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The gains gotten from freelancing are endless which can also be said for the hazards in the field and since I began my freelancing journey, I have had my own fair share of those drawbacks in the quest of trying to be one of the successful ones out there. Even though I have been very cautious in avoiding making mistakes, I still find myself making them because they are undoubtedly avoidable.
As a newbie then, I wasn’t aware that the freelancing world was filled with mines but as I made those errors, I realized that those mistakes have helped to shape my career because of the experience I gained from resolving the mistakes.
In order for you not to make such mistakes as I did and also to have a smooth sail in the freelancing ship, I have been able to compile a list of the five deadly mistakes for you and other freelancers to avoid making this year, 2023.
1. TAKING ALL TASKS AND CLIENTS
This particular mistake can turn out to be a huge disaster because you are trying to build your portfolio, you accept any job from clients that you are not competent enough to work on or maybe jobs that you hate to do or even jobs that do not align with what you are known for but because you have already given your word to the client and maybe have received full or half payment for the job, you are stuck.
If you follow our YouTube Channel or you are an avid reader of our blog, you should be familiar with Francis our “Creative Director” here at TheBrimFactor who is also a Freelance Music Producer, he used to take up some music gigs and even some coding jobs that he hated but made this rookie mistake at the time of feeling like he had to say yes to every project, in the end, he said he felt stuck and frustrated for a number of reasons like some of the projects proved more difficult than he anticipated, some of the clients turned out to be overbearing which he sensed from the onset but because he just wanted to say yes to everything, he committed and instantly regretted that decision.
In the beginning, you seem excited and you see the job as a challenge but along the way, you realize you are not cut out for it, you spend all night researching and trying to get it done, and this could also lead you to neglect your other jobs and even your family, and when the realization that you are not making any headway begins to dawn on you, you become miserable and begin to look for a way out but the only way out that is open to you is for you to resign and call it quits with the task but that will not say much for your reputation, will it?
Here is how Francis got out of his fix, He simply outsourced some of the jobs to some colleagues instead of spending lots of hours doing everything by himself, in fact after this experience, he made a system out of it, essentially building a small team of other professionals that he can shift some work to or collaborate with when it starts to pile up. It might sound like losing money when you think of outsourcing, and yes it is but you buy back your time, make a small percentage from work you didn’t do and most importantly deliver more quality work than you would have if you tried to bootstrap it and do everything yourself.
The key lesson from this story though is not to put yourself in such situations in the first place, you mustn’t accept every job that comes your way if you feel you won’t deliver, the client might come with issues, or the project doesn’t align with your goals and visions (which you should have by the way, for instance, your goal could be not working on a mediocre project that you won’t be proud to put on your portfolio) then you should not even take it on.
Remember, not every job or client is for you!
2. CHARGING LESS
Not charging enough for your work can lead to low profit and even low self-esteem. I was wearing this shoe as a beginner, I started charging so low because I wanted huge patronage and of course to build my brand and my portfolio more. I wasn’t too sure of myself so I lacked confidence in myself and my worth too and this affected my brand because of my charges, some clients were reluctant to work with me because they were suspicious of the low rates I charged, and they were unsure of whether I could deliver and my expertise.
As a freelancer whether a newbie or a pro, your prices should be set on the value you put out in your work or what you are worth based on your experience in the field, your skills, and also the rates in the market. In setting your price, you should consider a lot of things like the amount of money put into upskilling, your office space, location, taxes, and the type of equipment you use because you can’t be using high-end equipment and still charge the same with someone using low-end equipment.
Remember, you might aim high and lose your client and you might go low and look incompetent and unprofessional so do research to know how much you should charge, or better still, you can speak with other freelancers in your niche to enquire about their rates.
Know your worth and do not be afraid of setting your service rates at the price you deserve, also when the amount is agreed upon by both parties, always make sure to draft a contract and do not commence work pending when it is signed by both parties.
3. NOT TREATING YOURSELF AS A BUSINESS
This particular mistake is actually the start-up of problems to experience in the freelancing world because if you can understand this, it will save you from experiencing pitfalls.
