An honest guide to freelancing!

1. Introduction - how to use this course: So you are thinking of starting a freelance business or you are already a freelancer. That's great. You have to know you are not alone in this. There are millions of free lands of worldwide, and we all face the same issues and same obstacles. I will talk about the biggest issues in this course. Ask. Freelancers are facing how to start freelancing, how to balance work and life. That's the biggest one. How to deal with clients and how to get paid. I will not talk about how you do your work. I assume already you are a professional in your field and the good one and you want to go solo. I will only talk the issues apart from her. Doing the work is your task. I will give dips and exercises you can do to develop a freelance career faster and easier than a lot of fuss faster and easier than I did. I would spare a lot of time and money if I knew all of these things before. I'm a freelancer for almost decade, and there are a lot of things people ask me regularly, so I decided to put it in this course and help you also don't just listen to what I say. I will tell a lot. But if you don't put it into action, it won't help you much. They care looking to the exercises and create the freelance life you want today. 2. Pros and cons - is freelancing for YOU?: I will make this lesson free. So if you didn't buy the course that you can check if it hurts it even more, I will talk about the very important thing here. The first thing you should consider is freelancing. For me, being a freelancer and becoming a freelancer means you break out of employment and off your previous habits of working. It takes a lot of bravery if you already did that. Congratulations. If you're just before you might consider these things I will talk about, I will tell you. In my experience, what are the pros and cons of being a freelancer? I will let you decide if you think you are not ready yet to become a freelancer. Simply don't buy discourse yet. But if you already thinking about it and hesitate, maybe discourses for you and it will help you to make the decision. One of the first thing is you set your own schedule. You decide when the work went, wake up, went to have a shower. You can do whatever you want. In your time. You can go to the gym. You are free. That's the free part. In Freelancer, you can lead a free life. On the other hand, you might work day and night and weakens just to pay the bills. And just to keep up the freelance life. So you really don't feel evaporate, your freedom will disappear because you are just all day working and it's not freelancing. So we are not just being in an office till five o'clock. You work all day long. That's one way to be a freelancer. You are free to choose your clients and projects. You can work only with the people you like. Only work on the projects you love like me. I did designing websites after almost a decade doing them. And I'm just illustrating into logo design now because that's what I love. And I'm really, really good at it. And you have no boss. You're your own boss. You choose the client. If you don't like the client, you leave the client simple. But on the other hand, every single client you choose to work it is your boss. They will tell you what to do. They send you emails. They can be annoying. You have to deal with them and deal with them. Professional. If you want to keep them and you want to get paid and do the job you love. Another great thing is that you can be very creative. This is a free life, Asai said. So you can learn a lot about marketing and do your own marketing. You can do the work you love. You do the work yourself and you enjoy it so much you get paid and do the paperwork's. You learn a lot of stuff about it, how to deal with clients. It's great experience. You develop new skills, so you can be very creative with this. On the other hand, you have to be very proactive. You have to do your own markets because no one else will do it for you. There is no company covering you in this. You have to do all the work yourself because you are a freelancer, which means most of the time you work alone on a project or part of a project and you have to get paid because I always say if hope is like living in houses and eating food, I need to be paid and no one else is guaranteeing my payment. Only me, I have to go after each clients and get my payment and payment is important. You should understand that if you're a freelancer, you have no monthly earning limit. If you do great jobs and several big clients, or you push your time limit, you have no earning limit. You can earn many, many times more as you would earn with the same job as an employee. It's great. There is no income ceiling. Also, you don't have a regular paycheck. There is no one sending you regularly thousands of dollars every month or every week. You get paid. When you finish a job or you get paid up front, I will talk about this. You have no regular income, at least not in the beginning, and you have to build it up. And that's not an easy task. One great thing about freelancing, The last one I will talk about now is that you don't have to commute over place every day you can wear from home or from a cafe, you can lead your own life style. You don't have to be with all the people in the morning on the bus. You don't have to get up early just to travel one hour to get the working place. You get up, you go to a local cafeteria and work there and be on yourself and do the job you love. On the other hand, you might be alone the whole day and sometimes for days you're not gonna talk to anyone. And for a lot of people, this can be heavy, and you have two big care about the social part yourself. It seems that a lot off of freelancers are leaving us air meets, but we are not. We move out and we talked to people. But it's your trust to do so. You cannot mean go with colleagues. Never place because you don't have that. I was just telling you a few things which make freelance life awesome or heavy. It's up to you to decide if these things are heavy for you or not. It's up to you to decide if you want to challenge yourself or not. It's up to you to decide if you want to leave up to your potential, make the work you love and earn much more us you could before learning new skills. Or you stay us an employee and work in a seemingly secure environment as you did before 3. Why freelancing?: Why freelancing? I told you in the previous lesson several factors about freelancing that you can set your own schedule. You can go on holiday and work when you will work with older clients. You would like to and work on the project. You really, really desire and shape your creative life and your reply force you please. But I'm talking with people. I'm talking about freelancing. The biggest argument is that, yes, but I have a secure job. I was talking about this in the previous lesson that they get a regular paycheck and they are happy with that. It's good. It can be good, but I have to tell you the job security is an illusion because you might have a nice contract, but the company can go bankrupt. Any time you get fired, your product or service is going out off line. So many things can happen and you lose your job like this. So job security is an illusion, in my opinion, and being a freelancer makes you flexible. You learn in a few months. In a few years that income is depending on you, and there is no regular patron. There is no big both paying you, you have to wear for the money you get. And this irregularity is making you so flexible and so ready that it's unbelievable. And this makes you able toe create the life around your own value. What is your value? What do you want the most in your life? I tell you what is mine. Mine is freedom. I realize it every time. It's not just a river that paint on my T shirt. It's not just a word. It's my experience that my value is freedom. Yours can be happiness. Years can be family creativity. I realized it that my value is freedom. When I was working for a company and I was working day and night and I still couldn't make what I could, I felt on creative. I felt it's not enough what I do. And when I quit, I suddenly had the energy coming back to me and I could create and I could draw when it was amazing and sees that it was like 10 years ago and Sean's death. I work with clients and projects I really like and this gives me freedom. I have the freedom to choose. I have the freedom to stop. I have the freedom to experiment and find new ways to create and find new clients to cooperate with. No one is telling me what to do with my time. No one is telling me when to take a holiday. It's very, very would. I want to support my family and not by working away my life. I want to support my family and in the meantime, being free and be with them, Be there for them. That's very important to me. Find your passion. Find what you want to do. And this is the point of freelancing. You're gonna be a professional because you do what you like. I give you a test. Now sit down and figure out Why do you want to be a freelancer or if you are really divided , you want to be a freelancer, right? Little essay for yourself. Or think about it or just meditate on it. Whatever. Take a walk and think about it. What is your value? What is what you want to achieve? Us A freelancer Set a goal. I don't say. Set a goal like harmony. Thousands of dollars. You want to learn? I say, Set a goal for a happy, healthy, free nice life 4. The biggest concerns of freealncers: in the previous lesson. I got a bit philosophical about freelancing. Let's get practical now. In the last few years, I was meeting many, many freelancers in talking to them and gathering. What are their biggest concerts? What are the challenges they are facing? And according to these, I made a little East, and according to these, I built up this course for you. The biggest challenges and concerns the freelancers face are getting clients maintaining a healthy work life balance, get their financials correctly, getting paid and making enough money. It means staying professionally relevant, learning new skills and develop meeting deadlines, which means time management. And they also are very afraid for a reason. They're also very afraid off all that paperwork they have to do. All these things can be heavy. So many things to do alone, so many task to juggle, and it's very, very heavy. What I would like to do in the following, I will talk about how to start up your own freelance business, where to put your focus, I will give a lot off little tips and hints practical deeps what I did and what others did to start up and how toe. Make it easier for you. And then I will talk about a great deal about clients and I will talk about work. Life balance. That's very, very important. Now you can watch all the lessons in order or figure out what is the biggest concern for you. And check out those parts off the course first. And if you have any questions, please contact me, right? Me and I'm here to help. I will do my best. 5. Starting up mindset: how to start to be afraid. Answer. First off all congratulations for your bravery, starting a freelance business even on the side. It's a great challenge and there will be a lot of obstacles you will face. But deciding it and doing the first step, you rock. This is awesome. Really. In this lesson, I want to talk about only the freelancer mindset. The key, I think, is being open. Having an open mind, this villa low, you too create the life goes you want make you flexible enough to accept the changes and accept all the task you have to complete to achieve your goal. So the first rule, I think in the start, is allowing yourself toe do mistakes. It sounds easy, some simple, but it is not, because many times even now, I'm like After 10 years of freelancing, I'm still beating myself up on stupid mistakes. But to be honest, it's easier to let them go. How they say in the beginning, off freelancing, you have to a low yourself to do some mistakes. Baxam punches if you want or learn your lessons. I will tell you about a lot of pitfalls in freelancing and about possible mistakes you can do so you can avoid it. But you should do your own mistakes to learn and build your own freelancing experience. It will all pay out in the long run, and this will help you grow so my deep about starting up and achieving this freelance mindset are starting to achieve the feel and mindset. It's simple. Give yourself a start of period when you are learning to be a freelancer. Decided burial. Let's say the 1st 5 months I will be open minded and let myself do mistakes and be a learning freelancer or the 1st 6 months of the first year. Even I don't say more than a year, because after a year you had so many experiences that you are not a newbie anymore. You are a full blown freelancer after you survived four year? I think so. In the first start of period, go easy on yourself and focus on learning. Do your job the best you can and focus on learning all the skills you need to build up an efficient, professional freelance carrier in the coming lessons. In this chapter, I will talk about everything you need to starting up. But having the proper mindset is the first step and again, congrats 6. A few words about equipment: in this lesson. I will talk about equipment and to was off trade what you need toe start the freelance carrier. Now, the way I see it, there are two types of people and it's up to you. Which one you are? The smaller amount of people, as far as my experience tells me, are the ones who, when they're starting out the new business or a new HOBIE are gathering a lot of tools. Spending a lot of money on resource is because this is keeping them motivated. And they say, Okay, I spent a lot of money on these tools, So I will stick to this. I will do this. Let's say like running people are asking me Okur, Runner, What should should I buy? Should I buy this shoe for $200? And I say no going to a cheap store and get a $10 shoe or $20 shoot