Right, so you have decided to become a freelancer and now you are wondering where to start from and what actually you should do. Below things are discussed in a little detail that will get you going with your freelance career.
What is a Freelancer?
A freelancer is a person who works either full time or part time for one or more than one employers. The employers provide them with the task and he/she carries out those tasks based on their skills. It is a two way mechanism. The employer provides the job and the freelancer employee do the job. In current global crisis, where employment rate is dropping at a rapid pace, freelancing has become very popular as it gives you the freedom of doing a job right from your home.
Online jobs without Investment
Freelancing means you are selling your skills to a person who needs them. You don’t have to spend any money on registrations. There are hundreds of freelancing websites that offer free registration and you can create your profile for free. You would have heard about local and online data entry projects that ask you to register with them by paying some amount. But if you study the freelancing model, there is nothing you have to pay to get registered. So those projects that ask you to register by paying cash are considered as scams. Keep in mind that if you are asked to register and pay some money in order to get registered to start earning, consider it a fraud and do a thorough investigation before you indulge in the job.
Benefits of Freelancing
Freelancing gives you a full control over your own schedule as you can do the work within the desired hours during a day. It gives you the ability and freedom to work from your home. A boss is not on your head all the time and you can do the work in your own desired environment that may be your TV lounge or your bedroom.
Popular Freelance Websites
- Freelancer.com
- Elance.com
- Odesk.com
Creating Skills
A wide variety of skills are accepted in the freelance work environment. It could be writing articles, academic writing, working with all kind of media like images and videos, you can create 3D animations, you can do web development and you can even develop software. It doesn’t matter what skillset you have, you’re likely to make a career as a freelancer. It should be noted that some skills are more popular and have plenty of jobs available as compared to other skills. Some jobs are more rewarding than the other jobs based on the skills you have. For instance, creating a 3D animation will earn you 100 times more than writing an article. To keep it simple, the complex the nature of the job, the more rewarding it becomes. So keep these things in mind before you choose what skills you need to acquire to become a freelancer.
Understanding the System
The system or mechanism of freelance websites is simple. You need to register on anyone of the freelance websites. Once you are registered, you are asked to create a portfolio. In portfolio, you introduce yourself, your skills and some general details about you. Once you create a portfolio, the next step is to start bidding for different projects under your skillset. You get accepted by an employer and you start working on the project and get it done within the time sphere allowed to you by the employer. The transfer of funds is done via the freelance website where you are working and usually there are a number of methods defined in order to checkout your earnings.
