After years of working in an office, I left my soul-killing job to work as a freelancer. Although I was terrified and had no idea if it would work out, I knew that I couldn’t spend another day feeling trapped by my fear.
That risk paid off so much so that now, as a freelancer, I make more money than when I was at the office (and have the freedom to do what I love). If you’re wondering whether freelancing can help you achieve your financial dreams, this is your lucky day. We’ve got tips for making it happen.
Get Your Finances In Order
Get your finances in order; The first thing you need to do is take control of your finances and ensure that they are in working order. The easiest way to start with this is by getting a good accountant who can help you figure out your tax returns, as well as offer some advice on how best to manage your money.
If you have any student loans or credit card bills, make sure the payments are up-to-date and on time every month so that these debts don’t negatively affect your credit score – one of the most important factors when it comes to finding jobs and being successful as a freelancer.
Learn how to budget; Once you’ve got all of this sorted out, it’s time for some budgeting! The average person spends $3,000/month on rent alone so if possible try renting from someone rather than buying property (the house itself may be cheaper but there’ll still be maintenance costs).
Other ways include learning how not to spend all day at Starbucks when working from home; even though coffee tastes great and keeps us awake during those long days filled with writing deadlines, spending money like this will burn through our savings quickly since we can’t avoid temptation altogether.
Know Where You’ll Freelance
The first and most obvious step is to know where you’ll freelance. You need to be sure that there’s a good supply of work available in your area, and that it will be worth your time. Research the market carefully so that you can be confident in an area before starting.
If you’re just getting started with freelancing, try looking at websites like Elance or Upwork these sites provide listings for countless jobs from all over the world. On these sites, employers post opportunities for independent contractors like yourself, and all you have to do is apply with your resume attached (or create one).
If there aren’t any official job listings on those sites then look through freelancer forums like [this one](https://redditersquare.com/links/freelancing) where members post about their experiences working as freelancers and what they’ve done to find success in their field(s).
Make sure your skills are up-to-date.
Make sure your skills are up-to-date. It’s important to keep a full grip on the latest developments in your field, as well as technological advances that may affect how you work.
This can be accomplished through reading blogs and magazines or speaking with colleagues about what they’re doing, but it’s also important to check in with yourself and make sure that you’re staying current with what’s happening in the industry.
Keep up with technology. As mentioned above, freelancers will have more flexibility than regular employees because they don’t have an office job that requires them to be present at certain times of day; however, freelancers still need access to technology if they want their business plan (and thus their income) to succeed.
It might mean investing in a new computer or phone if yours is old enough (or cheap enough) that its functionality has become limited over time but if you do so wisely by picking out top-of-the-line equipment then it will pay off big time later down the road when clients assume everything about their products run smoothly because we’ve told them so ourselves…
Cash In On Your Interests
If you’re good at something and love it, but those things together. You can make money from your interests.
If you like to blog about a particular topic, why not try monetizing your passion?. There are many ways to build a successful business around blogging from guest posting to selling ads on your site or offering an exclusive newsletter. Even if you don’t expect to generate millions of dollars from your blog, there are many other ways that you can make money from what you know.
For example, if you enjoy cooking, consider starting an online recipe blog where people can come for tips on making delicious meals at home using fresh ingredients. Or maybe writing is more of your thing; in that case, perhaps launching a travel journaling site might be right up your alley.
It doesn’t matter how much time or energy goes into the project but how much joy it brings out in us when we do things we love doing.
Treat Freelancing As A Business.
Every freelancer needs to treat their freelance career like any other business venture. This means having a plan, goals,, and clear objectives for your work. You don’t want to be stuck in the same spot after five years because you weren’t clear about what you wanted out of life or how to achieve it
Having a strategy will enable you to focus on achieving results rather than just making ends meet from month to month, which can be extremely stressful and frustrating when things don’t work out as expected (which happens often).
Know Your Market Value
You need to know your market value. You can do this by looking at projects similar to yours and seeing how much others are charging for them. Once you know what other freelancers in your field charge, it’s time for a little bit of negotiation.
Remember: it is always okay to ask for more money. The worst that can happen is the client says no and moves on with their search for someone else who will work at that rate or lower!
Work On Naming Your Freelance Business And Yourself
Once you’ve decided on your freelance business name, it’s time to make sure it’s as easy for people to remember and say as possible. Think about how often you’ll need to tell people about what you do.
For example, if your name is “Uniquely Beautiful Photography,” but everyone pronounces it “uniquely beau-ti-ful pho-tog-raffy,” how much will that cost in time lost?. You can also think about how many times per day someone might ask what your business is called.
That annoying guy at the office who always asks what everyone else’s job title is so he can be funny by saying things like “I’m a lawyer.” Or maybe a family member or friend who constantly refers others to your website by saying something along the lines of “My niece runs an online wedding planning service called Bridezilla Incorporated.”
Make sure that whatever name you choose has at least some playfulness in its construction (so long as it doesn’t get too awkward or silly). The best names are short and sweet, memorable without being confusing.