around for a month. If after a month, every time, like three times a week, you are running and you feel that you will stick to it, then by the shoe, you really need start up small and build it up. Don't blow your money on everything. This is the second mind set. You can have start small, build up all the equipment on the way a lot of people tell themselves, Yeah, I'm the first type. I put a lot of money into something. It's a new effort, mental for new sport equipments or business equipment, or buying a new laptop or camera or whatever, and this keeps me motivated. But I mind you. It's only true for a very small percentage of people, and most off us is not like that. How many times did it happen to you that you wanted to start a new Hobie? You ran straight on and about everything for it. And then you just dropped it after a month or after two weeks, and you kept telling yourself for half a year that he will go back and do it. Did this happen to you? Then decide? Truth is that you are not into this group off people who can motivate themselves by buying a lot of stuff. And to be honest, it's Ah, it's a gamble. I only know very few people who can do this. It's a gamble because who knows if you're going to stick to this. Who knows it gonna work out okay with a freelance lifestyle. It's a bad decision, but it's not good toe run into buying equipment headfirst. I still say First of the reasons not to do this and build up equipment with time is what I already said. Start with the minimum, start with the absolute necessary and be realistic about it and know the difference between what is the ideal, what would be amazing to have, what is the optimal and what is the absolutely necessary and start out it absolutely necessary tools. And my second reason to go with this way off buying if treatment is that you have to spare up, I will talk about it soon. You have to spare some money in the start because you don't know how business is going. And if you blow all your money into start for equipment, that's not good in the long run. Sometimes people not sometimes a lot of times people are holding themselves back because they are full of fear. They are afraid that the day will fail us a freelancer. This is what I talk about in the previous lesson. Let yourself fail in the process of being afraid, they are postponing things. I will start on a freelancing after January 1st. I will start my training next September. So I have a year. No started today. What? Why to postpone And a lot of people are postponing things because they say I don't have enough money to start. I need to descend this proper equipment and they push themselves off. I watched was talking to a designer. He was quite okay. No, he was able talented and he said, Oh, I wish I could draw figures like you, but I'm still waiting like what I waiting for, man, I'm waiting to buy this, Japanese Marker said. You know, it's like $500. It's proper Japanese market set and if I have the markers, I will start my design And I was like, You know what I use? I use a pencil and a $2 marker. Great apartment is helping you become great, but it's not absolutely necessary. So don't lie to yourself. Be realistic. When you create the equipment list, you need mark everything. What is absolutely necessary to start my job and what is an extra would be nice to have for later on 7. Going legal: going legal and being legal as a freelancer. It's very important. I'm not talking about like we are criminals here and we want to do legal work. I mean, you want to be covered? You want to pay your taxes, you want to work legally. You want to be accepted as a company or a sole trader over freelancer. Make your woman company a woman. Show legal If you don't know how, get an accountant. Ask someone who knows so getting accountant and be legal. Have a contract, have a blank contract ready and have a blank invoice ready, which will just have to ride the names off the clients and the data off the project, and you can hand it out. Fastly have a blank price coat and a blank pitch ready for your client. I really a touch this document or very simple ones to the lesson, and you can check out yourself. It doesn't have to be anything fancy. It is just so simple. Being legal is protecting you. It is helping you toe pay your taxes. It is helping you to have a better bond video clients because it's better to have a return agreement. Small contract, then not having anything to back you up if things go south. But I say Have a few blank documents already. When you were a creative like me, you might hate this stuff, but you have to cover yourself. Doing your company legally means one very important thing. When you are a freelancer, things are happening fast. Things are changing fast. Clients are coming and going. Money's coming and going. It's not an easy task. Do yourself a favor and get prepared. Get your legal documents ready. So cover yourself. What I always say. I don't like surprises. I mean, I love cakes and parties, but I don't like to be surprised in a bad way. Imagine you are getting a lot of money from clients and you think everything is all right. Then the tax company is calling you and checking on you. That's a very bad surprise. Believe me, you don't want that. So cover yourself up. If you don't know all of these, get help. Don't assume things. We were called right without doing anything. Legally, they won't. So if you don't know how to start your company legally, go check it out. Now, Gogel, It What are the rules in your country? Talk to other freelancers who are already successful and can help you or the easiest. Get an accountant even just sitting down with an accountant. This is what I did two years ago when I came back toe my home country to Hungary. I sit down with an accountant and checking on. Okay. What are the changes in the time I was living abroad? What to do differently? Here again? What are the possibilities? It was just a one time fee. But she helped me so much to realize what I should do. So going legal is very important. Avoid the surprises. 8. How to avoid the "Freelance roller coaster"?: you're might wondering, What the hell is the freelance roller coaster? Well, it's an expression which you will be very family, a read if you start feeling thing and I am want to help you, not the week. So, basically, the freelance roller coaster MEES that in someone you are getting paid for a lot off projects you've just finished or you are paid by a lot of clients or you have a lot of jobs to do, and in other month all the tips are drained and you are very low on income, so your income is fluctuating very much. It's not stable. It's always changing because you're not gonna have a proper regular paycheck. The free lands roller coaster or the feast or famine cycle is very real for a lot off real answers, and it's very much influencing over life. For example, for Us graphic designers, usually somewhere is slower because all the decision makers in companies who decide what happens with the branding or what brand materials they need. What happens on the website odor Decision makers are upset because they are on holidays, so all our projects are elongated and just dragging on, and we don't finish the project. We don't get paid in time US in the start of the year and the end of the year is always different, and it's always vivid. Pull off works. So the lesson here is that you cannot avoid it. It will happen, but try to minimize the ups and downs off the roller coaster. One way to do it, and it's very important when you are starting your business as well, is to have savings for at least 3 to 5 months. Three months is a minimum. Have savings for at least 3 to 5 months and try. Always keep that up. So when the money tap is closed, you still have something to live on and you are not getting anxious that you're not gonna eat. We're not gonna pay rent. Same goes with the taxes. I will talk about that. Put some money aside for paying your taxes. So having savings, that's one way to deal with the roller coaster. The second way is what a lot of people are missing. So many of my friends are doing this man we meet and they are very busy, and they have a lot of clients and a lot of work. They forget about how important it is to do your own marketing and get new clients because you are very busy. You have a lot of work and it's fine. You get paid a lot, and then you wake up one day and you have no more things to do. Why? Because you were so busy working for your clients? You didn't market yourself. You didn't look for new clients. I will have a whole chapter talking about clients. I will cover most of this part. But just for now, remember this doing marketing when you have a lot of work seems like an extra burke. But to pay out because you will have clients when otherwise you wouldn't in the future prepare for the future to avoid the big ups and downs of the roller coaster. Also avoid the extremes. What is the extremes off a freelance life for me? My experience says that once you don't have anything to do and you because there is no workplace and no jobs, and you just basically slacking and you don't do anything, the other end of the scale is that you are always working weekend and day and night. That's one off my biggest enemy. I always say to everyone limit how when you work I will talk about this in the time management part, so limit when you work. Don't were day and night, but also don't slack out and just play around all day or play video games will be out with your friends and not doing any money. So the point is being the in between avoid the roller coaster as much as possible. He's all the roller coaster and one of the best options to do this also is to stand on more legs as a business, have a bus of income, have a side job, keep your daily job. I will talk about this in the next chapter. 9. Stand on more legs!: standing on more legs mean simply, you have to have more income sources. When you are an employee, you have mainly one income source, your employment. But as a freelancer, like I was talking about in the previous lessons as a freelancer, nothing is for sure. Your life is very flexible and there can be surprises, and you have to be flexible and prepared. That we were very was very. We're learning a lot and other periods, not so much standing more legs is one way to provide the freedom you need to leave the Friedland's life. Aim for days from the beginning. Have this in mind from the beginning. Don't aim just to do one thing. Figure out what is what you like to do and figure out other income limes. For example, if there is a Hobey that you could monetize, so make money out of it. I read once an article about someone who was very much into wines, so he just started toe block about it, and his Blawg grew into a webpage and the Web shop, and it is generating a very big income to him. Now. Think about this or at the start, you can be part time freelancer. Keep your day job or get a part time job and be a part time Freelancers have a side job to pay the beers, at least for the beginning. For me, one of the legs I'm doing is online education as you see us in these course I'm selling online courses on several platforms are so I'm selling them on my websites as well. And this is creating Sammy passive income for me. For us. Create these designers Photograph furs, writers. It's a great way to make money to sell your resources online so you can sell photos, graphics, blank fires. Resource is anything and dollar by dollar make money out of it. Tutoring and mentoring online or live is also a nice way to get some income. These two people what you do, it's great. No one gonna steal your job. They feel better. You are money with it. It's a very nice side income. There are many ways you can generate side incomes and stand on more legs as a task. Now sit down and think about it right the least. What ways you could make money toe, have your freelance job of course, the 1st 1 has to be your main interest. Like for me being a graphic designer. Fine. But what do I do when I don't have many clients? How I my earning money in the month when I'm not having many jobs. So figure this out for yourself and build up a system around it for me. Now how it goes. Half of my work is not being graphic designer. Half of my work is marketing myself, talking to clients and figuring out new ways new online and local ventures, what I can use to create more income for myself and build the future life and the present life. Build a life I want. That is why standing on more legs is very, very important. 