Lessons I learned from freelancing

It’s been more than 18 months since I have been freelancing, and I want to take this opportunity to pen down some of the lessons I learned from my experience. To be honest, it’s been one hell of a ride. I want you to read this, learn from it and try not to repeat the same mistakes that I did.

Be polite and nice at all times.

Sometimes, you get a client who just doesn’t understand your services and prices, and it’s in the best interest of everyone to be polite and not defend your services/prices. These clients don’t want to learn anything and I understand this very well, this helps me avoid any misconceptions with any individual. I try to be as polite as much I can, and this has always worked in my favor.

Get used to rejections

It’s imperative to get rejected. It always improves your overall freelancing business/services. I was always terrified of rejections, but after a while, I realized that the more I got rejected, the better my business got.

Rejections helps you realize your weak points and with this knowledge, you get to fill in the missing holes. Try to be as optimistic as you can be and things will turn out really well. 

Always plan in advance

When I stepped full time in freelancing, I kind of laid back and enjoyed the work I was getting; I was earning good and never thought about my future income and goals, and this is where I went wrong.

It’s always better to plan in advance.

Soon, I started to plan things out, I planned my future income/goals and also made a blueprint of the plans I will have to follow in the upcoming years to reach where I want to. This has worked very positively for me and is a total recommendation to every freelancer out there.

Specialists are in demand

Clients prefer to hire specialists over generic sellers who can do every kind of job. Having a huge clientele won’t necessarily improve your work. Quality of clients > quantity of clients always.

I was marketing my services to everyone, but since I have started to pitch for only graphic and content work, the orders I receive have increased. Be specific to your job, don’t grab every opportunity of work. Be an expert. This will take you a long way.

Go, network with people

If no one knows about you, how will you get work? It’s crucial to network with people. Make it a point that you should be visible online as well as offline. The goal is to reach your potential client base.

I have learned a lot in these two years and it feels like a roller coaster ride now. I hope the time coming is great for you as well as for me. Happy freelancing!

As always, drop your opinions and also the lessons you have learned in your freelancing career in the comment box down below.