Mastering Self-Evaluation: A Freelancer’s Guide to Growth and Success

The end of a year can be a special time for many people. It might seem silly that we chose a certain day and thought to ourselves: “Out with the old, in with the new”- but this is how our brains work. We like to think in closed periods of time. And that can be quite helpful to a freelancer’s business. Read on to learn what the importance of a performance review and self-evaluation is!

As a freelancer, you are in charge of your own work, schedule and tasks. But in order to create a sustainable and successful freelance career, you need to be willing to continually learn and improve. 

After all, you don’t have a boss or peers who can help you grow through feedback. 

So how do you begin to continuously learn? You start by evaluating yourself. Taking the time to really think about where you are in your career, what you’ve accomplished and where you want to go next is how you become a successful freelancer who not only sets important goals, but also reaches them.

Importance of self-evaluation

As stated above, self-evaluation is crucial when it comes to growing as a freelancer. When compared to traditional jobs, freelancing lacks the structured feedback you get from having someone monitor you and your work. 

Which is why it’s important that you have a self-evaluation strategy that allows you to identify strengths, weaknesses and growth opportunities.

Benefits of self-evaluation

#1 Enhances personal growth and skill development

By regularly reviewing your skills, you can figure out which areas need improvement and work on them. Not only does this help you grow, it allows for efficient upskilling.   

#2 Helps in tracking progress toward goals

One of the major benefits of self evaluating yourself as a freelancer is that it provides you with a sense of progress over time. 

This is especially crucial for freelancers as they tend to work in isolation. Seeing how much progress you’ve made boosts motivation and builds more confidence.

#3 Informs better client management and project quality

Self-evaluation can highlight the areas that could use improvement when it comes to dealing with clients and project management. Working on those areas can create stronger relationships and lead to improved collaborations for both parties.

#4 Boosts time management and efficiency

By self evaluating yourself, you come to understand how you spend your time and if you’re spending it efficiently. This leads to a productive workflow and reduces the risk of burnout.

#5 Improved clarity

Taking the time to review yourself and your business at the end of the year is about organising your thoughts more than anything else. 

At the end of each day, you have a vague feeling of success or accomplishment or sometimes, inevitably, of failure. But you don’t want to depend on those impulsive, subconscious evaluations. Why? Your brain might feel tempted to forget all the positive stuff and focus on the times you’ve failed. That makes sense to a certain degree – after all, you want to improve on your mistakes. But you also need to remember your strengths and successful moments.

That’s why reviewing the work of the past months in an objective manner helps you make the right decisions going forward.

#6 Improved motivation

Reminding yourself of all your accomplishments is personally important, especially for freelancers. You don’t have a boss who will smile and tell you how great of a job you’ve done. You don’t have a Christmas bonus based on your performance. You only have yourself. Giving yourself some well-deserved praise can motivate you to keep on being great at what you do!

Key areas to evaluate regularly 

Some of the key areas that you need to self-evaluate on a regular basis include:

#1 Client relationships

As stated above, evaluating what needs improvement when dealing with clients can help you better your relationship with them. Think about the following questions when you’re assessing your client communication and management:

• How well are you communicating with clients?
• Are you meeting client expectations? 
• Are there repeat clients or referrals?

#2 Project quality and delivery

Next thing you want to focus on is project quality and delivery. You need to identify the strengths and weaknesses of your processes and ensure that the project deliverables always meet the quality criteria and client expectations. Ask yourself the following questions:

• Are you consistently delivering high-quality work?
• How often do you miss deadlines? 
• What’s your approach to revisions?
• Are there areas for improvement in your work?

#3 Time management

Time management is one of the most crucial aspects for you to evaluate on a regular basis. Think about the following:

• How well are you managing your time across projects?
• Are you balancing your work and personal life effectively?
• Are you completing projects without sacrificing on quality?

#4 Skill development

As new work trends arise, your skills need to evolve to keep up with them. Think about the following questions when evaluating your skill development: 

• Have you been learning new skills or staying updated with industry trends?
• Are you investing time in learning new tools and techniques to stay relevant in your industry?
• Is your business growing or stagnating?

Keep in mind that growth can mean a lot of things, including earning more money, getting more clients, working in more countries or developing new skill sets.

You should be tracking every one of those areas and consider whether or not they should grow further. 

#5 Financial health

Another key area you need to evaluate on a regular basis is your financial health. After all, your income is one of the most solid indicators of where your business is headed. At the end, it all comes down to whether you earn enough money to sustain your way of life and the goals you have.

 Think about factors such as:

• How much did you earn? 
• How does it compare to last year? 
• Are you aiming to change the figure? 

#6 Your rates

Your freelance rates are connected to your financial income, but might be worth evaluating them in a separate category. Ask yourself:

• Are your rates too high? Or maybe too low? 
• Are you meeting your income goals?
• Is your pricing competitive, yet sustainable for your business?

Every freelancer has to ask themselves these questions constantly throughout their career. No self-evaluation should go without the question of whether or not your rates can do with some adjustment.

#7 Emotional well-being

While this area might not seem as important as the ones listed above, it is crucial that you take it just as seriously. If you’re taking on projects you don’t enjoy or don’t have the flexibility you promised yourself when you got into freelancing, you run the risk of burnout. 

Think about the following questions:

• Did you enjoy your work last year? 
• How are you managing your stress levels?
• How often do you schedule breaks and personal time?
• Do you need to shift your focus on more fulfilling work?