10. How to start your own marketing?: I hope this is not a surprise for you, but as a freelancer, you will be doing your own marketing at least until you have the resources to pay someone else to do it for you. So how to do it? Had to start when you're leaving us. A freelancer is starting as a freelancer. You might have the idea that everyone knows that you became freelancer. Why would a life would they know? All your friends know maybe, but the people who were treated before the people who know you from high school, they don't. The easiest way to do your own marketing is to tell to everyone I don't say Shout it out on the street. I say contact your friends who you trust and professionals you know you might work with and tell them that you just started as a freelancer. This is your profession. You would like toa work with them in this way or the other. Or if they have a crying, they could refer you to him. Also, my mind trick here is that if you tell it to enough people, you will be kind of obligated to keep up to it to live up to it to be a freelancer because he told it, so many people you cannot back out. I like this way of thinking. Tell it to many people, word of mouth goes around, probably lending you a few starting clients, and we will be devoted. You have to be a freelancer. Also. You can go to local events and networking events and start to build your own network of clients and local professionals having a network off locals. It's involved Babel. I will talk about it in the next chapter. A lot networking is, I think G the successful freelance in Korea, contact possible clients, you know, and use your own network, but create a website as well. Even a simple one. Have an online presence. Use social media and I'm talking about being online. I always talk about online footprint, which means everything you do online today is visible. Thanks for Google and Facebook and all the applications taking care of what we do and you are leaving footprints. So make sure that if people type your name, what you do and what is your profession is coming up and that you are available as a freelancer. If you're building your website state clearly who you are, what you do and how to reach you. I had a website for years and I forgot to update my phone number. People couldn't call me. I don't know how many Glines I lost until I figured out why my phone is not ringing. Don't do the same mistake when you are a social media. Make it sure that people can reach you. What I told here is very simple marketing. It's free later on. If you have the money and you want to grow your company, you want to grow your business. You need a professional, put money for aside for that and work with the professionally marketing. It can spare you a lot off headache in the next chapter. Remove on working with clients. If you have any question, any question regarding what you heard so far, please, right, I will answer 11. The 4 stages of a client: in this very short listen, I will talk about the four stages of having client in this chapter. I will only talk about how to deal with clients, and this is the base. If it the first step is to get a client, fine, clients reach out and get them to work with you. There's the 1st 1 The 2nd 1 is managing clients and working with them. So when you have a client, it's good to do the work as well. But they pay you for the 3rd 1 is keeping clients longer. How to keep the clients that they are paying you and they want toe work, more video. And the 4th 1 is getting new clients again through your old clients or present clients. We will talk about all of this in the coming lectures. 12. Online clients: I believe there are hundreds off resources and courses about how to find clients online. That's why I wanted to make my course different and talk about the freelance lifestyle. But I also have to talk about this. Finding clients online is basically the opposite. It's making your possible clients finding you online so you have to have a website and the social media percent. I was talking about this earlier. Let the people know what you are doing and let them reach you. So put out your contacts everywhere. There are other websites where you can go toe, find possible clients and the peach them and work for them. These air like up work and fiver and many, many more For us designer. There's a page called 99 Design, and I'm gonna talk about that a bit because that could be a lesson for everyone. I think onsides like these people are posting jobs like create a logo for $50 or something like this, and hundreds of designers are creating logos and only one off them is getting paid for me. This is going against my rule for not working for free. I will talk about this in the payment lists and very important. Don't careful for you are a professional. So pages like this where you are competing for a little amount of money with a lot of other freelancers page like that are usually a trap. You're just gonna be end up bitter and working a lot for free. On the other hand, there are different websites posting freelance works, one off them coming My mind is devaughn blue dot com. I think about the blood group. It's bitching sites. So there are projects with a decent amount of payment and you send a client pitch you right down to the client. Why you are the perfect candidate for the task and thats much better. You're working a bit, but just to sell yourself is the same thing. What you do on your website, you're showing that you are qualified to do the jobs you are listing When the client is speaking you, it's your task toe. Fulfill the agreement on your side. So one more way to find all my clients is also building an email list, make the people somehow subscribe to your email list, collect the emails and send out targeted marketing letters to them where you are selling your services or your online content. This course is not covering it. I just say this is also an option for us, freelance or so in the coming lesson, I will talk about something very important for me, how to get local clients, so many freelancers air talking about how to get online clients and how to reach out to people on upper come fiver, etcetera, etcetera. But I think having a local client base, it's also crucial for a freelance business. 13. Local clients: When I'm talking about local clients, I'm talking about the people you can meet face to face in your own city or your own country . People you can see down. We'd and make old school face to face business. Why are they important? Not just because I'm sentimental about these. They are important because you can create a higher level of trust face to face with people . You can do it online as well, but it's much harder. You can talk to people. They are local. They see you in person, and you are better off telling your peach in person. It's so much easier to show how professional and enthusiastic you are about your field of profession. It just is just so much better. It goes through much easier. Your message is lending much easier with a client or ah, prospect in person. Better trust. The higher level of trust makes it easier to lend the job, make it easier to get the actual business and also after you finish the job. And let's suppose you are a professional in your field and you did the best you could. After that, you get better a pharaoh's from them because they are moving around in their daily life and talking all about this great designer or freelancer of writer and telling it to other people and getting more reference and jobs to you. I will talk about this in the next lesson. So how to get local clients simply go to local events? Trade showed markets anywhere where you can meet people might who might be interested. He your profession and use offline advertisement offline Advertisement is still there, I know. Email list are amazing. Facebook is off the roof. Only advertisement is great today. You would be stupid not to use them but offline still exist. You can just go to people. Give them your business card and it works Fliers as well Offline advertisement works. Just goto People reach out locally and tell them about your business and what you do the best also works. Networking. Have you talk about this more in the coming lecture? I love networking in person with people. I just love that it's so easy to get a connection and get your message through and get new reference and clients what you also can do with have other freelancers involved in the process you ever go on? Let me give an example. I have a friend who is on animator. I am doing the design. He's doing the animation once I am getting new referrals and new projects in, and once he is getting it the same, it programmers the same with marketers, the same with copywriters. Just get people who you would like to work together and you can work together impossible project and form an unofficial team. I always say this I am like a middle off a star and every freelance or is the middle of his own star. And I can pull in different professional freelancers into different projects. This is creating much better chances for both of us, the other professional in me to get more reference. Our our chances are much better this way. So word of mouth is very important to get local clients, and I will talk about this shortly in the next listen 14. The power of "Word of mouth": word of mouth is the oldest type of marketing. Really, because someone is offering great service an amazing product. The people who have talked about it, how to get were of mouth working for you. It's on a simple us, everything with freelancing but its heavy to do. If you have a satisfied client that equals referrals. He referred to you for his friends, colleagues, other professionals who might be interested in your trade. Sometimes we think that these things magically will work. I made a good job. This person is satisfied with me and he will refer me to other people. If you finish the job and the client is happy with you, ask him. Ask your satisfied client to tell about you to other people. You don't have to be pushy. You might be very successful other ways. But it won't hurt just there. The person you were satisfied with my job. Please refer me to the people you know and maybe next month, maybe a year later. But he will come back to you if he was really satisfied. Video referees are very important. Referees mean more off Your prospects will turn into paying jobs because in word of mouth referrals. The trust level is just so much higher. If you're familiar with cold emails or cold phone calls calling people out of the blue and trying to sell them services, you know they also work. But having a warm reference word of mouth someone, a friend telling you about a great product, it has much higher penetration, much higher rate of success for you to land a business. In the next lesson, I will talk about networking, which is also kind of reference system, and I will talk about different type of networking, and we will figure out which one is working for you. 15. Networking is important!: networking even is basically an even with the sole purpose of creating new business leads. You go in a room full with professionals, and you try to talk to them and get more leads. Many people, many freelancer, hate networking or they don't think it works. And I know why. Because they get it wrong. If you ever go to networking given remember one thing. You don't sell your services for your product to the people in that very room. You don't want to sell them anything. You are tapping into their network and you are getting referrals from them. I will talk about it, how to do it. But first, there are several type off networking events. You can draw a scale on one end off the line. Are the very street networking events really written? Order. Everyone has dominated. Everyone's two minutes. You have to talk about your business, toe a person and you see the next table and talk to another person. We district order everything go by the rules. One of these is B and I Business Business Network International. It's a great networking event. You can go in and there are so many rules and There are so many professionals and it will work for you probably on the other end. There is what I liked in Glasgow when I was living in Scotland. There is business bunter. It's a totally open meet up professionals. Golder in the room have a coffee and talk Nothing else. And these are the two end off there networking, even skill In between there are different events where there are some rules set and there are no rules. Set me personally. I like the events where there are not many rules where I can simply talk to people. The reason I like these events more It's what I said in the beginning. You are not selling to the people in that room, but you tap into their network. And how you do it is that you make connections. You find a local even you go in there and just take normal. Just talk to people If they ask What are you doing? You talk about your profession. Don't push people Poor people Be friendly. Be approachable The kind seem professional. Be confident etcetera etcetera be normal and the best you can be make people like you. Ok? It sounded bad, but you know what I mean. You cannot force people to like you, but if you act normal and be kind, they will like you big time. Also, one more thing a networking given is not a one time. Even if you just go there and want to pull a trick and sell everyone in the room and just go out and go the next event, it's not gonna work. Being on a networking given is also about being regular there, the more you go in the same even several times, the people who are also regular is going to recognize you. And after riding, gonna recognize you or someone they know and they can refer toa. And that's the point. You want to get reference from the people off the room because they have many, many clients and they know many other professionals and they can refer your services or products them. And that's the best part. One of the best advice I got once about networking is simple. Don't be an octopus. What does it mean? An octopus is a person who is going into the room and want to sell so much himself for his service that he is handing out business card with eight arms. Really, he is just going into anyone without asking was the person is about? What is he doing? Just pushing his business card in his face. It's not really working. It's what I told earlier. It's pushing people away when you are going and forcing your business cards in their hand, talk to them, wait for them to ask your business card because that means they are genuinely interested in you. Being genuine in a networking given is also key to build a higher level of trust and get better reference from the other professionals. If you have no networking, even in the area where you are leaving or no networking even to like simply make one Putin , even from Facebook, get other professionals to come book a place in a cafe or somewhere or a room somewhere and that's it. Meet with fellow professionals. This is what I did. I mean, it's not a commercial for my even. It's just here in Budapest, but what I did was simple. I went into a coffee. I talked to them. If I could have my meetings here every Friday morning and started it a year ago with a few people know we are 15 20 people or professionals coming, and there are a lot of regulars and there are always new faces. It's a very good fresh experience for everyone. We learn from each other and we get a lot of business reference from each other. And the whole thing is working just normally and honestly, no Bush. So if you consider yourself shy and you were thinking, I gonna make freelancing work for me. But I'm not going to go to any networking, even I hope you reconsider after Let's listen. 