Hey there, future freelancer! 👋
If we're just meeting, I'm Erica Nall—a chronically ill healthcare escapee who became a top 1% Upwork copywriting freelancer, retired my husband, and now travels full-time in our RV with an alarming stockpile of Diet Coke.
People are always wide-eyed when I tell them I quit my six-figure healthcare position, built a freelance business that makes more than my corporate salary ever did, and now work from wherever the heck I want. Their immediate question is always:
"But HOW did you actually do it?" 👀
The System Failure That Changed Everything
Let me get real with you about why I'm even here teaching this.
I gave my literal health—almost died—for my employer back in 2020. I wrapped my self-worth and identity around being a killer employee because that's what we've been taught all our lives: that our value is in our jobs, our careers, how we climb the ladder.
And when I needed help despite all I had given? My employer chose themselves.
Then 2023 happened:
My husband lost his job after 25 YEARS of loyalty to a tech company he helped build from the ground up in the 90s into a half-billion-dollar per year enterprise
My high school teacher dad was diagnosed with stage 4 terminal cancer just before retirement
My son was making $15/hour with ZERO chance of affording his own apartment
My mom was forced into early retirement to care for my aging grandparents and then was left having to choose between her parents and her dying husband
My grandparents had to sell their family home just to qualify for the nursing care they needed
The systems were failing everyone I loved, all at once.
Something in me just... broke.
I rented our house to my son and his friends (so they could actually have affordable housing), bought an RV with my husband, and headed west to be with my parents. And I returned to freelancing with a completely different level of determination.
We Weren't Meant to Live Like This
We weren't put on this earth to give our lives and health away to other people for the sake of them making money off our hard work. We were meant to be tribes, a community, people who helped one another.
We are here to experience. To learn. To love.
And I've seen enough proof in my lifetime to know that the way our systems work right now—at least here in the US—is NOT how we were meant to be living.
You shouldn't be:
Living in debt just to maintain a middle-class lifestyle
Starting GoFundMes to pay for medical bills
Working full-time for decades only to face retirement insecurity
Watching your parents and grandparents struggle after lifetimes of hard work
Our systems are failing everywhere you look. People are suffering. People are struggling. People are hateful to one another right now because LIFE IS HARD and they want someone to blame.
But the hard truth? It's the lack and instability of financial resources that is at the ROOT of this breakdown.
Freedom Was Always Your Birthright
Having finally broken through to the other side, I can tell you:
Being fully self-employed
Making more than I ever did as an employee
Being able to tell my husband "just don't go back to work"
Traveling the US full-time in our RV
Setting my own schedule
Choosing my clients
Setting my rates
Waking up without an alarm
Swimming in the middle of the day or taking a hike when I'm not feeling work
Staying in bed on bad flare-up days...
This freedom was ALWAYS the life we were meant to live.
Feeling secure in your housing, your food supply, your health... it's your birthright.
And while money is a necessary tool to live, the more in control YOU are of gathering that resource for yourself—rather than depending on someone else to give it to you—the better positioned you are to not depend on systems that WILL fail you.
Why I'm Doing This Now
At the end of 2024, I was at a decision point: either start adding staff to continue scaling my business to meet all the work referrals coming in, OR scale BACK and finally recenter my work around something more mission-based and heart-led.
The choice became obvious. My heart is in helping others become more in control of gathering financial resources for themselves than depending on others to provide it.
I don't want to sell you pie-in-the-sky dreams.
Will some of you run with this and become full-time freelancers who quit their jobs and travel the world? I bet some will. Is that my wish for every single one of you eventually? Absolutely.
But my focus with this program right now is helping you learn the skills and providing the resources so you can start taking meaningful steps TODAY to get extra money in your account by NEXT WEEK.
For some people, a couple hundred extra dollars a month is the difference between rent being paid on time or being able to afford a full grocery run. And that feels pretty darn meaningful to me.
