How to Be a Freelance Failure in 7 Easy Steps
You need practical advice on what to do, if you’ve decided to make the switch to freelancing. But let’s first explore what not to do (with a little humor added in).
1. Be a Nobody
You don’t need credibility. It’s too bad, because with just a few updates and easy fixes you could really turn yourself into a branding superstar.
It’s doesn’t take a lot of work to be a nobody. You don’t have a website or business cards. Your portfolio hasn’t been updated in years. Social media accounts? Why would you need those? Online exposure – offline reputation; what difference does it make?
You don’t need credibility. It’s too bad, because with just a few updates and easy fixes you could really turn yourself into a branding superstar.
2. Be Disorganized
There’s no reason to spend time getting things in order: contracts, invoicing, expenses, taxes, clients – it’ll all work itself out. The reason you’re here is the work – the projects. No need to focus on the details.
You’ll just guestimate when it comes time to send an invoice. Oh – you didn’t have a contract? So sorry, my disorganized friend, time management and organization are the keys to successful freelancing. Too bad you’re not willing to give it a try.
3. Be a Slacker
Wow, you’re really living the life. Walking Fido in the park every afternoon, meeting your friends for drinks, spending hours reading your Twitter feed. You get by doing the bare minimum.
Who needs self-discipline when you’re your own boss? The clients will understand if you miss the deadline. Besides, if you have to, you’ll just stay up all night before the project’s due and cram it all in. That always works.
4. Be Unavailable
Who needs communication? Your clients will figure out when and how to get in touch with you if they really need to.
You don’t need to develop relationships with other freelancers or local businesses. You’re perfectly comfortable working from your couch slumped over your laptop.
If they call over the weekend or when it’s inconvenient you just won’t answer. They’re probably better off. You never call them back, answer their questions, or take responsibility for mistakes anyway.
5. Be Anti-social
Look at you… in your Bugs Bunny PJ’s. There’s no need to get dressed. You work from home. What’s that? Nah, you don’t need to go out – that’s ridiculous. There’s no benefit to working somewhere else.
You don’t need to develop relationships with other freelancers or local businesses. You’re perfectly comfortable working from your couch slumped over your laptop.
6. Be an Egomaniac
You certainly talk an impressive game. Throwing out industry jargon, acronyms, and complex terminology every chance you get. You must be an expert. Your clients are so stupid… they don’t understand anything you say. It’s a good thing they have you because they couldn’t find their way around a smartphone.
7. Be a Deadbeat
You’ve got plenty of projects rolling in from all of that networking you’ve been doing. You don’t need to search for jobs online, join membership sites, or ask for referrals from your clients. So you’ve got a little extra time on your hands, you’ve been thinking about taking a vacation anyway. Maybe you’ll just ask your mom if she needs any work done.
Don’t Fool Yourself
If you’re really going to make the freelance switch you have to get yourself in order. Branding, organization, and time-management are keys to freelance success. You must be pro-active, personable, and determined. Get your name out there and start networking. Put your website links on email, social sites, and Fido’s dog collar if you have to.
freelancing is a life choice, not just a career choice. Balance is the key to success in business and in life.
Freelancing means juggling a lot of details and putting in more hours than you might expect – at least until you’re established – to see huge success. But it all pays off.
The best advice of all is to remember why you’ve chosen freelancing: you want to do work you love, make a living, and have more quality time for the important things in life.
Once you’re in deep it’s so easy to get stuck at the computer and sucked into “I’m just going to finish this one thing.” So make a conscious choice to create a social and personal life as vibrant as your career. Freelancing is a life choice, not just a career choice. Balance is the key to success in business and in life.
Photo credit: Some rights reserved by raywoo.
Leave a Comment
This would have been a better post if it guided people into becoming a better freelancer on each point made. I simply stopped reading after the 3rd bullet as the tone was too agressive. Simply stating bad points doesn’t help anybody. People need a lift and a ‘do this instead’ attitude.
Hi Todd! Thanks for your comments. I completely understand your concern and apologize if you believe the tone was aggressive. That was certainly not my intent. We have all read the “to do” lists for Freelancers. It was suggested a different angle on the topic might be interesting – hence, this post. Some do react positively to “Oh no, Wait a second… I do that – oops” Happy to life the tone next time around. In your opinion what is the most important topic for freelancers that needs to be addressed?
I agree with you Todd.
Also, after reading point 1 I thought “here we go again”, this “you have to be somebody” is an American attitude. It’s not shared with the rest of the world okay, stop telling everyone they have to be heard all the time. You can easily get by having a fantastic and successful life while others scream their heads off trying to get attention like spoilt children.