16. How to communicate in e-mail?: in this lesson, I will talk about how to write a property meal and you might ask each one, Really, You want to teach us how to write an email? We all know that everyone knows that, Yes, but yes, it's true. We hold write emails, but I think a lot of freelancers are not doing it correctly. I see my friends. I know when they are asking me how to rephrase this letter, how toe contact about the problem, How toe Just simply right to a client. Here are a few rules or bullet points you can stick to when you're writing an email. First of all, be polite and be straight to the point. I mean, be short when you write your email or after he wrote your email, check it and delete everything, which is unnecessary, unnecessary phrases or telling about your day or whatever. I know this is helping to gain some trust, but believe me, you're writing to someone who is in the middle of his verde. He doesn't care. He doesn't want to read about it. I want to read about event your job is done or what do you need from him or what is happening straight to the point. But be polite. Say hello, say goodbye. But in between, to the point with this technique, I was not just pushing myself to write much more successful emails, but I was also pushing myself to spend less time on my emails because I just getting do what it has to be done, and I'm getting out. I'm not spending hours to compose emails I don't have toe. Also, don't write excuses. They don't care. You said you will be done by Friday. Sadly, didn't happen. Something came up. You are sick. Had to go here and there. Don't tell the story just right to the client. I know I said it will be done on Friday, but something came up and I will only send it on Monday. Just let them know. And if you want to be even better if the time frame is small like so you don't push the project off like a week or so, don't answer the client until you have something ready. It's a little trick I do, making people satisfied. So let's say I couldn't finish the stuff Tuesday because something was missing or I got the data late and I could only finish on Wednesday. I'm not writing when? Tuesday evening That you will get it on Wednesday? No. I am skipping Tuesday totally and only right back on Wednesday and saying Sorry I was late . Something came up. Here is everything. I hope everything is all right. Please write back. If you need anything else from me, they feel like it because they see that you are efficient, that something is working. Maybe you are a big late. This technique only works when you will be a bit late. Maybe you're a bit late, but they're happy because the Basque you needed to do is done so that I will do it tomorrow . Emails. Forget about those. Do it tomorrow and send it. I was late. Sorry. Here's the task. It works. Very, very good. Very official. I also said, don't write an email on Tuesday evening and I mean, don't write an email on any evenings. First of all, no one is checking immersing the night if they are right in the mind. I even have a rule myself not checking my email after nine PM Have you talk about this in the time management part off the of course. So don't write your email in the evening because no one is checking it at the evening. They only will see it in the morning, so why not write it in the morning? And it's also giving a force message that you are working day and night, and this can affect your life very much because the client will think that. OK, these guys up and working on the beacons on the night every time, so I can reach him every night or every weekend. I can call him anytime I need him. No, you have to set your borders. This is very important for your work life balance. So don't send emails in the night. Only in the morning will in daytime, where it's working time. Of course, it's a rule, and it's breakable as well. You should break it when there is a big deadline or something very important is coming up. But don't break it all the time. There is also one rule which I read somewhere ages ago when I started freelancing and it's very hard. I will talk about later with the money part as well. It's very hard to keep, but it helped me so many times. Is the five contact through If a prospector client is not responding after five emails five home cause of five contacts. If it's possible and I don't lose money or anything, I let it go. I let it go And I'm focused on the clients who are there who are contacting me who are answering my emails want toe work with me and wants the word done and want to pay. So I focused on the people I want to work. We don't want to get money from And I let these people disappear. And if they want toe, come back to me and work with me later on Dave Ill You never know why they didn't answer. Maybe they didn't want to. Maybe when they want to work with someone else, you never know. Let them be After five emails. Don't send them more. Okay. This is also rule you can break. I will talk about this in the payment part. In the next lessons, I will talk more about how to David clients 17. Client meeting: sometimes it will happen. And I hope it will happen a lot that you have to meet possible client in person. Now we read about down and a lot of people are afraid of client meetings because it's so personal. You have to show yourself you have to get out of the freelance cave where? I don't know why, I think mostly because we are afraid. What's freelancers? We had afraid. We meet someone, we talk about what we do and say a price and the business not gonna happen. And we are afraid of failure. If you remember what I said a few lessons earlier, let yourself do some failing. So don't be afraid. Go to your client meeting. Dress well, look well and feel well. Be confident about your work You are a professional in, but you do. That's why you decided to freelancing in it. You are also just go there and meet that person before you go there. Do your homework, which means check the background of the client. Check the background of the company. Look around what you can offer him. What is the job about? If there was a brief read the brief, obviously when you are there, be kind. Shake hands and listen. When we sit down with the clients or possible clients on a meeting, I always say, Okay, please tell me more about the project. And listen. People love to talk about the project. Every company you're gonna very Pete. It's built by people who want to do that. And they love what they do. Yes, you do. So listen to them and try to get out as much information from their talkers humanly possible, because the better you listen, the better your work will be later on. So look good. Feel good. Be clear. Be professional and relax. Simple tip I can give you when you start to talk about what you do is don't talk bad about other clients or previous kinds. I hate that when people do it talking bad about someone behind his or her back. It means you could also do it behind my back. And this is, if anything, it's ruining trust. So don't do that. Don't be that person yourself. But what you should talk about is all the benefits you can give and share some insight. I se some not all say a few more ideas, but only small ones. Show your expert ties. Show your enthusiasm. But let the client know that your services are not for free feedback. Giving out off, given out of good ville, for example, or little help can build your credibility and can raise the trust level between the two off you. So be normal. Be nice. We had full, but don't overdo it. I left the most important part to the end. The most important thing you do on a client meeting is that you show up, you talk and you don't say anything Final about the prices until you So full brief until you know all the tasks that has to be done and a daddy why the clients want something and it seems simple enough. And you think yourself. Okay, I will do it in a few hours and you say a price for a few hours off work. And then the client is sending over the next day the task that has to be done, which is almost us his cell. But it's much, much heavier because yeah, now you're just understood what is the task? Really? And it turns out it's not a few hours. It's a few days then, my friend. You rob yourself from a lot of money and you made a lot off work and it's not good. So don't say anything final until you know what is it that exactly you have to do? You can say more or less price, but also be very, very, very cautious with that. This is also a good way to avoid scope. Creeping scope. Creeping means that you have a project you agree on a project price and the client one more and more and more toe fit into that project under the same price. So basically, he wants you to work for free, and this is easier to happen to you when on the first meeting you say a price without thinking. So I always say, Think over your pricing. Go home, wait for the day talk, Wait for the phone Corvette for the email. Whatever you agree, don't do your homework again. Calculate your price and then say your price to the client 18. "Bad" clients and how to deal with them: But now this is a very important lesson and I can give you a few pointers The red flags you have to look for. But you have to build your own experience in this. I'm sorry. You will get hurt a lot of times before you learn to pickle bet clients. So what are the Redflex you should look for. One of the biggest point for me was always problem with the contract and the prepayment. I always ask prepayment, I will talk about this in the payment part. It's very important for me. And if someone is already haggling in the beginning with my price or doesn't want to sign a contract or doesn't want to pay me prepayment, that's huge, huge sign for me that later on there will be problem with this guy. And if I don't listen to my previous experiences and I go into the business most of the time, I have to see that suddenly my instinct was right. Someone who doesn't want to contract. We will usually run away with your money and doesn't want to pay you. The people who are hard to reach even in the start of the project will be the same, possibly during the whole project. If you don't find the project, which is dragging on for months and month video, proper payment don't work with people like this. People were pulling the disappearing act. Don't work with them because they will do it in the middle of the project has simply disappeared with your money. I mean, you put in so much work in time and they just disappear. It's not fair. Is it also assigned for me? It's more off a bad personality time that he is talking bad about previous freelancers. As I said in one of the previous lessons, when you talk bad about someone behind he's or her back, it means you will talk bad about me as well when I'm not present and that's that's not very polite. And this means that this person is usually doesn't take responsibility, that he is blaming others. So if you work with him and the project goes sideways, he will blame you. Which leads to he doesn't want to pay you or break the contacted. I'm sorry about talking so negative stuff just now when you are starting all freelancing, but you have to be aware of these, you might need a lot off possible clients who are acting weird and if directing real for you don't work with them. Also, the client who doesn't have a clear plan who doesn't have a clear plan or not having any brief off what is the task? And he is coming and forcing you to say a price. As I said in the client meeting lesson, don't tell the price at the first meeting. Go home and calculate where the task is clear. When he is not telling you what to do. Just don't go with it. Don't Don't say a price. Ask him what is the task? If he is, doesn't telling you? It means that he will be not responsive during the project and we will not help you and the project probably gonna fail. I'm talking about all my friends experiencing music and copyrighting on design programming . This can happen anywhere, so there are a lot of signs that can show that the possible clients or client is. But there are everywhere. Rotana pose and it can happen. A lot of times that you meet possible clients were not so good for you, but most of the time and would experience more and more. Most of the time, you will meet great people and work with them and get paid properly. And the more directed the best people, the people who are fitting you, the more great reference you will get from them. And that's also so now you know more or less how I point out bad clients. You have to work out your system for that. Listen to your gut. Look for red flags. Learn from your mistakes. That's a closing dealt for this lesson. I have to tell you something. You should do a reality check. Sometimes if the only thing you do is complain about how better your clients or your possible clients than the problem is the only common thing between those clients and that's you. So you should do the reality check and say, Okay, if all my clients are bad, then I am doing something wrong. I am not leaving the freelance life I want. Maybe it is my fault, and if it is my fault, it is my responsibility, and I am able to change what I do to get better clients to get the clients I deserve and leave the free lands lifestyle I really, really want toe. So if everything is bad, all the clients seems like bad apples. They would really to check. 