by Rachel Smith
03 April 2025
Losing a retainer client, struggling to lock in work – or just feeling glum about freelancing in general are things we ALL go through. And during these times, having a ‘nice feedback’ folder can be invaluable.
I’ve got one, and as it turns out, I’m not the only one carefully saving all those kind words from clients. Ahem 👇
A heap of freelancers I know are doing it too.
Like Beck Cofrancesco, Content Marketing Strategist and LinkedIn mentor, keeps a ‘sunshine folder’ in Outlook. “All the little emails and kind remarks [I’ve received] live in there. It’s important because we’re artists at heart, and suffer from terrible imposter syndrome – all of us! A sunshine folder helps you remember, you’re good at what you do.”
Health and medical copywriter Sophia Auld agrees. “A positive feedback folder … is a great reminder of your value if you’re ever tempted to cut your rates or work with ‘red flag’ clients, or if a project isn’t going as smoothly as expected.”
Adds storytelling consultant Sherene Strahan: “It’s there for the days when you feel like nobody notices how much time, skill and care you put into your work.”
A lot. Compliments or words of affirmation activate the brain’s reward pathway and make us feel good – and when a client says, ‘Great job!’ or ‘I love what you’ve done with the copy’ the ventral tegmental area (VTA) of our brain releases dopamine — a neurotransmitter central to positive emotions, motivation, and learning.
That’s exactly how Ara Jansen, journalist and writer, uses her ‘Nice Words’ folder. “I don’t look at it daily but when something has kicked me in the butt, it’s nice to remember I actually do know how to do this. Especially if a client is being particularly difficult and you think it’s you, but it’s not really, a few nice words can help you rebalance.”
Freelance health writer Sabrina Rogers-Anderson agrees. “It’s a fantastic way to give yourself a boost when a cruddy client is bringing you down and making you question your worth.”
When I asked our FB group about their feedback folder, some rad names came up: Smile File, Dopamine Hit, Winners Folder, YAH File.
“I have a folder on my desktop titled ‘Sunshine’ in which I keep snapshots of emails, social media comments, and testimonials,” says SEO copywriter Rashida Tayabali. “I screenshot everything! Including DMs I’ve received from people who have read my work or books. I also screenshot nice things peers have told me.”
Sophia copies and pastes nice feedback into a Word doc, Sherene has a feedback folder in her Google drive and for Ara and Sabrina (and me), an email folder does the trick.
Writer / editor Lisa Cugnetto is an inbox folder fan too: “I file emails from clients, editors, people I have spoken to for stories, and peers in my Feel good [email] folder – anything that brightened my day. Notes from editors saying they loved a piece, interview subjects who think I told their story respectfully and well, clients or brand managers who appreciated my work, even the odd goodbye ‘I’m leaving this role but loved working with you for these reasons’ emails.”
Content specialist and travel writer Rebecca Haddad‘s ‘Pep Talk’ folder lives in her inbox and on her phone. “These folders are a bunch of screenshots and email threads with feedback from clients, stats from reports about content I’ve directly had a hand in and other career wins (like a guest appearance on The Content Byte!). I also screenshot words of encouragement from freelancer groups I’m part of – it’s so nice to know you’ve always got virtual supporters in your corner.”
Rebecca dives in for a ‘dopamine hit’ whenever she’s had a rough week or dealt with a tricky client situation, or when she “needs the boost of encouragement to press ‘send’ on a pitch or a reply email”.
Lisa’s likely to open her nice feedback folder during a quiet patch. “Or, if I’m getting no responses to pitches or jobs, or having an occasional imposter syndrome moment.”
A dip in confidence motivates Sophia to look at hers. “For example, if I get not-so-good feedback, or a proposal doesn’t get across the line, or I’m having a blah kind of day. It gives me an instant lift, reminds me of the value I can deliver and that there are plenty of great clients out there who will appreciate my work.”
For writer, editor and content strategist Carly Jacobs, it’s just nice to know it’s there. “To be honest, I don’t actually look at it all that often, I’m more likely to just think, ‘Oh hey there’s that folder of nice stuff people have said about me’ – it’s more the existence of it I find comforting.”
Lots of things – don’t just let those kind words languish in your folder!
If you haven’t got a nice feedback folder yet, what are you waiting for?
“Running a small business comes with the deepest lows that make it feel like you’ll be stuck in it forever,” says Rashida. “So having a feedback folder with peer and client compliments to read during such lows will help pull you up and motivate to keep going. It gives you confidence that you do know what you’re doing and to feel inspired to keep going.”
“Think of it as a science experiment – you’re collecting evidence to prove the theory that you know what you’re doing!” says Strahan.
“Don’t make it complex,” says Ara. “Just a file on your computer somewhere or in hard copy if you’re that way inclined. It’s good practice to learn to be your own cheerleading squad.”
Have you already got a ‘nice feedback’ folder? We’d love to hear about it – and how often you open it for a mood-boosting read – in the comments 👇