Hi Jason! It isn’t that you “have to be somebody” but you have to have a network in order to find work. Where you do that on a small scale or a larger one is up to you and your specific needs. You certainly can get by and have an incredibly successful life going about it a completely different way. That’s the reason we all become freelancers after all – isn’t it – to do things our own way and gain happiness & success? Thanks so much for your comments!
I have to agree with Todd, there were good points made, but perhaps written in a positive manner it would have been a little more effective
Thanks for your comments, Miriam!
I think the post was brilliant. If you don’t fit into the points above, then the post is maybe not for you. But for other people who need some waking up and need to get a grip on their lives, it’s nothing short of inspirational. She’s just exposing some of us to the heat the stove is giving off, before we decide to sit down on it.
Thank you for your comments, Paul! I am asked by people all the time at conferences at events what they’re doing wrong and why they’re not progressing and it’s almost always that they need just a bit of waking up… I have also encountered those who are considering freelancing because it’s “easy”. Freelancing is not “easy” – it may be the best choice depending on our personalities, life situations, etc… it may make us happier than any other path, but it is not always “easy”.
Appreciate you reading the post and thank you for commenting!
Sorry bu I disagree with the three first posts.
That are some people that MAYBE reading this post, FINALLY get it.
I have worked with tons of people that have no portfolio, stay horrobly dressed and are not interested on having better relationships with their peers – some of them are even very arrogant.
Thanks for commenting, Gabriel! You’re so right. Some have made the choice to take a different path. If that’s working for them (and for those I know, it is working) that’s really great. I am asked all the time by people at conference and events why they aren’t progressing or what they could do differently or better… after taking a looking, these are common mistakes being made, so just thought to share in the event it is also helpful for anyone reading here. I appreciate your point of view!
I am sick and tired of these posts about freelancing that put a negative connotation on people without social skills.
There are people who lack social skills. in fact, there are people who have a personality disorder that makes them ‘anti-social’. I am one of them.
After years of failed therapy and stressful jobs filled with social horrors (not in the least for my co-workers I suspect) I managed to become a very successful freelancer BECAUSE of my anti-social character.
I know for a fact that a lot of people who hate socializing or who are bad at it want to try out freelancing. STOP DEMOTIVATING them by putting emphasis on the social factor. It is perfectly possible to become successful as a freelancer when you lack those skills, or even when you hate other people.
Hi Evert! Thank you so much for commenting. I agree with you. It is completely possible to be incredibly successful as a freelancer without being social. A lot of people choose freelancing to escape the horrible and sometimes toxic environments in office environments. There are also those who suddenly find themselves feeling isolated and miss the social interactions. Either works. It just depends on your personality and personal needs. I’m so happy you’ve found success for your situation and wish you continued success!
Good post, I agree with all your seven steps.
Thanks, Adam! I appreciate your comments!
As a new freelancer, I have learned that there is a steep learning curve. Every one of your points is valid; however, I need more practical guidance. And I’d like some advice on not letting an emotional roller coaster derail my productivity. Take my schedule today, for example:
8:00 am – Wake up, drink coffee, start working on BIG PROJECT
9:00 am – 10:00 am – I invoice my client and then we email back and forth about critical issues related to BIG PROJECT. My client says she’ll get me needed information today. That translates that she won’t get it to me today. If I’m lucky she’ll get it to me tomorrow night. I strategize a work around. Instead of writing, I start to worry.
10:00 am – Bank calls me about my brand new business account. I am grateful for the call, but I am mad at myself because I can’t find my paperwork. I spent the weekend organizing everything, only to discover I filed my bank stuff into oblivion. I start to think badly about myself.
10:00 – 11:00 – I do aimless work because I’m worried about a prospective client meeting that I have today. I prep for the upcoming meeting, but I should have been writing on BIG PROJECT
12:00 – 2:00 pm – Prospective client meeting and commute. I turn down the job because of grossly low pay. We talk about other ways to work together, but it’s unfocused. She says that I should “keep in touch.” I am not sure how to turn this into an opportunity. Should I forget about this contact? I am unsure and table the issue.
2:30 pm – I feel stressed because I’m unproductive. I watch the Food Network online and eat bacon.
3:30 – I feel like I suck as a human being and for punishment I should work on the BIG PROJECT until 10 pm.
3:30 – I’m wasting time on Freelance Switch and reading blog posts instead of working. I write this comment to remind myself that I am a perfectly good, but flawed human being.