19. The disappearing act: that is really not many more annoying or hurting things client can do, then disappearing totally. It can happen that you're divert with him. If that happened that he was just a proposal. But he's not answering your phone calls. Your emails he disappeared, make a difference between if it was a client or proposed client. If it was a client already and you started work already, that's really gonna hurt because you pushed the working it. It means a put time and effort in it, and you're losing actual money on it. If it was just possible client, let it go. If he's not answering political other clients who feel up the place. I know it hurts, but let it go. If a client is disappearing, you are already working with. I was talking about already the five called rule. Now this is the time to break it. If he's disappearing with a lot off your work and money, don't let him go. Write him regularly. Contact him regularly. Contact the people he knows. I know it seems desperate, but this is your work. If it's it's up to you. Don't let people cheat you on disappear. It might happen that he disappears because off family reason or some big even that happened . Somebody's my or even and he couldn't write you. I don't believe that. I always say that people care right One blind text if something had happened to them, But let's say he just disappeared. Then he will probably come back to you, and that's great. But if not, take legal steps and it's about experience and this is a bad part of freelancing. But I know for sure that this will happen to you as well. How to prevent it, How to prevent a client to disappear. You can hold work back until they pay fully. So a contract is covering you and telling the decline that he will get the work only when the last payment is on your bank account. Also, pre payment prepayment is covering you very much. People not going to run away when they paid you money before, so we've applying disappears, it will hurt. It will be bad, but try to solve the situation, the best you can get over it and get new clients. This is the way to deal in this 20. Listen to your instinct: it's askew you have to develop and the skill you will learn with time. And this skill is listening to your instinct. Listen to your gut. If you have a bad feeling about a client approaching, you are about a new project double check. That means there are small signs small, almost invisible red flags, which you see, but you are pushing it down because there is so nice payment opportunity that it's such a nice project. This is such a nice guy, and you push the signs of a U turn your head away from the light flecks. So basically it's not listening to your instinct. It is checking the reality and seeing the reality off the situation. So if you have a bad feeling about the situation, double check in my experience. For example, if a client is only asking about the price, he is looking for cheap solutions. If something seems fishy, it probably is. I don't want to seem pessimistic as you might know it. So far I'm not. I'm very happy person, but if it seems too good, it probably is. So listen to your instinct and check for warning signs and do a reality check and double check only work for clients who you 100 personally trust 21. How to think of possible projects: This will be a very short lesson about how to deal with possible projects. So if someone is calling, you are sending your message that hey, I have a job for you and I will pay you. A lot of people start to jump up and down and do their happy days because yes, finally, I have a paying client. No, no, no. This is just a possible client with a possible project. It may be you be happy about it. It's great that they found you or you got a reference or somehow they contacted you. That's amazing. Be happy. But don't count on it as a job until the contract is signed or you get your prepayment or you get the proper brief. So until the project is emotion, until then, it's not 100% that you will get a proper job and the payment, but aimed to make it really aim to make this possible project into riel project. Talk to the client, send the repayment invoice, send the contract, do everything what you can to make the project. Really, This is your task as well. Turn a possible kind into real client. Everyone is asking me how many people are writing me daily or how many people are asking me for different jobs? I can tell you a lot, a lot, and a lot of them are disappearing. So I made it a habit not to make time for promised big projects. I don't make my calendar clear because someone said that next week we start working. I will make my calendar clear when they are appearing on my doorstep, which checking hand, so make time only when the contract is signed and the job is really, truly mine. Don't take this A specimen is, um, that I'm not happy about. Possible project I am is just my experience, which tells me that a project is not really until you make it real. 22. Keep the client!: you got the possible client. You turned him into Rio client. I started to work for him and he also paid you. That's amazing. Congratulations. You you had the real client and real work. That's awesome. But to keep your business going, you should keep your clients, As I said earlier in the stages off working with clients. This is also an important part. Getting the client working for the plant and keeping the client. What is the best strategy to keep your client again? Sound simple. Hard to do two words. Quality and relationship. The quality off your work. We'll keep the client coming back to you. I have clients for nine years now. I am their designated designer. I'm not working full time for them. They might not call me for half a year, but when they need graphic design, they call me and that's the best thing. So the quality off your work is talking about you very much, and people will come back to get the same quality again and again and again. And if they come back, remember the freelance roller coaster. If they come back and the client is coming back, the payment the income is coming back and again and the can and keeps you going, that's great. The other thing relationship is also very important. Be responsive and don't disappear. I see these so many time, and I hear it so many times that people are coming to me toe do a design job because the previous designer disappeared. I don't get it. Why do you disappear? I know something bad can happen in your life. When my father died a few years ago, I was working very hard to the client and he just suddenly died. I left out a message to all my clients that I won't be available because this happened in my family. It's normal to disappear if something bad happens, but disappearing without trace or letting the people know that's stupid. You are ruining the relationship that you already built with your car with your clients don't disappear. Be responsive If they write an email answered email. If they call you, call them back and tell them if the situation is bad, don't disappear. Whatever is happening in your life. If you are not in a coma where I don't know whatever is happening in your life you are always able to send a one line message stating what is happening and telling that you will come back to them. So build a lasting relationship to do this. Also, it's great if you have your client answer their questions or that's the best. Refer other professionals when they need it. This is working for the client because he's happy he's problem solved. This is working for you because your relationship is getting better with the client and it is working for the other professional who gets a job. Everyone wins. That's the best situation. So help your client's answer their question. Refer other professionals and they need it after the job is done with your client, do a follow up. Follow up calls and emails are great. They strengthen the relationship very much because people are a lot of times satisfied and take it. Granted that the other person knows that they are satisfied when I finish a job and I send out the invoice and the client is very happy because he's paying, so I assume he's happy. I'm always asking with the invoice. I hope you were happy with the work I have done. If there is anything that's please let me know. Most of the time. The answer back. Thank you very much for your work. It was amazing. I will definitely call your next time we refer you to someone else. And that's what you want. That's strong relationship, and this will help you keep your client. 23. Assertiveness - one of the most important skill of the successful freelancer!: when a client is calling with an issue and he's upset our reflects would be Toby the same upset and start blaming the client. Blame someone else looking for excuses or run away. Don't do it. Try to be assertive. Don't become passive aggressive. Being assertive means being confident, take responsibility and solve the situation without getting aggressive, actively or passively aggressive. I mean, so how you do it, you look for a solution. And so if the issue that it is best for everyone being assertive is about showing empathy, imagine how you would feel if you were in the position of the other person. I know it's not easy. Assertiveness is hard work, but it pays out. It were strengthened. The relationship you have video client. It will make you happier, more confident you will have happier freelance life, and you will work better after death and you will keep your client and he will come back for more and refer you toe more possible clients. Assertiveness will not only help you dealing with clients, but it will also positively influence your private life if you're 30 in your family life, that solving a lot off issues if you want to know more about assertiveness, I suppose. Take training, Find local coaches who train on assertiveness or read the book. How to be assertive in any situation. That is a great, great start. 24. Contracts! : I was talking about contracts before in several lessons I will talk about later on. They are very important. So just a short lesson to sum it up. Contracts are important. If you don't think so, write it down on a little note and put it in front of you. So you see it. All the contracts are important. Have everything contract. Have a document on which both off. You agree on you and your client because the contract covers both of you. This is what I always say to my clients. Contract is needed. It means I will not run away with your money. I will not run away without finishing your project. You can count on me and you will also not disappear during the process of creating what you need from me. This is not because I don't have trust and this is one off a red flag. If someone doesn't want the contract, that's a red flag. I was talking about reflexive The pointing goes bad clients. If it possible, Client doesn't want the contract because he says, Come on, this is built on trust. No, my friend. We are doing business in the 21st century. We are signing this document, and that's a way to showing our trust. So contracts are important and they can be long and they can be heavy to make. So, as I said earlier, have them ready. Have a simple one. And the more complex one I have a bomb page document, which is easy. I just put in the client details. My details are already in. We just sign it done, we can work. 25. Price it right!: in this short chapter, I will talk about the money. I will talk about pricing and payment, how to get paid and how to us for payment. As I said earlier, first of all, don't tell a price Read out knowing what is the work exactly. If you learned only one thing from the whole course, this should be. Don't tell a price too early. Now, when you tell your price to the client, few things can have him. First of all, he thinks is too high. Second of all, he thinks is just perfect. Certain awful here thinks it's too low. Okay, the 3rd 1 is never happening. He will never say Oh my God, you are so cheap. If someone is telling this to you, man, you are very, very cheap and you should raise your prices. This is a sign that your price is too low. Also signed can be that everyone is taking your services without any thinking. It could be meaning that it's very cheap and you should consider raising the price. So a lot of times happens. The decline things the price is too high for him. And he started to say that it's not for me now. I don't have enough fun. He starts toe hago or he simply seems not happy or he simply refuses their business. Now, don't panic. Don't drop the price half just to get the job. Don't panic. The trick is not to lowering the price but hiring the value, dropping something more. If you are writing 10 pages of text to him, tell also that you were four months text or if you are designing the logo, tell him that you will get several versions of the logo, give him more and explain why you're prices so high and why you give more for that price. Let them know the value off what you're offering. Let them consider it. Why are you pricing like this many times, for example, for my logo designed for people are freaking out. Oh my God, it's so expensive. It is not, and I explaining them why it is not. I work a lot on alone when I do the best I can, and this will help your business very, very much. And if you change the client's perspective and let them understand that your service will benefit their business, they will accept your higher price, and that's what you want to do. I also know your birth don't work for pennies. This is what I can say about pricing. Don't work for pennies. Calculate your hourly rate or work for the project rate. I will not tell you which one to do. It's really up to Do. I do a mix of these? I know what is my our literate and I work for some clients by an hourly raid and with some where there is a short project, I work on a project rate, so they pay me when the project is finished. There are many calculators online to calculate your project or hourly rate. I can tell two things about it. Check the market, Jake the market. Then check. What is the price off the service you are providing? What are the price other designers or other writer's or composer's are working for? Check the market and work for that price, or set your price accordingly. Don't be too cheap or don't be too expensive or if you are, let the client know why. Let them know the value and also