Why Freelancing? And Why Upwork? 💰
I'm not here to hate on side hustles or passive income dreams. Making planners on Etsy or creating digital courses or doing affiliate marketing can work...
...for about 2% of people who try it.
For the other 98%? Those approaches typically lead to:
More debt than income
Thousands spent on courses that collect digital dust
Years of "figuring it out" with nothing to show for it
That awkward moment when family asks how your "business" is going 😬
Freelancing is the exact opposite:
It costs $0 to start
You only pay fees when YOU get paid
You can start earning in days, not months or years
You don't need to buy expensive equipment, inventory, or courses
You get PAID while you learn and improve (unlike passive income ventures)
The goal here is for you to be in control of generating your own income. There are two main ways that happens:
You already have money to make more money
Rentals
Investments
Real estate
You become self-employed
Passive income routes (courses, Etsy, digital products, etc.)
Freelancing (service-based work)
For most of us without large sums to invest, the service-based route is the fastest path to income.
And why Upwork specifically? Because it's the largest active freelance platform in the world, with the highest volume of jobs and clients.
The HUGE difference between Upwork and platforms like Fiverr is the active vs. passive approach:
🚫 Fiverr: Create pre-packaged offers, then sit and wait—hoping someone stumbles across your offer.
✅ Upwork: Access a MASSIVE job board where businesses are actively looking to hire someone RIGHT NOW (like walking into a job fair where everyone is holding "We're Hiring!" signs)
The business posts what they need, and YOU get to choose which opportunities match your skills. This puts YOU in control, even as a complete beginner. No hunting for clients, no awkward cold calling, no sliding into strangers' DMs—just an endless supply of fresh jobs waiting for your application.
This puts YOU in control. Even as a complete beginner!
It's like business dating, but without the weird small talk about your hobbies. 😅
"But Can't I Just Find My Own Clients Instead of Upwork?" 🤔
Can you start your freelance journey by finding clients on social media or in groups you're already in?
Technically, yes.
Realistically? That's like trying to run before you can crawl.
Here's the progression that actually works:
Start on Upwork to establish yourself and build credibility
Collect high-value testimonials and reviews
Build a portfolio of happy clients
Let those clients refer you to others
Eventually transition off-platform if/when it makes sense
Let me share what this looked like with my own journey:
My "Um, That Was Messy" Journey to Success 🙈
My path wasn't a straight line. It looked more like a toddler with a crayon. Let me share how my own path played out:
2019: Tried Upwork for a few months. Made a few thousand dollars but had ZERO strategy. I was taking any job that paid, had rock-bottom rates, and couldn't see how the effort would ever replace my income. So I quit. (Mistake #1) 🤦♀️
2020-2023: Wasted several years on passive income projects that led to more debt than income. Bought courses. Started blogs. Tried affiliate marketing. Considered dropshipping. You name it, I probably dabbled in it. (Mistakes #2 through #47)
End of 2023: Returned to Upwork with actual STRATEGY and DETERMINATION after:
Finally admitting that the passive income projects were not going to pay the bills anytime soon
My husband lost his 25-year career unexpectedly
My dad was diagnosed with terminal cancer
This time everything changed:
First job back: $20
First month: $200
15 months later: First $20K month in my business (working ~30 hours a week)
But here's the key—this wasn't all on Upwork.
Upwork was the LAUNCHING PAD that allowed me to:
Establish myself with clients
Collect high-value testimonials
Prove that I consistently deliver work to client’s expectations through my Job Success Score (100%)
Build a network of clients and business contacts
Explore my niche preferences (while getting PAID to experiment)
Walk up my rates to discover what the market would bear
Once I put in my time in on Upwork, something magical started to unfold. Clients started inviting me to their networks, tagging me on social posts where people were looking for my services and referring others. Taking my business off-platform is what allowed it to explode my rate well beyond $100/hour — but I NEVER would have had that success trying to START there.