Do you get the gist of my dilemma? I’m a newbie without any sense of moderation. Nobody says on the internet, “Slow down, grasshopper.” Instead, I need to do more, more, more. There’s got to be a saner way. If you were to write a follow-up, I would like it to be titled, “Good enough freelancing.”
It feels good to rant, but I really have to get back to this friggin’ BIG PROJECT.
Hi Caroline – Thank you so much for your thoughtful comments. Time management is huge! And we do always seem to be hard on ourselves which sometimes results in a downward spiral of never feeling good enough. I think many of us struggle with this in our personal and professional lives. I’ll be more than happy to take your suggestion and purpose my next post to finding balance and being “good enough” – and, in fact – I think you’ll find when you’re “good enough” you’re actually great!
I agree and relate. Well said.
Wow great article.
I so need to fix a couple of things mentioned in the article!
Thanks for the reminder
Hi Gregor-
Thanks for your comments! Continued success on your freelancing journey!
Good points, all the way. Felt like a kick in the butt, but that isn’t always a bad thing. The “become a networking person” advice may not apply to everyone, yet it’s getting to be that way more and more, I find.
Sure, some brilliant programmers can afford to walk around unkempt and in flip-flops, avoiding human contact as much as possible, but for most of us developing social skills and active networking as well as being diligent and disciplined is the way to go.
Turns out that it makes you a happier being, too – as an added bonus
Hi Marinus – Hope not too hard of a kick
I agree that there are many freelancers who find success without networking and can succeed without a lot of social interaction – but these days “social” interaction doesn’t even necessarily have to be face-to-face or coffee shop outings… but I do find that it does make me happier (maybe it’s the caffeine as much as the networking).
Thanks for your comments!
Great article, its good to be reminded there is always something to improve
Thanks so much for reading, Thomas!
I personally found the tone of the article amusing and entertaining. I understand that some people may dislike to read an article with a negative angle, but I think that we should not take that too seriously, It is not easy to constantly renew on the subject.
I agree with Thomas, I sometime like to be reminded to improve myself!
Caroline Mayrand
Thanks so much, Caroline. Happy you enjoyed the read & appreciate your comments!
Great article ? Very inspiring for me and I am getting very enthusiastic about my future life as a software free lancer. I think I have already sorted out most of the aforementioned points to be a failure (my reason for inspiration here). But one thing is really making me concerned is to how to get projects. Social networking site can help?
Thanks once again for summing up most of it about a freelancer.
Hi Ranjan,
Thanks for your comments. Yes, social networking, and local networking at your local coffee shop or other “freelancer” hangout. If you don’t already have contacts or a system in place for ensuring regular work, it can help to have a social presence and be sure to properly brand yourself and each social network you choose so potential clients can easily find you.
Best of luck!
Got a couple of thoughts:
The first anti-point: “Be a nobody” – really needs to be just one aspect of a MUCH larger anti-point: “Don’t Market Yourself”.
And lack of marketing is what does in almost all freelancers… not the secondary points 2-4. Always Be Marketing.
“Be a nobody” partially encompasses the fatal flaw of lack of marketing.
But who’s to say exactly what is valid marketing and to limit it to presence on, say, social media?
The highest earners and most successful individuals that I personally know, freelance and otherwise, have almost NO, repeat NO, or, minimal, social media presence.
As an old friend told me – “my social network is BEER.” I couldn’t agree more.
Let’s say you obtain business because of your social media use.
Fine. Maybe someone else uses cold calling and does so in sufficient quantities to generate new clients to stay prosperous and busy. (In fact I think that tact is far more viable than using social media to stay afloat, but I’m a grumpy old man who hasn’t drunk the Kool-Aid.
)
And perhaps someone else uses direct mailings to generate business.
If the results prove out, those successful freelancers are manifestly not nobodies. Even if they are Luddites with no Twitter or FB account.
Second thought, regarding Evert’s point about demotivating people with personality warts:
I couldn’t agree more. But there is more to it than that.
Even with major personality defects – freelancing is all about serving your customers, and marketing yourself to generate new business.
Turn it around – nobody cares about YOUR problems. They want to know what you will do for THEM. You just need to be functional enough that people like and trust you enough to grant you new business. And of course, despite your quirks, you need to be able to market yourself.
Any better a personality is a blessing. But not absolutely required.
So If Evert is successful, that is because he helps his customers with *their* business goals.
Uhm, Q.E.D.
Great points, Don! It is so true that the important part is to show your customers/clients what you can do for them – how you can enhance their product/company/etc.
And love the statement that beer is your social network – coffee is mine… and it doesn’t have to be thought of in the traditional sense of “business networking” – it can be, and is probably more effective, when it is “beer” or “coffee” or whatever you “thing” is that links you to other people. That is by far the best networking you can do!