but I always do. But I always there to everyone again. Listen to your gut. If you want to go very low and you tell a very low price to the client do you feel happy? Do you feel content? Do you feel that? Okay, This work I do now. And this will pay the bills. How do you feel? Like OK, I do this work. It will be us. It will be I gonna get paid a few amount and then I have to do a lot of other works which I also don't like because I work very cheap. No, you are just making yourself miserable. Know what you're worth? And really ask yourself What is the amount for this job that would make me satisfied? It seems so simple. But we don't do this. We don't ask ourselves. Okay. What would make me satisfied? Of course. Be realistic. A $1,000,000,000 is not realistic. But what? What is the amount? What makes what would make you satisfied? What is the amount you would except for the value you give for your client? Think about it. Work like this and you will be happy 26. Please, don't work for free! : in the short Listen, I want to talk about why not aware for free. Working for free means that you are helping someone's business, so creating profit for him while you don't get paid and you don't get paid double. Why? Because in the same time you are working for free. You could were for a paying client, so we're not just working for free. You are losing money, so it's a double loss. Don't fear for free if you really want to work for free because you say OK, it's trying. It could be not just a business I could work for free for local church or, ah, small NGO. I really want to support because they can pay, but I really want to support their cause. What what do I do? Do I ask for money? First of what? You can ask for goods so they can pay the service or they can pay with goods. Second, if all you could ask for a small amount, a really, really small amount. If you really want to help them, you don't have to wear for free steel. Ask a small amount of them and the other thing I sometimes do is working pro bono. Problem is working for the greater good, and this is exactly what I said. If you decide that you work for free for a client like but I said for ah, local organization or nonprofit organization, really think about it, how you would feel during the project if it will be a big, big project, if it will be a burden for you if you will hate, it isn't a vile don't take it. Take it only if you really want to help. And if you really don't nine that you were for free but never work for free. For for profit companies and organisations. If someone is making money out off your work without paying you, that's I would say that's a crime. Don't let it stand up on your feet and state your ground and tell your price to decline. Don't fear for free 27. What we like: Payment: you finish the project for your client, you made your little happy dance and now you are waiting for your payment. First of all, don't forget to send an invoice I was talking about already. How important this to legalize your freelance business and to have a proper invoice and to send it to the client, write the name of the client, address the amount and the deadline when the payment should be on your bunker. One trick I do to get paid. It's simple asking for prepayment. As I said earlier, it could be a red flag. If someone doesn't want to pay me prepayment. My projects are usually long. So widow prepayment. It would mean I'm working a month or two month for a client without any income. So he should understand that 30% or 50 person prepayment is paying for my life when I'm working for him and the rest I get at the end. Also, prepayment, as I said before, is saving you and the client. You are not gonna run away in the middle of the project. You're not gonna disappeared because you started the project at the end. You want to be paid you want to finish it and you are also covered because the client already paid you. And believe me, people not gonna disappear when they gave you 50% of the full price. No, no, they want to get it done. So prepayment is important part of the payment when the project is Dunton totally you give the final invoice and wait for your money. I think it's very polite and very human to say thank you when the payment finally and IVs on your back a goat. As I said earlier, this is a good way to strengthen the relationship between you and the client. He can tell also a few good words how good it was to work with you. It will be all cozy. Okay, but this were really, really work. There is a psychological Pete for here. When you give out an invoice and as the double spending trap, it means you give out an invoice and you spend the money. Already the job is approved, the invoices given and you start to spend. And when the money is coming in, let's say three weeks later. Then you spend again because you felt that you have the money wanted in your pocket when they gave out the invoice. No, no, no. Wait for the money toe. Arrive on your bank account. The project is only finished and you're happy. Dance is only do then the money is on your bunker. Also, to avoid the disappearing off clients, it's simply don't give the final products until you are paid until the invoices cleared. Don't give them the final product. A lot of times they will pay very, very fast because they need the final product. Your service very, very fast. So tell them you are not giving the final fires or the final presentation of whatever they need from you, do you? Don't give it until you are fully paid. If you want this, you can put this in the contract. In the beginning, they really understand if they are normal people and running a business. David, understand? In the next lesson, I will talk about something very hard again late or disappearing payment 28. What we don't like: late payment...: If you're following my course so far, what have you tell you now would be very new. We just reconstruct what we already learned. So what to do about late or disappearing? Payment. So what to do when someone doesn't want to pay? First of all, email them, call them. Be polite, be normal. Be professional. Don't do a drama. Don't freak out. I know you are upset. This happened to me a 1,000,000 times. It's not a pleasant feeling. Breathe in, breathe out. I swear, if you want to, but then be very, very, very professional and talk to them in clean professionally. If you are still working for them, stopped work immediately and don't hand over the final product or the final service on deal the invoices paid. Also, in a lot of cases, you can write an invoice for late payment set in the contract. If the payment is late, they have toe pay, and this is getting us to the prevention part. So how to prevent the later disappearing payment is we have a good relationship with the client. I have several good clients. They are good clients for me because they pay on time and they love my work. We're working together for years because they love what I do. And I love that they paying time and they're normal people. Having a good relationship is helping relayed payments. Also, what I said before several times contracts having a contract is covering both of you. My other weapon in this fight against late payments is prepayment. If someone paid you earlier, they will pay also at the end usually. And the prepayment is a good sign off their willingness to contribute to the project. If they don't want to pay the prepayment off the late with the prepayment No, no. Then they probably will not pay properly in the end. Also invoice as soon as possible. This mind seem trivial, but you have to invoice them so they can pay you. It happened to me a few times that I was waiting for the plant Obey. I was waiting, waiting. I wrote them what happened and they said we didn't get the invoice assented toe of wrong email. Don't do this invoice as soon as possible. And the invoice properly. Always ask them. Did you get my invoice? Yes, we got it. It means also would you pay now? I send the invoice, the answer they pay. And finally, But I already said about disappearing clients. If they are very, very late or they disappear totally and don't want to pay a penny, take legal steps. 29. Taxation - we all have to do it eventually: Okay. Now, before you start freelancing, ask yourself, Do I leave in this magical country? But everyone can over money and never pay taxes. Yeah, me neither. There is no such country. Wherever you live, you have to pay taxes. And as I said before and the start, if you don't want to be surprised by the tax company, then cover yourself. Google it, talk to other freelancers, get a professional, do the paperwork and cover your Texas. You have to know what are the regulations? What kind of taxes you have to pay for? I cannot tell you exactly because you are living in one country. I leave maybe the other end of the world, but get a local, get a professional and know what are your taxes? I know What are the rules I have to follow in my country and I want to do it legally so I don't get any surprise. Hopefully, taxation could be heavy thing. A lot of people say I have to pay 40%. 30% 15% toxin. So heavy. Yes, it is heavy. It is heavy when you are not preparing for it. Prepare for your taxation by putting aside the given percentage from every payment you get . If, for example, the taxes at the end of the year at the end of the taxation year are 25% what you have to pay, then put away 25% from all the payments you get. I know it can be heavy, but this we'll spare you a lot of headaches because you just simply pay the taxes from the money you put aside. And you don't have to magically make more work and more money. On the end of the taxation year. I needed years. The land is it was so heavy for me. But this is the only way to do it properly, so prepare for your tax payment. Also, most companies acquired that you give proper invoices so they can reduce the amount they pay you from their taxes. That's why it's also good to be legal and do stuff legally and be covered by taxes. Taxation is not a good thing for us creatives. It can be so overwhelming and a lot off the designers and freelancers. It just seems so much, but it is needed, so get out there and learn what are the rules for you and leave accordingly and put aside the money that you need to pay your taxes 30. Work life balance - is it a myth?: when I'm talking about the feelings, lifestyle, work, life balance is what I mean. It means that you don't work too little. It means that you don't work too much. You don't overwork yourself. It means that you are working to leave and not living to work. It means you don't end up over colic. And it means you take care about yourself. Your family. This is a very important issue for me. And I really want to get this message through to you. I think the most efficient way to balance work and life he's be prepared. Take your time to work and take your time to relax. Relaxation is very important. If you only work and work and work and never stop. The quality of your work were slowly decrease because you are simply tired. He doesn't. Murphy, What are you working for? To have a better life on What do you do? Work that life of a No. You should take your time for relaxation. I dont say the opposite. I don't say Just lay around all day and enjoy yourself and lose your money and your life. I say that it's time for working and there has to be time for yourself. Also, it is important to move to get up from the table. Sometimes it is important to socialize to meet people. So it's very important that you create your own order and your own working hours and stick to that. My routine, for example, is very simple. I get up early, I have breakfast or I work out or I just read. But I'm not working before nine o'clock in the morning. At 9/2 past nine, I sit down and started work. Go through my emails, do my job. Me day I make lunch or I order lunch where you eat lunch with my some of my friends around and then go back to work. And I worked here 67 o'clock, tops. I don't work in the night. Have you talked about later on? White is more important, but I have my borders. I have my routine Break your routing sometimes because living day by day the same thing. It's like being an employee. And that's not what you want. You want your freedom. You are a freelancer for the freedom. Don't forget why you are here. You are your own boss But as your own boss, you are also responsible for the balance in your life. This chapter is only about this, and it's very important to lead a truly happy life as a freelancer. 