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Winning the Freelance Olympiad

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Have you just turned freelance or are you planning to? If you have been in a regular job all your life, the prospect of throwing yourself onto the freelance market may appear daunting. However, if you go about it properly, you can enjoy greater security, not less. For one thing, you can never be sacked or forced to retire and you can say goodbye to commuting. You will need to redesign your lifestyle, your finances and find a place to work, either at home or in a facilitated work hub. In the run up to the London Olympics I have recorded my own thoughts on what it takes to be a winner in the Freelance Olympiad.

Freelancing is a state of mind

Freelancing is a state of mind, a launch into the unknown, a free fall through the work/life continuum, hopefully never to hit the ground. It’s not for everyone; not for those who need structure, colleagues, gossip, office romance and especially, drinks on a Friday night. It can be a life of Martian solitude, staring at the phone and scanning emails for signs of extraterrestrial work. But I only need to see the gaunt expressions on my neighbours’ faces as they go off to work to remind me how lucky I am to work from home.

Learn to love insecurity

Freelancers should learn to love insecurity and not worry that their work horizon is but days or weeks away. Soon it becomes a way of life. I stopped worrying about where my next job was coming from over twenty years ago. I may regret saying this, but something always seems to come along, often from the most unexpected quarter.

Freelancing is race against your own inertia

Freelancing is a race, mostly against your own inertia, because the more competitive you are, the more successful you will be. It’s a race because you can never stand still. Successful freelancers constantly reinvent themselves, refine their offer, adapt to meet new opportunities, form new alliances. We need to get out there, be seen, be known. We should track down every lead, attend every networking event.  We must sell ourselves, but not too hard, not if we’re British that is.

Stand out from the crowd

Freelancers should be professional in they way they present themselves. Business cards and websites should be professionally designed. Of all the advice I could give, this is the most important. A strong, bespoke design is a powerful statement of intent. Cheap business cards make you look cheap. For a relatively small investment you can make yourself stand out from the crowd.

The dream is to become indispensable

The first love of the freelancer is the entrepreneur (who may also be a freelancer). The dream is to become indispensable, to be the first person they turn to, a virtual partner and loyal accomplice in their success story. But you must also know when to leave the stage, to avoid stealing their limelight. The freelancer should always be discrete. And never, ever talk about money on front of someone else’s client.

Join forces with fellow freelancers

One of the most successful strategies is to seek out freelancers with complementary skills. I have been involved in a number of virtual partnerships offering quite different services; video production, design and print, marketing and website development. Clients don’t find this a bit unusual, as long as they know who has overall responsibility. Freelancers should join forces for other reasons; for mutual support, reassurance and especially advice. The stronger and more diverse your freelance network, the stronger you will be.

Checklists for Champions

Checklists for Champions identifies some things freelancers might want to think about, including brand, offer and ways to win clients. If you have just entered the freelance race and would like help setting up, or have skills you want to share, please get in touch.

Many thanks to fellow freelancer Kieran Stevens for turning my idea into a fantastic design.


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