Over the next few days, we are going look back at 2018 so we can make 2019 your best year ever. Check out this post to design your best year. Spoiler: It’s not just about money.

But back to the point of this post. I really despise numbers, but I have learned over the years that I can gain valuable insight into my business by sucking it up for a few hours and doing the math. This blog post may look familiar to regular blog readers since I added to a post from last year, but I think that it’s important to do this exercise every year.

Here are seven numbers from 2018 that can help make 2019 your best year ever:

1. Your Total Income

Take a few minutes and calculate your official total earnings for 2018. The number is important, but it also only tells part of the story about your year. So many things happen each year that affect our income, including health issues, taking care of loved ones with unexpected health issues, losing an anchor client or getting a very lucrative project. To understand the reason behind this number, make a list of the reasons why you did or did not meet your income goal in 2018.

How to use this number for 2019: Use this number and the reasons behind it to set your income goal in 2019. You should try to grow your income in 2019 unless you expect life circumstances to change. For example, if you are pregnant or you expect your parents to need more care this year.

You should also carefully think about the reasons behind your 2018 income and think about how these will carry over into 2019. If any of your reasons will affect you in 2017, now is a good time to brainstorm ways to work around the challenges. If you exceeded your income goal, then you can look at your list to evaluate the probability of your success continuing.

2. Your average hourly rate

Look through your invoices and records to determine how much you are earning per hour, on average. The benchmark should be at least $100 per hour and higher for technical areas or specialized projects. This is not to be confused with charging an hourly rate, which I don’t recommend, and I always use a project rate if at all possible. I honestly think that paying attention to the hidden hourly rate instead of the per word rates is the key to a high income.

How to use this number for 2019: If you are not at this level consistently, make a plan to increase your rate this year. One way to increase your hourly rate is to increase your writing speed. The other is to look for higher-paying clients and price by the project (number of hours it will take you multiplied by your desired hourly rate) to ensure you are making the equivalent of $100 per hour or more.

3. How many hours you worked on average each week

This number gives you a picture of what it took to make your 2018 income, which is also a very important part of the story. If you didn’t track your hours in 2018, make a goal to track your hours in 2019. I find that I tend to underestimate the hours I work each week because I enjoy my job so much and integrate my work tightly with my personal life.

How to use this number for 2019: Ask yourself if this number of hours works for your life. If the answer is yes, then pat yourself on the back. If not, then you need to figure out how to make this number one that you can live with. Let’s say you earned $100,000 because you worked 75 hours a week all year. You can’t handle continuing at this pace, but you want to keep your income. This number tells you that you need to find higher-paying clients so that you have a better work/life balance.

4. How many days off you took in 2018

Write down your vacation days and holidays that you took off. If you often work weekends, then write down the number of weekends that you did not work or only worked a single day.

How to use this number for 2019: You should have taken at least all major holidays and two weeks’ vacation off in 2018. If not, then you need to figure out how to restructure your business to meet this bare basics vacation requirement. Since the flexibility is one of the biggest reasons I freelance, I aim for six weeks’ vacation each year and not working any holidays. However, the flip side is that since I don’t do client work after 2 pm many days o the week, I typically work at least a few hours every weekend.

5. Total amount earned from each client

Make a list of all your clients from 2018 and determine how much income you earned from each. I personally find this one of the most valuable pieces of information to know.

How to use this number for 2019:  Ideally, a large portion of your income should come from two to three anchor clients. But at the same time, you should also make sure that all of your eggs are not in one basket. I aim for no single client making up more than 20 to 25 percent of my income.

Look at the list again to see if you can see any patterns among your best clients so that you can target those particular types of clients in the future. Do you seem to be getting high-paying work from agencies, or is working directly for brands more lucrative for you? Are there any other patterns that you can spot that might give you clues when finding new clients that will be long term and high paying? There is no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to finding great clients, since we all have different strengths and niches. However, most writers have better luck with certain clients over others, and looking at your 2018 client earnings can give you valuable information to help you find the perfect clients for you in 2019.

6. Average hourly rate for each client

Next to the total amount for each client, write down the average hourly rate that you earn for this client. You may have to estimate some, but try to be as accurate as possible.

How to use this number for 2019: Make a plan to ask for a raise from clients where you are earning less than your target hourly rate. You can also do this by getting the client to decrease the length or number of interviews. If you cannot get the hourly rate in line with your target, then make a plan for replacing the client in 2019.

7. Amount you earned from each niche

Make a list of all your niches and determine how much you earned in each niche. This will help you figure out which niches are most lucrative for you right now, indicating that you should focus your marketing efforts in this area. You may also realize that you are not earning very much from a niche of yours that has high earning potential, such as B2B or technology. Until two years ago, I had never broken out my income this way, and it was very interesting to realize that I was earning almost all my income through technology and very little through finance. If you have a broad niche, such as health or technology, you may want to break it down even further to see which sub-niches are currently working out the best for you.

What did your numbers tell you? What insights did they give you for making 2018 your best year ever?