The list: 10 lessons every freelancer has to learn

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The List: 10 Lessons every
Freelancer has to learn
5/26/2015
FREELANCER TIPS

info@freelancermap.com© freelancermap.com
10 Lessons every Freelancer has to learn
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. Here are the 10 lessons that any freelancer will
have to learn, one way or another.
5/26/2015

10 Lessons every Freelancer has to learn
5/26/2015

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.
5/26/2015

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.
5/26/2015

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.
5/26/2015

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.
5/26/2015

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.
5/26/2015

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.
5/26/2015

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 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.
5/26/2015

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.
5/26/2015

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.
5/26/2015

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.
5/26/2015

© freelancermap.com
Further freelancer tips available on http://www.freelancermap.com/freelancer-tips
Contact
freelancermap.com
Contact person: Doreen Schollmeier - International Affairs
Mail: info@freelancermap.com
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Phone: +49-911-37750286
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Twitter: freelancer_INT
5/26/2015

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