31. The healthy freelancer: this lesson is connected to the previous lessons about growing your borders and not overworking. I'm talking about being healthy, leading healthy life. A lot of people just say our command. I don't have time for that. I have to work fine, but be totally realistic. When you are healthy and happy, then you are productive. Then you can do more work. Better work, higher quality work and earn more Being healthy as a freelancer because you are on your own , being healthy and take care about yourself. It's crucial you have to keep the engine going. There is no one else who will do were where. So you have to take care about yourself. So here are a few deeps I live by, and here are a few tips you can also follow to be healthy. Freelancer. If you ever commit a computer like I do most of the time and I'm not painting on paper, you sometimes find yourself sitting there for hours. Get up, get out from the computer. Time to time, move around heavy t go to the toilet. Whatever. Get up from the computer. New studies are finding the sitting long times. It's very, very bad. It has very bad results, and it's ruining our health. Also, civilization also make time for yourself. As I said, make time for your relaxation but also make time for your lunch. Never eat in front of the computer. I always say, I always say nothing can be that important that I would drop my lunch break. I need this half an hour for myself. It's not just I'm eating properly. I'm also getting my mind out of the work for a bit, and when I get back, I'm refreshed. I'm also cooking my own food because I work from home. It's one of the perks of being a freelancer. People think you are at home and you are always alone. Yeah, fine. But I'm also cooking. It's cheaper, it's healthier. You can also socialize, meet friends for lunch so you don't have to cook yourself. But meet some friends around. It's good for your social life. You move out a bit again, maybe takes more time than just ordering or eating in front of the computer. But it's good for you. In so many ways, you will feel better. You will be happier and you can get back to your computer work better than before. Also, being a freelancer is not limiting me in a way that I can train whenever I want. I can do exercises. I could go for a run. I can go for swimming and then I work later on. I catch up with work later on, and it's so good because I make my own schedule and my time. It's flexible as much as I wanted. I can always push in some exercise. If I feel toe do it, do some exercise, have a longer, healthier, happier freelance life and also for your mental health. I think it's very important that you are with your loved ones and I'm talking about freedom . I always say this to my friends. I want to be there. I don't want to work 18 hours a day and not see my family. I want to be there. I want to be with my loved ones. That's great for me. So after I work, I just want to be them. That's healthy as well. They care about yourself, keep the engine going and leave happy, healthy freelance life 32. Motivation: motivation is what keeps us going. Motivation is what makes you doing things. Motivation is what keeps you in a job, a zig Ziglar said. People often say that motivation doesn't last well needed as bathing. So that's why we recommended daily. He's right. You need your daily motivation. You need to find it. You need to focus on what you have to do and be motivated. Motivation is not something that is growing inside you, but mind if you love what you do, it will be much easier to motivate yourself. People often say to me, You are so lucky because your job is so creative and you just grow and people pay for it and we envy you so much. It's so easy for you to find your motivation. No, it's not. I am pushing myself a lot of times. I don't want to work. A lot of times I just want to finish this job because there is a new one coming in more excited about that. I am a human, but I have to finish my project because I like to believe a life and I like to get paid. So I find my motivation. What I do is that I make myself remember why I started it. What was my main goal? Why did I start this? Why am I a freelancer? Why? It is good to be a freelancer. That helps me. You remember we were talking about the values off life. Yeah, I remind myself. This is why am I here? This is why my creative I my freelancer and I have to keep it up. And it's great. And that motivates me every day. Also, what motivates me a lot is enjoying the moment of success. I have my little celebration when a big project is finished and I get paid. I do my little happy dance when I go out and take my wife for dinner. These are great things. Enjoy life and enjoyed moment of success. Have some rest. Motivation is very important finding you also if you feel you cannot motivate yourself if you feel burned out If you feel that life is over bothering you do again. A reality check is freelancing. Really? For you. Is this really what you want to do? Find? Answer yourself 33. Time management: time management is crucial. But I think the name is destructing because it's not about managing your time. It's managing your energy and your focus. Sometimes you can complete a lot off task in a very short time, and sometimes you are just like, deflated and cannot do anything. And we just decided. Okay, I give it up for today. So it's more off managing your energy and focus and decision making that managing your time , I think. But still, of course, time is a big factor here When I'm talking to other freelancers. Time management is always coming up what you can do about it. Time management is a skill. It is learnt herbal. The easiest way to do it is how I do it. I have a plan now. I don't have a daily plan. I don't write out every 15 minutes what I will do or every hour what I will do for me that would go against my value of freedom. I want to be flexible, but I have a weekly plan. Monday morning, I take my time, sit down with a cup of coffee and write down every task I need to do and finish that week. Lately, I most of categorizing my test. What? It has to be done for myself, for self development. What? It has to be done for my family. What? It has to be done this week for work and what has to be done. Okay, Not done. But whatever you do us a free time. So this is a vehicle plan, and I stick to it and I check it every day. If you want to have a daily plan, you can do the same every morning. You can make it a morning ritual. Just sit down, write down your task and go step by step. Now, some people say just make a list and finish off the easiest first, and you can put the check mark on it. And you feel already satisfied because you accomplished something. I say start the one which is the most motivating for you. Do that and you can put a check mark on it, Okay? It's out of my mind. I made it. I finished one task and then go on to the next one, or you can go the opposite way. Start with the heaviest one. The people there is that you might just drag along for a long time because you just hate the task, like for me writing my invoices. It's boring. I don't like it. Still, I have to do it if I want to be paid. But usually I leave it for last. Also, if a task is so heavy for you, that's a burden. But you have to do it every week. Make some time for it. Like, for example, for me writing invoices. I don't like it, so I make a time for it. Every day. I have half a Knauer aside to write my invoices and check my legal documents. Check if I have to write any price codes. So there is documentation time, which is only for death. And I see that after doing a task like that task a boring task. I am more open to do my creative work. Just somehow, my mind is relaxed in the creative part. If you want to develop your time management skills, use a calendar or use a daily or weekly plan, or you can use the Pomodoro tactic if you really, really like focused Pomodoro. Technique was introduced in the late eighties, and it's about you set a least off task. You said the timer. For 25 minutes, you finish your task and after a few times, working for 25 minutes very focused, you take a break. Now this is a very working and construct structure. I have several friends who are doing this and trying to manage their time by writing down. What are they doing with the most and where they're time is going away. It is like managing your cash flow or for counting your calories on a daily basis is just counting your time. There is my time going away. So the Pomodoro technique is great for focusing and to notice where the time is going away . What I doing which is stealing your time away. Okay, Now I'm not using the Pomodoro technique myself. We're not anymore because I doubled my own time management skills. As I said, time management is learn herbal. What I do are lose weekly plan and stick to it. And I'm also drawing my borders. This one I learned from the Pomodoro technique. After one hour, 40 minutes, I stand up from the table and for 10 minutes I go around a bit. I make a sandwich, I make a coffee. I just go out to the balcony and breathe some air or go for a small walk. If I feel so popping to the shop, 10 minutes break, then I'm coming back. My mind is refreshed again. Maybe I'm looking at the problem with fresh eyes and also and I'm ready to work. The time management is not about time. It's about energy and focus, so don't work all the time. Give yourself time to relax and relaxing. I mean, this time, meanings breaks. If you are attending not to have a break, Just set up a time and next to you for 45 minutes, let's say, and every time the timer is off, just drop your work for 15 minutes, then come back and work more. You can do it is there is no boss looking over your shoulder. You can do this for yourself, and you will be healthier, more satisfied and more efficient. After robot, Just stick to this and figure out what is your own time management skill. What is your schedule? No time management is a very big part off a work life balance. It's about managing to finish enough work, but it's about managing toe. Have enough life, a side of the work toe. Have life with the family or for ourselves toe take time off. So I always say that I'm not working weekends unless it is very much necessary, or unless it's a very important project to me, like recording this course or drawing my own art. So unless it's my very own project or the client is paying seriously for working on the weekend, I am not working on the weekend and in the night. Why? Because I always say working in the nights and under weakened is giving out, first of all, a bad message that you are always reachable and clients going to call you all the time. Secondly, that's dire business. If a client is calling you at 10 o'clock in the night when you order the overworking and you want to relax, it's important to them is their business. And it's giving a force impression to you that okay, you have to be also us busy as that. Clients. No, you don't have to. It's their business. It's okay to answer the emails in the morning. It's okay to start work in the morning. You don't have to work in the night. Then there is a big headline. You can break this rule when there is something very, very important. Happened or of is my or even is happening. And you have tow told it. Yes, you can work night and you can work weakened. But don't always do it for me a few times a year, maximum to three times a year. It's happening, but more off the times. I don't work on the night and on the weekend. This way I keep myself healthy. I keep myself focused, and I keep my time management in my work and life in balance. Here's a little tip as well. Don't track your email after nine o'clock. So if my daily schedule is that I work from nine o'clock to six o'clock, it's what I do. Sometimes after six o'clock, I check my emails if I check it in the night, I would think about that all the time. No, I made a roof for myself. I don't check my emails after nine o'clock after nine o'clock. Even my mind is sanitized and it's only for me and my family, my friends for my Hobie. That's it. So time management is part time for your work to focus on your work. And the other half of it is to keep your private life separated from your work time. Learn your skills. If you have any question about time management, please. Right? Ideal answer. 34. "Singletasking" - the road to efficiency : when we talk about time management, we're talking about doing us much as possible in a short time as possible. No, I'm not talking about these. I'm talking about focusing, as I said in the previous lesson, and you want to do a lot of things. It comes down toe being busy now. Being busy is very trendy today and very overrated. I talked to people on a daily basis who are working 14 16 18 hours a day, and they're juggling a lot of projects. And they are so busy they don't have time for their family. They don't have time for exercise. They don't have timeto watch a movie, or they don't have time even to grab a coffee video because they're so busy. Busy for what you're busying your life of a take your time out. Being busy is just trendy and overrated. I think the key to have a happy life satisfied life is work as much as you can and work as much as you need and then take your time off and relax and leave a happy life. A lot of people just prefer to seem busy and seem important rather than facing their life. When you are busy, you occupy yourself with everything, all the small things. You do everything at once, but you are losing focus. You're losing focus in your work and you are losing focus in your life. And that is also why multitasking is a myth as well. Multi tasking means you can juggle several stuff in the same time. You can do that for a very short period, but after a while you will lose focus. My experience tells me that the best is to focus on one thing at the time and do it the best you can. The result. People are asking me, How can you accomplish so many things, how we re organizing so many evens and have an exhibition and work for your clients and teach and teach online. How are you doing this? You must be very, very good at multitasking. But my answer is the opposite. I'm very good at single tasking, so focus on what you do. Stick to your schedule, do your work and then relax. Take a time off 35. Don't survive - THRIVE!: When you are in survival mode, you are focusing only on short term decision and on short term goals. You are making very first decisions, and the decision is usually how much I should work. And you're usually stuck into working a lot if you don't take care about it. You stuck in the same cycle you were in when you were an employee. You just work and you go home collapse. Get up. Work again doesn't work. This is not life. This is work. I know there has to be big goals like now I know how much I would like to learn to support my family. That's a That's a very noble goal, but working my life of a is not a choice. Leave your life, not just work. That's why I say thrive. Don't survive. Use the money you earn and use it well. Make your own guest flow and know how much you can spend each month on yourself and your family and on your Val being it's very important. If you want life work balance, that's it. Don't switch to survival mode on a long term. It's not gonna work. Enjoy your freedom. Put the free in freelancer. That means that you are there for a reason. Remember, What was your reason? Why did you start freelancing? Aim for your goal and leave by your values. Pick your own clients really and lead Gobet clients and best situations. You should always make a reality check except ownership off your own failures except ownership off the problems you created. But I said before, if all your clients are bad clients, it's maybe the problem is not with the client. It may be that the problem is with you than make a reality check and check yourself. What am I doing wrong? What should I change? Take some time off and do a reality check. How do I know this? Why I talk so much about it. I was in survival mode for a vial. I was creating websites, the design part in front and developing. And I was doing it a lot and I was just working and working and working and working. I got paid OK, but I didn't leave it. I didn't leave the freelance life. I stuck into work more than Survivor Month and once I get very upset of the client and they realized. Am I upset of the client or am I upset and myself? Because I'm doing the same mistake and the same job again and again and again. I made a reality check and I was honest with myself. And I decided, after almost eight years of front and developing, I will leave that and they focused on illustration and logo design, which I love. And this is what I did and yet gave me the freedom to work on what I really like. So switch off your survival mode and focus on your life. Create the life you deserve, create the life you really want. If you want, you should travel around the world if you want. Settle down and have family. It's up to you. Don't survive, thrive. 