Set Up Your Website
Make sure you have a professional email address (it should be the same as your website). It doesn’t matter what it is, but make sure it isn’t something silly like [email protected] or [email protected], especially if you are going to be sending business emails from that account.
Most freelancers don’t even have one because they aren’t interested in building up their brand or marketing themselves as professionals. If I were looking for freelance work, I would not hire someone who didn’t make an effort with their brand.
The same goes for social media don’t just use Facebook or Instagram; get different accounts for each of them so that people can find you on both platforms without having to search too hard.
Having a professional voice over the phone is also important because clients want someone who sounds like they know what they’re talking about and this includes not just how polite and friendly but also how well-spoken and confident someone sounds when talking about their services (like when describing what makes them unique).
Create A Marketing Plan For Your Business
A marketing plan is a detailed outline of your marketing strategy for the next six months or year. Know who you’re trying to reach, what you want them to know about your business, and how you plan on getting that message across.
For example Your target audience is women between 35 and 45 years old who are interested in travel writing but don’t have much time for it because they have kids and a job. You know that many travel writers start their blogs when they’re younger and can devote more time to them as they grow older (and possibly gain more experience).
You also know that there are plenty of other bloggers out there with similar interests as yours, so you must find ways of standing out from the crowd to attract readers/viewers/followers/etc. Your strengths include having an engaging personality; being able to write clear yet interesting articles using simple language.
Knowing how social media works very well; being able to speak several languages fluently (English isn’t always enough!). On the flip side, this industry isn’t exactly known for being lucrative but then again neither are most other types of freelance work nowadays.
Your goals should be realistic given where your business currently stands: “By 2017 I will earn $1000 per month from my blog” is better than “I want millions of dollars within five years.” Make sure your budget matches up with what’s reasonable (“I’m going on vacation next summer! And I’m going shopping.”)
Use Social Media To Market Yourself
Social media is a great tool to help you market yourself. The main platforms to use are LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Use hashtags when sharing your content on social networks so that it reaches a wider audience (for example #freelancing).
- Update your profile regularly on LinkedIn and fill out all the information including education and previous work experience.
- Make sure to add links to your blog posts in your profiles as well as testimonials/reviews from previous clients or jobs so clients will know who they will be working with if they hire you!
Use The Power Of Word-Of-Mouth Marketing
Word-of-mouth marketing is one of the most effective ways to generate leads and get new clients. It works so well because people trust their friends, family, and colleagues more than they trust ads and marketing messages. And when you provide excellent service for your clients, they will be happy to tell others about it!
So how can you harness this power?. Here are some tips:
- Provide good service. Don’t just deliver your product or service; make sure that it’s top-quality from start to finish from consulting with the client until delivery. This means more work on your part, but it’ll pay off big time in word-of-mouth referrals later on.
- Be friendly and helpful with customers. Not only should they enjoy working with you as an individual (you should always strive to be friendly), but also try making them feel welcome in general by giving them information about company policies or other aspects of their experience working with us that may be useful as well as answering any questions.
They might have during interactions over email/phone calls etcetera while trying not to get overwhelmed by answering every single question someone asks even though many other things are going on at once which might seem important but aren’t important right now.
So don‹t worry about doing all those things at once because if we don‹t take care of our coworkers then nobody else will take care of us either
Set Up A Routine That Works For You
It may sound counterintuitive, but having a schedule will help you work faster and more efficiently and it’ll make sure that no matter how busy your day gets, there’s always time for tasks like making coffee and taking breaks.
A lot of freelancers find that their days get completely derailed if they don’t have some kind of structure in place. So here are some tips on setting up routines that work:
- Set aside time for each project every day. This will help prevent procrastination (which we’ll talk about more later). If possible, stick to this schedule even when life gets crazy it’s easier than rescheduling everything later on!
- Make sure there’s enough time left over at the end of each day so that nothing feels rushed or cut short; otherwise those feelings can lead back to procrastination again!
This might take some trial and error before finding an ideal balance between tasks completed per day versus one’s own need/desire level satisfaction needs to be fulfilled during work hours spent doing them.”
Set Achievable Goals, With Milestones Included
You need to set goals. This is the most important part of your freelance business, and it’s also the most difficult. If you don’t know where you’re going, how will you get there?
Setting goals for yourself is one of those things that seems obvious when someone else tells you about it, but when it comes down to doing them yourself, it can feel like trying to climb a mountain in flip-flops with a broken ankle and one arm tied behind your back.
You know what I’m talking about if you’ve ever tried dieting or exercise routines or any other kind of self-improvement program (me too).
But just because these types of things aren’t exactly easy doesn’t mean they’re impossible either. If setting goals seems overwhelming right now and let’s face facts: It probably does then start small by focusing on one specific area at a time.
Once this gets easier, then expand outwards into other areas as needed until all aspects related solely to setting up successful freelancing gigs have been covered sufficiently enough for us both to feel comfortable moving forward into Stage 2: Starting Your Freelancing Business
Assess And Re-Assess, Regularly And Frequently
The most effective freelancers are constantly evaluating the progress of their business, both in terms of finances and other metrics like productivity. They set clear goals and milestones for themselves, but then they also set aside time to analyze those goals regularly.
