So, you want to be a freelancer! Well, I don’t blame you. After all, that means you get to work on your terms, set you, and maybe even decide how much money you make each year.
Yes, freelancing can be great but it’s important to know what you’re getting yourself into before quitting your day job and jumping into the world of self-employment. Here are 23 tips for doing just that:
| Takeaways |
|---|
| 1. Find a niche that aligns with your skills and interests. |
| 2. Set realistic goals and manage your time effectively. |
| 3. Build a strong online presence to attract clients. |
| 4. Network and join relevant communities to expand your opportunities. |
| 5. Continuously upgrade your skills and stay updated with industry trends. |
| 6. Prioritize self-care and maintain a healthy work-life balance. |
| 7. Start with small projects and gradually increase your workload. |
| 8. Communicate clearly with clients and set clear expectations. |
| 9. Keep track of your finances and set aside funds for taxes. |
| 10. Be proactive in marketing and promoting your freelance services. |
Find Your Niche
You’re going to need to find a niche. And by that, I mean you need to pick something you’re good at and interested in, as well as passionate about. Ideally, this will be something you can enjoy doing while also being good at it.
I know this sounds obvious but it’s easy to overlook if you don’t think about it carefully.
If the idea of working on your project doesn’t excite you or light up any part of your brain with joy, then don’t do it! You won’t get very far if all of the effort required feels like drudgery or like pulling teeth.
It may also help if what you choose isn’t too broad: don’t try writing about everything under the sun because there’s no chance anyone will find anything useful from such a wide variety of topics;
You can focus on one small nugget within each area where people might have questions (e.g., “how does A relate specifically to B? How does C differ from D? What are specific differences between X and Y?”).
This will help keep things manageable for yourself so that even though there may be thousands upon thousands of possible articles on these subjects yours won’t get lost among them!
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Set Boundaries
It’s important to set boundaries for yourself, your clients, and even your family. If you don’t do so, you’ll find yourself dealing with more work than what is necessary or possible.
For instance, if one of your freelancing gigs requires that you work during the evenings at a local restaurant as a server or hostess, then make sure that this doesn’t interfere with your family time or any other commitments (like school).
Your client may be cool with it but you’re ultimately responsible for setting the boundaries on behalf of yourself and those closest to you.
With every client comes different expectations from each other;
Therefore everyone must set clear expectations from their end too so that there are no misunderstandings down the road when things get complicated due to a lack of clarity about what can happen next in case something unexpected occurs during the process itself.’
Create A Schedule
To succeed as a freelancer, you need to find a routine that works for you.
At the very least, this should include scheduling time for marketing and promotion, networking with other freelancers, self-care (it’s important!), family, friends, and hobbies.
You might also consider carving out time for sleep you know how it goes: “I’ll just finish one more thing before bed…”
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Block Out Time For Networking And Self-Promotion
Networking is the key to getting work as a freelancer. As such, you should consider blocking out time for networking and self-promotion.
Networking can be done in many ways. It’s important to figure out what works best for you and your personality type (you can do so by reading some of the articles on this site).
Networking can be hard, but it’s also not always fun or easy or necessary or successful, and sometimes all those things at once! This is why it’s important to see networking through all its stages.
You have nothing to lose by trying hard, and if you fail miserably at being friendly and outgoing, no one needs to know about it except yourself and maybe one friend who will keep hounding you until they get an answer out of you (don’t worry we’ve all been there).
Use Your Weekends As Project Incubation Days
Use the time over the weekend to come up with new ideas.
This is a great time to think about your long-term goals, and what you want from your freelance career. It’s also a good time to do research, and catch up on reading if you haven’t been reading for fun recently.
If you want any more specific tips about how to use this time effectively, check out this blog post by Ramit Sethi: How To Use The Weekend To Improve Your Life In 2019.
You can also use weekends as incubation days; do some exercise, learn something new (like coding), or read more books that will support your growth as a freelancer (or just human being).
Set Realistic Expectations Regarding How Much You Can Get Done In The Time You Have
You’ll want to set realistic expectations regarding how much you can get done in the time you have. You may want to continue working on a project all day, or maybe it will take you an hour or two.
