Here are some tips to help you survive your first freelancing year.

According to recent statistics, the total freelance platform market is estimated to be worth a whooping $3.39b, and, as a result, this industry attracts millions of young people under 35 years old annually. So, if you’re considering going freelance, you’re probably on the right path.

However, just like with everything else, freelancing can be challenging to get right, especially when you’re just winging it. Let’s look at some tips to help you survive and thrive in your first year as a freelancer, including everything you need to know about building a freelance business, managing time and making the most of your finances.

Treat your freelance career like a proper business

I have heard many freelancers say that they got into the field because they were tired of the high demands of working in the corporate scene or being employed and needed to be free. While their head is often in the right place, many young freelancers tend to make the mistake of thinking it gets easier now. It doesn’t.

Freelancing requires just as much, if not more, attention and effort to grow and thrive as working in an organization like Cenoa, Microsoft or even a smaller business. If you want to see success in your freelancing career, you need to start treating it as a business. You need to start with the simple things as managing time & expectations, both when negotiating with clients and when working on their tasks.

Think of it like this; the faster you finish one client’s task, the sooner you can get started on another’s and the quicker you can get paid and make more money.

Strive for excellence and maintain professionalism always

Again, it is very common for freelancers to deliver low quality work simply because they consider this new path to be easier, so they stop trying hard enough. As a freelancer that is committed to success, you need to aspire to excellence and always maintain a sense of professionalism, especially when dealing with clients.

This ties into everything from the quality of the work you deliver to your ability to deliver said work promptly and create a seamless experience for your clients always. Generally, clients prefer freelancers who can significantly make their lives easier, so always be thinking about ways to improve the quality of the experience of your next client.

Implement a solid structure from the beginning

Even though you’re not technically running a company, it is super important for you to have a sense of structure around your freelancing business. This structure should make it super easy for you to move a client from an acquisition phase (that is, the point of contact with a new client) to a retention phase (the point where a first-timer becomes a repeat client).

Simple things like responding to messages and requests on time, having a transparent system and a documentation process in place and defining the expectations for the tasks well before they commence will show your client that you know what you’re doing.

Learn how to sell your services

One of the most important skills any freelancer needs is sales. Any freelancer that can sell the value of their services to a client wins at the business of freelancing. You need to be able to demonstrate how your services will meet the needs of the client, why they should trust you to deliver a great job and what they can expect from you once the project commences.

Selling is an all-round great skill for every professional to have, but for freelancers, it proves even more important because it can be the difference between making it as a freelancer and failing.

Have a finger on your finances

One thing all freelancers agree on is that the uncertainty of when the next pay check is coming and from where makes the work even more challenging. As a freelancer, you don’t want to be a regular debtor simply because you could not control your finances well enough.

While it can often get challenging to find or keep clients, it is still important to have a system for managing your finances in order to make the most of your money when you do get it. Savings and investments are usually helpful in this situation. Depending on your risk appetite, you can create a long-term investment plan and allocate a percentage of your earnings to that plan regularly.

It is important to also have an emergency fund, as emergency funds can come in handy for the rainy days when you do not immediately have access to your savings or investments.

Finally…

The simple truth is that freelancing can get quite challenging and the only way you can hope to make it through that first year is by putting in the work and building the needed structure to support the growth you hope to see.

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