A Beginner's Guide to Freelancing

Thanks to digital tools, entrepreneurship has taken on many different forms in the present years, making this career path more accessible than ever. Rather than having to rent out an office space, hire a handful of employees and follow guidelines that physical businesses would have to adhere to, many aspiring entrepreneurs have taken up the art of freelancing. Freelancing is when an individual works as an independent company rather than being employed by someone else. In recent years, large numbers of employees have taken to freelance work as a side hustle, eventually turning it into their main stream of income.

Why do people choose to do freelance work?

Most people begin freelance work as a means to have more say over their work. As a freelancer, you won’t have to answer to anyone else except for your client, meaning that you can usually choose your days off, make your own hours and have an overall better work-life balance. Freelance work enables individuals to set their own rates and often make more money than they were previously being offered, as long as they have a steady stream of clients.

How can someone get started with freelancing?

The most important beginning step in freelancing includes picking your niche. If you’ve done graphic design projects for friends before or are the go-to photographer within your social circle, this may be a sign that you should pursue this as a career option. As you determine your niche, you’ll need to come up with package offerings and price points you’ll start out with. You can later raise your fees as you establish a stronger presence and gain reviews, but don’t overcharge as you first start out.

As you determine all of these factors, they will all contribute to your overall brand. Use these beginning stages to determine what you want your brand voice and style to be. In most cases, freelancers are the face of their brand, meaning that you should keep your new business as similar to your personality as possible.

Upon starting out, you may have to do some free work for friends and family before you begin building your professional portfolio. Most freelancers create a website and use social media to their advantage as a means to showcase their work and network with potential clients. These free services are a great way to get your name out there and showcase your talents. After building up your portfolio, you’ll begin seeing more opportunities that pay what you feel you deserve for the amount of work you are putting into each project.

What are some common challenges of freelancing?

As with any career path, pursuing a freelancing job doesn’t come without its ups and downs. There will be some early-on roadblocks and adjustments to get used to, but its promising profitability and flexibility make these “challenges” worth it. The biggest challenge that many freelancers need to adjust to in their beginning stages is the forfeiting of traditional benefits packages and salaries. While freelancers have the potential to make well above their means, they must also grow accustomed to supporting their own insurance coverage and retirement contributions.

Freelancing will take strategic effort and patience in its beginning stages, but it has been known to mold some pretty incredible entrepreneurs that endured its challenges. If you feel that this path of entrepreneurship is for you, begin by implementing the aforementioned tips and building your client base. For many freelancers, the only thing that held them back in their beginning stages was their willingness to go through with this goal and make things happen for themselves. Commitment to your work will go a long way in creating a sustainable freelancing career.