Freelancing can be great. Doing what you want, the way you want it, enjoying it and getting paid appropriately might sound like a dream, but it is the reality of many successful freelancers. Like most great things, it is not easy and there are many hurdles along the way. Foreseeing those hurdles can often save a freelancer’s career – prevention is better than cure.
Update 2016
Here are the 10 lessons that any freelancer will have to learn, one way or another.
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1) Let the world know you’re there
You cannot keep quiet about what you’re doing. In freelancing, self-promotion is the key to success. Tell your old colleagues, friends, and relatives and start building a business network. You never know where the next job proposal can come from. Try to build a network of clients and keep them updated via social media. Also use social media and platforms to present yourself to new clients.
2) Have a long-term financial plan
Financial planning can make or break a business. Know what you’re getting into and have a solid idea of what you expect to earn, even in the first months and years. A financial cushion is a must-have, especially at the start.
3) Learn from your experience
Tracking and recording everything you do is one of the best ways to make sure you grow as a freelancer. Know your strengths in detail – what helped you net your clients, how you negotiate best, what affects your productivity and any other relevant aspects. Nobody knows your business better than you, make use of that. Moreover try to get as much constructive feedback from your clients as you can get. This will help you to get a more unbiased view on your work.
4) Don’t undersell yourself
When pricing is concerned, you can always go down from your initial offer but almost never will you have the opportunity to go up. Start high and make sure you get your full worth. Of course, this doesn’t mean blindly asking for unrealistically high rates. Be aware of how much the competition charges and how their services stack up to yours.
5) Always work with a contract
Having a contract might seem irrelevant at times. You’ve worked with a client a couple of times or he’s a close friend of a friend, legal boundaries just get in the way, right? What could go wrong? Never fall into that trap. Tolling away at something for weeks and then not getting a penny can be worst feeling as a freelancer. The security of a contract is never worth sacrificing.
6) Diversify your income
Don’t put all your eggs into one basket, or even two. Try having multiple clients and multiple projects at a time. You don’t want to be dependent on someone else’s business. If you only have one big client you fall when they fall, whether you had anything to do with the failure or not.
7) Nurture long-term business relationships
With that in mind, you don’t want to have a lot of one-off clients. Try ending every freelance project with the satisfaction that you did a good job. Let clients know that you are available for future work and remind them of your existence every now and then.
8) Run from the crazies
You don’t need to say yes to everybody. Some clients are just a mess to work with. They don’t know what they want or how they want it done, but always end up blaming you in the end. If you feel like a business relationship is doing you more harm than good, don’t be afraid to walk out of it.
9) Follow your passion
Bad clients are not the only reason to say no to a project. If you can afford it, you should take the work you enjoy most. Start doing things you don’t like too often and freelancing will get very stressful and boring really quickly. Do what you want to, this is why you went into freelancing in the first place.
10) Never stop learning
Last but not least, never ever stop looking for ways to get better at what you do. Complacency can be the biggest enemy of success. Businesses can be dynamic and skillsets that are hot today may be completely irrelevant in a couple of years. Make sure you always expand you horizons.
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