My Upwork foundation gave people confidence that I could deliver results and was worth premium rates. I haven't had to "sell" a single client since taking my business off of Upwork. My clients constantly ask to refer more people to me, and just by showing up on social and mentioning I'm a top 1% copywriter, people ASK to work with me:
But I NEVER would have had that success (or credibility) if I'd tried to START there. The foundation I built on Upwork is what made everything else possible.
The other great benefit of STARTING on Upwork is now I have a “business asset” to fall back on whenever I need it.
Lose a client unexpectedly and have a $2,500/month gap I need to close quickly? I can hop on Upwork and land a new contract FAST in a pinch because my profile is filled with happy clients singing my praises, my Top Rated/Expert Vetted badges and my 100% Job Success Score.
I don’t have to be actively using Upwork to hop back in at any point and begin applying for (and landing) jobs right away.
"But It's Too Competitive!" and Other Myths That Will Keep You Broke 🙄
Here's the tough love: landing your first few jobs IS a grind. That's why so many people give up before they've even given it a real try.
They send 10 applications, hear nothing back, and promptly quit—assuming:
"It's too competitive"
"Everyone's undercharging"
"Clients only want people with experience"
"The algorithm hates me personally"
ALL. OF. THESE. ARE. WRONG.
I'm here to tell you: landing jobs is purely a numbers game. And it's a game that gets MUCH easier the more jobs you land.
I have a proven system that will help you cut through the noise and start landing clients right away. For some of you, it will be a matter of days. For others, it might take the full 10 days or longer—and that's totally fine. The important thing is to follow this process so we can set your profile up for long-term success.
The important thing is to follow this process. I'm going to help you:
Set up your profile strategically (not perfectly)
Target the right kinds of beginner-friendly jobs
Create proposals that actually get responses
Turn those first clients into 5-star reviews
Use those reviews to land better clients at higher rates
"But How Can I Replace My Full-Time Income?" 📈
Great question! The secret isn't trying to match your current income while still working your job.
It's about EXCEEDING your current hourly wage (which can happen much faster than you think).
Here's how:
Start at a lower rate to get those first few jobs
Use those jobs to get stellar reviews
Gradually increase your rate as your profile strengthens
Track your metrics religiously (proposals sent → responses → contracts)
If you follow this system, you'll eventually know your numbers with freaky accuracy: "If I send X proposals, Y people will respond, and Z will turn into contracts."
Example: Even if you're only making $2,000/month on Upwork but you've:
Worked your rate up to $75/hour
Know you land 2 contracts for every 10 proposals you send
Then you KNOW you're capable of replacing your full-time income. It's just simple math on how many proposals you need to send weekly.
A Word of Caution About Going Full-Time 🚨
For those dreaming of quitting your 8-5, I'll have more resources in the coming months. But my biggest advice right now:
Before you quit your job:
Reduce your financial demands (pay down debt, cut unnecessary expenses)
Build a 3-6 month income replacement nest egg
Prepare for the feast-and-famine cycles of freelancing
I've been hospitalized twice unexpectedly over the past 2 years. When you work for yourself, you are your own PTO. Your nest egg is what keeps you afloat during those times.
Let's Get Started! 🚀
Day 1 of our challenge starts on Tuesday. Keep an eye on your inbox for:
Step-by-step instructions
Resources and templates
Practical action items to complete
By the end of this challenge, you'll have:
A complete Upwork profile
Your first proposals submitted
Your first paying client and 5-star review
The foundation for scaling your freelance income
If you're ready to join the 10 Days to Paid Challenge, click the link to opt in and Day 2 - Day 10 will land in your inbox each morning, and you'll be off to the races!
With caffeine and optimism,
P.S. For some of you, this challenge may be the beginning of a complete life transformation. For others, it might just mean an extra few hundred dollars a month to help with bills. Both outcomes are valuable, and I'm here to help you get there, regardless of your goal. ✨
P.P.S. If you missed last week’s training, I covered how to find your freelance ready-to-sell skills. You’ll want to snag the matching tool and figure out your area of interest before jumping into the challenge.
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