If you’re not having a good time doing what you do as a freelancer, you’re not only doing it wrong, you probably won’t be doing it for a long time, either.

Methods and tools for effective self-evaluation – Examples

To effectively self-evaluate yourself, you need to combine practical methods and tools that work for you. Here are a few examples that you might consider:

1) Journaling or weekly reflections

Journalling can help you organise your thoughts and processes. It allows you to clear your mind and prepares it for decision-making and action. 

Spend a few minutes each week writing down your thoughts on recent projects and challenges. Reflect on areas that you felt went right and write down lessons you learned.

You could also use digital journaling tools such as Day One and Daybook to record your thoughts and access them whenever you want.  

2) Tracking metrics

Tracking metrics can help you improve project outcomes and quality and enhance client satisfaction. As a freelancer, track data such as hours worked, income, client feedback, and project completion times to analyse your performance and productivity.

Tools like Toggl can help you track and manage time whereas Quickbooks can help you review your finances.

3) Client feedback 

Feedback from an outside perspective can be extremely valuable. Clients tend to see things we miss, spot opportunities we might not be thinking about or value us for things we’re not even considering. 

To avoid seeming intrusive, consider sending out feedback forms to clients after projects to gather their feedback. You can use tools such as Google Forms and JotForm to create surveys.

Keep in mind though that not every client will give you good feedback when you ask. Nonetheless negative feedback is just as important as positive feedback as it allows you to increase productivity and efficiency and lets you know where you can improve.  

4) SWOT analysis

A SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis provides you with a comprehensive business review. It is a powerful strategic tool that can contribute to your business’s growth and success and help you make informed strategic business decisions.

Periodically perform a SWOT analysis to assess your current standing and identify areas of growth and concern.  

Creating a self-improvement plan 

Having a self-improvement plan can help you track your progress and develop strategies for both personal and professional growth. And the best time to create one is before the start of the new year when everyone is working on resolutions to better themselves.

Here’s how you can go about crafting one:

#1 Set Clear, achievable goals

Start by setting clear and specific goals that are SMART i.e. Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound – that way you’re more likely to accomplish them and build confidence.

You also need to prioritise your goals in terms of importance and focus on one or two key ones in order to maintain focus. 

#2 Action steps for improvement

Next, you’ll want to develop a strategy that is designed to help you break down goals into actionable steps. 

For example, if your goal is to improve client relationships, your action steps will need to include improving how you communicate with them, prioritising their needs, personalising your communication, etc. 

Break down your goals into smaller, more manageable targets and establish milestones. This will help you track your progress and boost motivation.  

#3 Continuous learning and upskilling

In today’s fast-changing world, continuous learning and upskilling are both vital if you want to grow your business as a freelancer. You need to embrace a mindset of constant learning in order to stay relevant and  in-demand. 

Identify areas that are relevant to your career and set learning goals for them. Then, pick a mix of learning methods and tools that work for you. 

There are loads of resources online for structured learning such as Udemy, Coursera and Skillshare. You can also listen to podcasts and attend webinars that are relevant to you.

Joining communities online or in your area is also a great way of sharing your knowledge and connecting with like-minded individuals. You may also opt to have a learning buddy to learn with you and keep you accountable.

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them 

Conducting an effective self-evaluation takes a bit of finesse. Here’s a list of common pitfalls that you will want to avoid:

#1 Overly harsh criticism

It’s often too easy to pinpoint our weaknesses and fixate on them. This can lead to self-doubt and a feeling of discouragement.

To combat this, avoid any negative self-talk when evaluating yourself. Instead, try to find a balance between criticism and constructive feedback. For every area you find could use improvement, identify an achievement or strength and write it down.

#2 Inconsistent evaluations

The point of regular self-evaluations is to track your progress and see how far you’ve come and how much more you can improve. If you get too busy with your work and forget to self-evaluate regularly, it can lead to missed opportunities for improvement.

Schedule time every month or even every other month for an evaluation. Set up reminders and alerts to make it a routine that you can’t skip out of.

#3 Not acting on insights

It’s no use if you identify areas that need improvement but don’t take actionable steps that will help counter it. 

For each area that you find lacking, write down an actionable next step that you can take.

FAQs

What are the best methods for freelancers to evaluate their work?

Journaling, tracking metrics, client feedback surveys, and conducting a SWOT analysis are some effective methods for freelancers to evaluate their performance.

How often should freelancers conduct a self-evaluation?

Freelancers benefit from monthly or quarterly self-evaluations to stay on track with goals and adjust strategies as needed.

How can freelancers use self-evaluation to find more clients?

By identifying strengths and improving weak areas, freelancers can deliver better work, gain more referrals, and build a solid portfolio to attract new clients.

How can self-evaluation improve a freelancer’s work-life balance?

Self-evaluation can help freelancers identify and resolve time management issues, helping them achieve a better balance between personal life and work.

Can self-evaluation help freelancers increase their rates?

Yes, by demonstrating consistent improvement and value to clients, freelancers can justify higher rates over time.

Conclusion

To recap, self-evaluation is vital if you want to grow as a freelancer. Your ability to self-evaluate makes up a large part of your success. By regularly assessing your performance and identifying areas that need improvement, you can set goals that align with your professional and personal growth.

Make it a habit to set aside time every month to self-reflect – this will help you stay adaptable, improve your client relationships and set you apart from your competitors. 

Remember, self-evaluation is not just about identifying your strengths and weaknesses, it is a constant roadmap that will allow you to track your progress and growth over time.

Do you have a different method for self-evaluation or questions on ours? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below this article!