If you want to be successful as a freelancer, it’s important to have a plan for where you’re going but it’s equally important that you know how to recognize when something needs adjustment.
You may not think of yourself as someone who needs to keep track of their spending habits when they make money through part-time gigs or online employment opportunities but if this is your only source of income (or one of many sources).
Keeping track of your financial situation can be critical in helping ensure that your business grows successfully over time. The last thing any freelancer wants is an unexpected bill that puts them in debt or causes them stress because they didn’t have enough saved up!
Come Up With A Savings Plan And Stick To It
The first step in building your savings is to set a goal for yourself. How much do you want to save? Do you want to be able to retire early by the time you’re 30, or pay off your student loans in five years? Once you know what direction you want to go, it’ll be much easier for you to create concrete goals and then work towards them.
Once that’s settled, it’s time to create a budget. This means figuring out how much money is coming in each month and what expenses will take up all of those funds before looking at any other options.
If there isn’t enough room left at the end of each month because all of your income has been used up, then there’s some fine-tuning needed with either one (or both) sides. You could add more hours at work or find ways within your budget where there might be some wiggle room;
Either way, once this balance between income and expenses has been achieved consistently over several months/years (depending on how long until retirement/student loan payoff), then building savings becomes much easier once again.
Set aside 10% of whatever’s left after monthly bills are paid whether that percentage comes from earnings or savings doesn’t matter too much as long as it does come from somewhere.
In short: make sure that even if something happens unexpectedly such as unforeseen medical costs or car repairs which would normally eat away at whatever was already available there’ll still be enough cash sitting safely tucked away somewhere else so nothing stops progress towards financial independence.”
Learn How To Negotiate And Earn
If you have a job and work for a company, then you probably have some understanding of the value of a dollar. But if you are looking to freelance and make money on your own, then it’s time to learn about negotiating.
Negotiation is the art of getting what you want from someone else without having to fight or argue with them. It’s also an essential skill for freelancers who want to earn more money without sacrificing their integrity or their quality of work.
When negotiating, many factors go into determining how much money will be offered; these include:
- The cost/value ratio of your product(s) or service(s); this can be determined by considering how much people pay for similar products/services in other contexts (e.g., commissioning an artist versus commissioning an accountant).
- Your reputation as someone who provides excellent services; is often measured by considering how well other people regard your past work experience (e.g., several references).
- Your perceived marketability; this includes things like whether or not another company has already approached them about working with them (e..g., “We’ve been trying to get him since 2005”).
Freelancing Can Allow You To Make All Of The Financial Dreams You Have Come True
Freelancing can allow you to make all of the financial dreams you have come true if you know how to do it. There are many benefits of freelancing, including:
- You get to work on a variety of projects and work with different people.
- You get paid well and often. You can set your rates and the number of hours you want to work each week.
The more money that goes into your pocket, the less there is going out (because health insurance costs will be lower). This means that there may be more leftover at the end of each paycheck than in an office job where everything costs money too (like health care).
In addition, many companies will pay for things like professional development or continuing education as part of their benefits package; however, with freelancing one must seek out these opportunities themselves but in return,, they get paid even more!
Final Thoughts
Freelancing can be intimidating, especially when it comes to money. But it doesn’t have to be! We’ve compiled some of the best tips we’ve found for new freelancers on putting yourself in a position to make your financial dreams come true. If you follow these steps, you’ll be well on your way to becoming a successful freelancer
People Also Ask
What Kind Of Financial Dreams Can I Have?
Anything! You can buy a house, start a business, pay off your student loans, or just generally feel financially secure. And the best part is that freelancing will help you get there faster than you ever thought possible!
How Do I Start Freelancing?
The easiest way to get started is by signing up on Upwork or Fiverr. You can also find freelance jobs on Craigslist, LinkedIn, and Monster.com.
Is Freelancing Just For Computer Programmers?
No! There are many different types of freelance jobs available to you, and they don’t all require coding skills. You could be a writer, editor, photographer, graphic designer… the list goes on!
How Much Money Can I Make As A Freelancer?
It depends on what type of work you do and how much time you’re willing to spend doing it! If you just want some extra spending money each month, then freelancing is perfect for that; but if your goal is to make more than $1 million per year (and who doesn’t?), then freelancing could be a great option for you too!
What If I’m Not Tech-Savvy?
Don’t worry! There are plenty of tech jobs out there that don’t require any coding experience at all you can even get paid to help people with their computers and software.
What If I’m Not A Writer Or Designer?
You can still freelance online by offering services as an accountant, translator, or virtual assistant. You don’t need any formal training or certifications to start working in these fields!
How Do I Know What Kind Of Freelancing Job Is Right For Me?
The best way to figure this out is by doing your research. Read up on different types of freelance work (for example accounting vs graphic design) and find out what skills each job requires from its workers (for example accounting requires experience with QuickBooks).
Then narrow down your search based on what interests you most about each kind of work and start applying!
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.