Don’t bite off more than you can chew, but don’t be afraid to ask for help if things take longer than expected.
Be Flexible And Creative When You Get Unexpected Free Time
It’s easy to let unexpected free time go to waste. It’s not uncommon for freelancers to feel guilty about taking time off, spending time on their hobbies and personal relationships, or even just relaxing and kicking back.
But you can’t get ahead in your career if you’re constantly working all the time. You’ll burn out eventually, and there’s nothing more frustrating than feeling burnt out because of your own decisions! Take some time off and use it wisely!
If you’re a freelancer who has clients who pay by the hour or per project but no set schedule, then this is especially important for you
set aside some periods of each week where there’s absolutely nothing on your plate (or at least very little) so that when the inevitable days come up where everything falls through or gets pushed back due to unforeseen circumstances (or just plain bad luck), then these periods are already blocked out as downtime rather than being filled with stress about trying desperately not to be late with an assignment or something else equally unpleasant.
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Have A Plan For Sick Or Vacation Days Or Just To Take A Day Off
Whether you’re a freelancer or a full-time employee, it’s important to have a backup plan for when you need to take care of yourself. If you’re on vacation, make sure that your clients know how long you’ll be gone and what the best way is for them to reach out in case there are any issues.
If you get sick, let your clients know as soon as possible and give them an estimate of how much time it will take for you to get back up and running.
You could also offer some extra work at no charge that they can use as filler until things pick up again.
If there’s nothing else available but one last client who needs something done immediately even though he already owes money…maybe consider taking the hit instead?
Make A Point Of Connecting With Other Freelancers
It’s a good idea to make a point of connecting with other freelancers. They may be able to teach you valuable skills and help you avoid common mistakes that they’ve already made.
In addition, they can pass along helpful resources that will save you time and effort in the long run. They might even have some ideas for projects that are similar to yours!
One big benefit is that if anything goes wrong with your business like if someone steals your content or gets paid before you do they can offer advice on how to handle the situation.
Finally, freelancers often work together in teams when completing larger projects. Team members can help each other out by sharing ideas and resources; plus there’s always someone else who knows something about blogging than feels comfortable sharing it!”
Have Regular Phone, IM, And Email Conversations With Clients
As an independent contractor, it’s important to have a regular phone, IM, and email conversations with clients. This will help you maintain a direct connection and make sure that they’re happy with what you’re doing. You can also use this time to discuss any feedback they may have on your work.
Don’t Overdo It, Especially At The Beginning Of Your Career
There are lots of people who have been working a full-time job, then got laid off, and then quickly switched to freelancing. That may not be the best approach.
When you take on a new client or project, it takes time to learn their system and get up to speed on their goals and expectations. So don’t overload yourself by taking on too much work at once!
You might also find that your clients will expect more from you than other freelancers if they know that you’re in demand but remember, not every client is going to want or need all of your skillsets so pick carefully before saying yes (or no).
When considering how many projects/clients per week/month/year is too many for me, I like this quote from Aja Frost: “I had no idea what ‘too much’ was until my body told me.”
If something doesn’t feel right within yourself when deciding whether or not it’s time for another project opportunity then listen!
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Your intuition will tell you when enough is enough but if nothing feels wrong yet still want some guidance check out this article which offers some helpful advice about choosing between multiple offers from different sources.”
Remember that getting started is difficult for everyone, no matter who they are or what they’ve done in their careers to this point.
Remember that getting started is difficult for everyone, no matter who they are or what they’ve done in their careers to this point. It’s normal to feel nervous about freelancing when you first start.
The learning curve can be steep and it takes time to find your niche, build up a client base, get your first paycheck, and even get your first client!
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Follow Up With Prospective Clients If They Don’t Respond To Initial Emails Or Calls, But Don’t Be Pushy
By the same token, don’t be a pest. If they aren’t responding, it’s possible they’re not interested or they don’t have the budget. Be patient and wait for them to reach out if you can.
If you do contact them again after a few days or weeks, make sure it’s clear that this is an entirely new message don’t send multiple follow-up emails back-to-back, even with different subject lines.
And don’t spam your contacts with useless fluff like “Hey I just saw your post about [insert topic here]!” unless it has some relevance to work that needs doing.