36. Social life - or the lack of it?: One of the arguments against the free lands lifestyle is that freelancers can not socialize because they work home alone. They are in their underwear the whole day. They don't talk to people. They are living like hermits hidden in the forest, and they cannot social as their social life is decreasing things. They left employment well. I am the one who is always arguing with the people who tell this because what is social life? We are grown ups. Our social life is created by us. You are us social as you want to be. If you want to be at home all your life and not talk to anyone, it's fine. You are a grown up. It's your decision. If you want to go out and meet friends, it's fine. It's your decision. If you want to. Part of your life of a I don't agree, but it's your decision toe and why these people tell this. It's that they think that going toe over place is being social, going to over place and be video colleagues and make friends with your colleagues. It's fine, it's really it is social, but there is so much more than have a teacher with your colleagues in the tea kitchen. He don't a few examples. I collected here a few examples what I do day by day, and I have a much more rivets social life that I had before because I'm not talking to the same police all the time. I move out and I meet people, and I talked to a lot of interesting people every day. Sometimes I don't cook at home or order lunch and eat it alone. I go for lunch with my friends. I scheduled my lunchtime to dares and we meet in a local cafe and eat together. It's great to have a future to catch up and on our friendships and just be out of the house , be out of the work and also were healthier because we're not eating in front of the computer in a rush. We're taking our time, having a chat, eating lunch and then refreshed, going back to work. Happily. Also, you can join different clubs, people with similar interests that they knew. As I said, being social, it's up to you. A club can be a sport. It can be about books, about theater, about languages, about anything really find what is available for you, your hometown on your city and go and meet people. Go for local evens and meet people. Go to a concert to theater, to museums. It's up to you really want a grown up? Also networking given I was talking about those the importance of networking even toe meet fellow professionals and get new clients through their reference system. But also, networking events are a great opportunity to talkto like minded professionals. The networking event I am hosting every Friday morning is full with open minded people. It's great to be with them and have a chat in the morning. We talk about work and life. It's great that socializing you can go to professional meet ups as well. For example, there is a user experience design meet up in Budapest every month. There are several other design meetups. There are meetups about writing and copyrighting. So find professional meetups. You can go to meet up dot com and check what type of meet ups are around you and go their after work time. Meet people in your profession and make a bone freedom. It's great to hear Iranian off other people It's great to talk to them. That's socializing. Also, this feel sound very basic. But use the phone. Go your friends and family. Go and meet it. Then go and have a meeting with them, as I said And again, it's very important you had a grown up. You are responsible for your social life if you think you are living like a hermit. I'm sorry to tell you, but this is your fault. You are the only one who can change it. And don't be afraid off freelancing Just because I've will work alone at home. Yes, you will. But you can call your friends anytime and meet them any time. So remember, you have us much social life as much you make yourself go out and meet people. 37. Always. Develop. Yourself.: many feelings are afraid that if they are not on a work place, they're skills won't develop or time fate of a. Because if you are working for a company, you get free training. They're checking on you. There is a push. Are you there? Deadlines and you have to develop your skills to stay on top of the water. You have to do the same when you are a freelancer. The big difference there is the same as the big difference. With everything with freelancing, it is now your own responsibility to develop yourself. When you became a freelancer, moved out off company, you are not under the umbrella of the company anymore, which means you have to develop your skills toe. Earn mawr to get better clients so it's crucial. But it's your responsibility. So what can you do? There are several options. First of all, you can learn skills online. This is actually what you do now. You can go to you Demi skill share lynda dot com and you know a lot other places where you can develop your skills. Learning new programming languages. Learning about marketing S. Seo Graphic design Writing, photography anything The big difference here again is freedom. You can learn as many skills us you want. You are not narrowed down by the profile of the company. You can do anything you want, and that's great. Apart from learning online, you can learn skills the old school way offline. So look for local training opportunities and make a plan about how many times you will attend trainings dearly. This year I went training about public speaking. I was on a training about assertive communication, and I was on a training about online education. The other way to develop your skills is when you are in a rush and you really need to develop your skills because there is a task you have to accomplish and you simply don't know enough. So get challenging projects and face challenging problems and obstacles. And those ville make a stronger Those will develop you musical someone, approach me to create cover and illustrations for a book, and they asked me if I also can edit the book and I said, Yeah, why not? But I needed to refresh my editing skills so much it was like learning a new skill again. But I finished it. I finished it in deadline and their end result made me very, very happy. Being in the presence off other people who motivate you and inspire you is also a way to develop your skills. Meet other freelancers who are better than you in a field and ask deeps opinions, feedback and they care about your skill development. So the final doubt in this lesson is you broke the cycle off. Being an employee, you don't want to be an employee anymore. You don't find too stuck into another cycle off work and sleep, work and sleep. So learn something new. Develop yourself. It's your own responsibility. If you want. You can even make a note for yourself. Learn something new every month. Try something new every week. It can be anything. Just last week, I was horse riding. The first time in my life. It was new. Yes, it was. Was I scared? Yes, I was. Did I take away some lessons from it? Yes, I did the same with work. Find new clients devil of new skills and grow 38. The ultimate power of saying NO!: I know I say too many times. But you are a grown up now. And thus a freelancer and grown a freelancer. Everything you do is your own responsibility. It scares a lot of people. What also scares a lot of people is not being loved. I know what this again sounds very philosophical, but this is true. We all want to be loved because of this. We are saying yes to everyone. Someone is facing us with a problem or ah, single task, we say. Yes, I can do it. Yes, I can fit into my schedule. No problem. Yeah, I will. There. I will help you. Just call me and I'm there. It's your responsibility has grown up to create a safe environment for yourself. An environment where you can safely say no. A lot of freelancers are afraid to say no because they think they will lose a client so they will lose money and they won't survive. If you have a plan and you're not aiming for survival if you are standing on more legs and if you create space for yourself, that is not true. You don't have to be afraid to say no to a client. If you have enough work already, just say no. If it is not your territory and it would be not challenging but impossible for you or you are not interested in, just say no. If your client is pulling your prices down very, very much, just say no. You might lose this tiny job. Maybe this client won't be happy, but on the long run, it will pay out. You will get better paying clients and better jobs later on. And you will have the time for yourself. And you will have a space to develop yourself and take on jobs you really, really like. So just say no and let the project go. 39. Know when to quit- the need of a reality check: I am all about not giving up. And I understand if you want to go a sfar us, you can and do everything you can to keep your business afloat. I understand it. But you should know where you should quit again. Do a reality check. It is something we don't like to talk about. But let's get over with this. Following your dreams and working for your goals is amazing. But do we really to check how deep you are in? Are you in depth? Are you working day and night and not seeing end? Are you losing contact with society and your family? Are you in bed? Health? Are you happy? Do you like what you do? Do you think your goal is coming closer? We're just going further and further away face it might be the freelancing is not for you. I understand it. It can be too much. Sometimes I also feel very done. I know I won't greet because I see my goals and my values and their live up to them. And for the decade I'm working on it very hard and they leave a good life. But if you are not happy as a freelancer. It's no shame. I say again, it's no shame and no problem with quitting all device man and all the coaches are preaching that never quit, never give up to reach your goal. No, you have to know when to quit. The longer you are feeling, so the less likely it is that you want to go back to employment and quitting. That's nice. I cannot imagine going back to a company and not working on my own Aside, please. But I also do reality checks. If I would be totally broke and just upset with my work, I would give it up and go back. Okay, It's very I know it's very sad lesson, but you have to face the truth. Sometimes in the next lesson, I will talk about something more happy. Why the opposite? 40. Share your success!: after all the struggle. Finally, it will be successful. Okay? It's not the final state you have to work on that continues. The success is going away. If you are not acting on it, I cannot surely say Okay, I am there. I'm finished. I'm successful. I don't have to do anything anymore. It's not like that. You have to work on yourself constantly. And if you are there and you feel you're successful and happy and you manage to have the freelance life you always wanted and you have higher income, then you should share your success and give back to the community by sharing my success. That don't mean I go out and brag about how much I earn. I mean, you go out and be inspiring. Lead by example. Talk to other freelancers, help them give them tips, help them grow. What I did in February, I was giving a presentation for 60 people for free about online education. I told everything I know how they can be successful online teachers like I am. This is one way to give him back. We organized an exhibition half of the incumbent for charity. This is another way to give back. You can help and give back if you're successful. They say you cannot pull from an empty cup. So take care about yourself. First be successful and content and happy. And then you can help other people and lead by example and then bored him. As I said before, if there is no meet up around you organize one. Take it us. A study group for like minded people or a mastermind group where you just sit and talk about someone's problem and try to find a solution together. Give back to the community online or offline. Doesn't matter if you have a higher income and you have savings for several months and you about everything you wanted and you are happy. Also donate. Donate a small part of your income. Financial professionals also say the giving a part of your income like 35%. It's also good toe. Keep your Castro dynamic. Money goes out, money comes in, so donate a small part off your ingram. Help people don't hold your success back and share it with everyone. You are now happy freelancer, and you are allied in the world