grateful to her because not only did my family of three need that money at the time, but those projects also created the momentum that eventually allowed me to quit my corporate job.

Balancing two jobs while also being a mom and wife (and person with anxiety!) was a lot. At one point, I developed tendonitis in my hands because I was typing nearly every second I was awake. While I wouldn’t exactly recommend doing what I did, knowing the outcome, I’d still do it again. Between the referrals from my co-worker and other opportunities through my network, in late 2021 I was making almost exactly what I needed to justify going freelance full-time.

At that point, I was incredibly burnt out and knew something had to change, but to make the decision I did was still such a privilege. While having a couple of consistent clients was crucial, even more crucial was knowing my husband’s job as a real estate appraiser would keep us afloat during potential slow months. Thankfully, we’ve only faced those when my invoices aren’t paid on time.

Nowadays, I have a solid roster of clients I can rely on for income every month. Work is simply a part of my life that brings me joy, not what defines it.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

I hate how cliche this answer is, but networking—except it’s never really felt like networking to me. I’m incredibly lucky to be connected to many smart, kind, and creative women. The opportunistic nature of networking feels very icky to me, which is why they’ve always been my friends first. They have my back, and I have theirs.

One point I need to emphasize is that I *want* them to be my friends first. They are far more important to me than any contract, and the fact that we work in the same industry ends up feeling like more of a coincidence than anything. You have to, have to, have to be genuine.

Contact Info:

• Website: quincybulin.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/quincy.bulin

Image Credits
Photo credits: Yvan Nguyen, Danielle Russell, Judah Ege