Add “freelancer” to your email signature and business cards so people will automatically associate it with you instead of with your current job title only.
Remember that you need to brand yourself as a freelancer. As such, it’s important to add “freelancer” to your email signature and business cards so people will automatically associate it with you instead of with your current job title only.
Adding these additional details can help you stand out from the crowd:
Add “Freelance Writer” or “Freelance Content Creator” in bold letters after your name on Twitter and other social media accounts (for example, @JohnSmithWriter).
Create a separate Facebook page just for your freelance writing business so that clients can easily find out more about who you are and what services you offer.
Be sure to include these details on LinkedIn as well, after all, this is where most potential clients will be looking for proof that they can trust another human being not just because he/she has good references but also because he/she knows how important branding is!
Don’t Expect Immediate Results When Approaching New Clients Or Promoting Yourself
There is no such thing as overnight success in freelancing. If you’re looking for that, you’ll be disappointed and likely give up entirely.
Instead of focusing on the result or how long it takes to see results, focus on the process of your work and make sure it’s good enough for your clients to want to hire you again.
If you are having trouble getting clients or sales from promoting yourself, don’t hesitate to ask someone else who has experience with marketing themselves how they did it.
I’ve asked mentors and friends many times what they did when they were first starting so that I could mimic their success in my way.
You Can Make It Work
You can make it work. And you’ll be better off if you’re realistic about your skills and experience, flexible and creative in the way you approach clients, diligent about following up with them, and prepared to accept that freelance writing isn’t going to happen overnight.
There are a few things we would recommend doing before starting:
Research the industry to see where there are opportunities for freelancers like yourself. You might want to start with our list of Magazines Hiring Freelance Writers (and Editors).
It includes descriptions of specific jobs; how much they pay; what sort of experience is necessary; how to apply; whether or not they accept unsolicited submissions; and which publications are currently accepting them.
Think about what kind of articles interest you most that’s where there’s likely going to be demand for freelancers like yourself. If you have no idea what those might be, try looking at the readership stats for some top magazines’ websites:
They’ll tell you a lot about who reads their articles (elders? young people?), as well as what topics people are interested in reading about specifically on each site (health care? finance?).
Then take those findings into account when deciding which types of articles will resonate best with potential clients while still being appealing enough so they’ll be willing
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Conclusion
When you’re first getting started, it can feel like there isn’t enough time in the day to get everything done. You might not be able to find as many clients as quickly as you want or make as much money right away.
But with some planning and preparation, you can create a system that helps you fit freelance work around your day job while still being able to enjoy your free time. With a little effort, it’s possible to build up a successful freelancing business in your spare time.
By following these 23 tips and keeping yourself organized, motivated, and excited about what you do, you can make it work!
Further Reading
Guide to Part-Time Freelancing: Learn valuable insights and practical tips for successfully navigating the world of part-time freelancing.
7 Tips for Balancing Freelancing and Your Job: Discover useful strategies to effectively balance freelancing with your full-time job and maintain a healthy work-life integration.
Freelancing Tips: Skills You Need: Explore a comprehensive list of freelancing tips, including essential skills, negotiation techniques, and managing client relationships.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Much Money Can I Make?
You can earn as much or as little as you would like to. It all depends on what kind of work you’re doing, and how many hours per week you put into it. If you’re working full-time, then you’ll likely make more than someone who works part-time.
But if you’re working part-time and only doing the work when it suits your schedule, then it might take longer to get paid than someone who is working full-time and knows exactly how many hours they’re putting in each week.
What Is The Hardest Part Of Freelancing?
The hardest part is having to be your boss and managing your time. You have to make sure that you’re on top of all your deadlines, but also taking care of yourself so that you can keep up with the work. It’s an exciting challenge though!
How Do I Know If Freelance Writing Is Right For Me?
If you like writing, and you’re willing to take on any kind of writing job, then freelance writing might be perfect for you! You’ll have the freedom to write about whatever interests you most. making it fun
How Do I Get Started?
The best thing to do is just start writing! Start by finding clients who need help with their content projects. Then focus on building up a portfolio so people know what kind of work you can do for them!
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.