Thanks for sharing your insight!
Good post,
April how did you work your network when you first started out?
Hi Thomas! I was fortunate enough to have solid relationships from collegemates, former colleagues and networks of friends other social relationships from living in the same area for a long period of time. As I was just responding to Don about his comment that “beer” is his social network… a lot of the groundwork for my current business relationships were created at coffee shops and other non-business social networking.
However, my contacts expanded significantly through effective social networking. Branding & marketing yourself online is invaluable in my opinion if you’re really looking to expand your freelance work and meet other like-minded freelancers and potential clients. For a freelancers, you are your brand, so the face you put forward on everything from Facebook, Pinterest & Twitter to your website, email and video are all opportunities to offer your services.
Good luck!!!
I thought this was great!
It shocked me some people took it so personally. I like the humor and I feel like designers shouldn’t so sensitive. Our work is constantly scrutinized, critiqued and everyone has an opinion…no big deal. We should be used to it. Relax. We’re designers so that immediately makes us awesome! lol
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”
-Winston Churchill
As long as you strive to be better, you will get better… if you continue. And being open to criticism or different views of thinking helps.
It was nice to know what not to do and your humor implied that we should be doing the exact opposite… if we can. These were just tips/suggestions that may help us, not design laws we must follow or risk being thrown in jail or becoming a disgrace if we don’t.
I do believe as designers we should build each other up and not “demotivate” despite the competition, but I didn’t feel any demotivation from this post. Just a challenge, which is a good thing.
I felt like you inspired and challenged me to do more. Thanks for the tips. I can definitely market more and be a little more organized
Thanks for your comments, Mike. You are absolutely right – this was really more of a challenge – as a freelancer you are really the beginning and the end – & everything in between. A lot of freelancers do great without considering all of the pieces & parts that go along with this career choice. But from the others, I’m constantly asked what they should be doing – what they can do better – and how they can grow/expand. Many times they haven’t even considered some of these areas.
And I’m with you – I’m a firm believer that failure is not the end or a final state… it is simply an opportunity to grow and learn and allow yourself to become better than you might have been.
Looking at this list makes me flinch a little with things I’ve had to learn about the hard way.
Some of these areas I still have room for improvement in, but a lot of them I’ve found myself having to pull myself through one after another toward success.
Thanks for posting the list years too late. I’m sure it’ll come in more than handy for many though. Based on what I’ve seen these are shockingly common failings among new freelancers.
Thanks for commenting, Jacob! I think we all have room for improvement in at least some of these areas. Wish we had posted this article for you years ago… better late than never, I suppose
Very tongue-and-cheek, just the wake-up call that us freelancers and budding freelancers need from time to time! It’s important that we maintain a healthy balance in our short and long term goals, as well as the procedure on how to achieve both!
I feel sorry for everyone that misunderstood the tone of this post, such a shame!
I agree — I love the angle of this piece. Very creative, and made me click on it.
Thanks Ayn & Steve for your comments & kind words!
Thanks April, for the lovely post.
Humor is priceless and must not be aggressive and grity.
Anyone who is lured into reading a post with a title like this must anticipate what’s coming… a good-humored kick in the a…
Cheers!
Jose Carlos- Thanks for reading & for your comments!
I personally think some of these comments are way too harsh. I found a bit of humor in it and enjoyed reading it. Some people are too sensitive to criticism which is a surefire way to fail at the freelance game, especially if you are a writer. Anyhow, I liked it, and thanks for sharing.
Leigh,
Thank you for commenting and sharing your viewpoint. Isn’t it true that criticism can really knocks us down… maybe because we are so invested in our work, and the criticism really does seem personal – but you are right… it’s a surefire way to fail at the freelance game if we let it get in the way. Continued success to you-
April
I loved everything you had to say!
After permanent employment for the past 40 years I find myself in the position of needing to make the change to freelance. I have therefore read as much as possible on the subject.
However if I hadn’t found your comments I would have left out a whole lot of important things!!!
Sometimes the negative speaks so much louder than the positive.
Thanks so much for raising my game
Belle
This post is absolutely hilarious; how to fail in 7 easy steps. Classic title!
Now that I’m done laughing, I really can appreciate this post because I’m sure many of us have been guilty of at least one–if not all–items on the list…
Especially #5. How easy it is to be held hostage by the keyboard for days, without stepping outside for some fresh air and a bit of networking? Yes, I’m guilty of that one too sometimes. Social media can easily contribute to being anti-social…how ironic.
Great post!
really awesome post…………..