Freelancers need to start seeing themselves as “the business” because you start reinventing yourself and the brand. One thing that sets business owners and freelancers off is that business owners value their time and money and they pursue that aggressively but a lot of freelancers wait on the sidelines just to be hired and nothing more. Whether you are a 9-5 freelancer or you just do it on the side, you need to start thinking of yourself or your brand as a business and begin to think as a business owner too.
Freelancing is a business whether you like to think of it like that or not because you deliver all the services the client would have paid an organization because you are your CEO, Manager, Secretary, Graphics Designer, etc.
Becoming a successful freelancer entails you becoming an effective marketer of the skill or skills you can offer. I see freelancers who make the mistake of belonging to only one freelancing platform because they believe that is where most clients visit maybe because of its popularity and is funny now to me because I used to think like that but not anymore, do not be like my former self, join other freelancing platforms for brand exposure and getting more clients and also being a single tierfreelance can be bad for you especially if you wake up one morning to discover that site has crashed or worst case scenario, you have been removed from that community which can make you go back to zero. Please, do not put all your balls in one basket.
Another way of thinking of yourself as a business is by building a social media presence that is powerful whether you are a writer or a website developer, make sure to construct an online portfolio, and put it out on all your social media platforms.
Don’t see freelancing as a side hustle where you just sit and wait to be hired by doing nothing, advertise yourself through word of mouth by attending networking events, running ads online for your brand, creating a LinkedIn profile, and creating websites or blogs for your brand.
Think as a business owner and watch how your freelancing course takes its turn for good.
4. BEING A “JACK OF ALL TRADES”
A lot of freelancers believe that pursuing lots of skills helps to grow your brand and brings more clients because being skilled in different skills makes everyone your client and you will never get short of clients knocking at your door, even though it might have some prospects to it, the consequences are huge.
Most clients would not hire you because you specialize in lots of skills at once, clients like to hire freelancers who specialize in one niche because they believe they are going to have capable hands. Being a Jack Of All Trades can be very useful and lucrative because it improves your rates but most companies like to hire specialists.
Take for instance, if you would like to work in a reputable company like PUNCH NEWSPAPER, you can just waltz in there thinking you will be hired as a field reporter, an editor, and a sports news writer. You will only be hired for one of your skills and the remaining skills will be left hanging or you might not also be hired because once your resume is reviewed and it shows a lot of unconnected skills and experience, more likely than not, such a company will view you as one who doesn’t have a true passion or specialization. In my experience, generalists are never good at all the skills they claim to be specialists in. You can be a good music producer but you can not be good as someone whose life and education are dedicated only to music production. You can be a good writer but not as good as the lady who eats stories for dinner.
The only time being a generalist will work for you is at the early stages of your freelancing where everyone seems to wear multiple hats but as you grow and evolve, it is expected of you to wear only one hat so you are not stuck in one position.
5. NOT MEETING YOUR DEADLINES
This mistake can ruin any freelancer whether a pro or a beginner and if you are a beginner reading this, it is very important for you to be conscious of this, or else you won’t be able to survive in the freelancing world, you might remain stagnant.
Before taking on any new task, always set your delivery time and the number of days it will require you to finish each project and be sure to communicate it to your client before you take on a new one, you need to be done with the old gig.
I remember missing a deadline because I took on a lot of jobs that I could handle and I fell seriously ill that I had to be in the hospital for some days, I wasn’t able to meet my deadline with the gigs I had. I lost some of the clients even after I communicated with them though the communication was a tad late and since they needed the job to be done quickly, they had to source for another person and they never came back. This affected my brand and after my experience, I resolved I wasn’t going to take on more than what I could chew and in case I wasn’t to meet the deadline, I would inform my client on time and immediately for an extension.
You can meet up with your deadlines by;
- Keep a timetable where you break your projects into bits and follow it to plan ahead.
- Do not procrastinate on your tasks. Get started on them.
- The most important way of staying committed is to never agree to a deadline you can’t meet up with.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Above are the five deadly mistakes a freelancer can make that can end his or her career before it begins. I have been able to talk about some of the mistakes I made that almost cost me my brand and I have also proffered advice on how to avoid making the same.
So, do make sure to avoid these mistakes and you will be sure of succeeding in your course.
If you are guilty of making these mistakes or you have made one or two different from the ones mentioned, please do leave a comment below and also offer advice on how to avoid them. I’ll be waiting to hear from you!
