Freelancing and working from home are becoming a more common occurrence. Before the internet and wireless technology, it was a rarity, but access to these technologies has hugely multiplied the percentage of the overall working population that falls into these roles.
One thing to remember though is that there are plenty of misconceptions and unknown rules to being successful as a freelancer.
It’s Still Work
So many people make the mistake of thinking that working from home means they can goof off or split their attention between multiple places. That’s a huge mistake to make! Remember that when you’re working for yourself, your results don’t come based on the number of hours you’re ‘at work’, they come from the actual amount of work you produce. In a regular workplace you may be able to have an off-day or be a little less productive without anybody really noticing, but now your results aren’t measured in hours, they’re measured in projects.
It’s a good idea to keep a schedule so you aren’t over-committing and always know what you should be doing. You may need to adjust as you work, if your estimated work pace doesn’t match the actual pace.
Alongside this use routines, such as getting ready for work in the morning. Not doing this and rolling in wearing your pyjamas harms your mental clarity as your brain becomes used to a monotone pace instead of switching to work mode.
What Will You Do?
While certain skills aren’t really viable for freelancing, many are. Have you given consideration to which ones might apply to you? Perhaps you could combine two skills into a unique twist for a popular idea. Taking a look through a make money online guide can help you to get more ideas, and it can also be viable to start in a few different areas in order to maximize output while workloads are low. From here you can grow the most desirable option and allow the others to fall aside as it grows.
Consider the Admin Too
Another overlooked area is admin. Time spent sending out applications, communicating with prospective clients/partners, and dealing with invoicing and billing, not to mention taxes, is something many people overlook. There are plenty of stresses involved with freelancing, from not getting paid to vague clients who are never happy despite not being able to tell you why, or even those nightmare clients who call 4 times a day to micromanage the project.
Make a Plan
From here if your decision is made and you’ve covered the considerations to find a profitable area you can freelance in, you need to make a plan of action. Figure out the amount of work you’re likely to put in and leave some margin for error. Hit the ground running and with clear intentions.
Start by Testing
The best option is always to begin by starting your freelancing as a side business. This lets you build extra funds to create some savings too, and an emergency fund is vital when going self-employed. It gives you time to actually learn how the nitty gritty details work and to get used to the admin side and other requirements, such as dealing with clients. It’s also time to build a client base before transitioning to full time freelancing, which again minimizes your risk.
