Common Freelancing Mistakes

Freelancing is not always a smooth ride, but it’s an amazing journey regardless of how big or small the project is every time. Working with various industries and people, is an invaluable experience and can be purely positive if there’s a balance between both parties’ needs and benefits. It’s up to the freelancing community to maintain their standards, and reach the sought-after work satisfaction, while securing steady growth. Here’s what to avoid along the way:

Overbooking yourself

A classic rookie mistake that almost everyone has made out of pure enthusiasm. If you can’t make it, don’t take it. If it’s going to stress you out so much that you’ll end up losing your sleep, better pass. Biting more than you can chew can seriously harm your reputation which will then take you considerable time to recover. Work will flow better when you know how to manage it. Know your limits, and allow yourself a breather.

Working for free

You agreed to take on a gig for free, for whatever reason. Ask yourself, wouldn’t this company have to hire someone to do the job? The answer is yes. They surely didn’t choose you cause you’re not charging them. No one hires someone if they don’t trust they will do a good job. If you have made the mistake, hopefully you haven’t tied yourself down for months. Always respect your background, your talent, and your free time.

Charging under minimum rate

By charging less than you should, you are not doing your industry any favors, you lower the rates for your professional clan, you unecessarily spoil your clients , and you don’t show respect towards your work. You should always take into consideration the pay scale, your experience, specialization and amount of time a project is going to take. Be honest, realistic, cheap if you choose to, but don’t go under minimum rate.

Breaking your promise

It goes without saying, but it’s common for some freelancers to promise more than they can deliver in an attempt to impress and get chosen. You have to think long-term no matter how ‘desperate’ you are to get the job. Remember, this is more about your reputation. Many gigs come through word of mouth among companies so if you do it once, you might be asked to do it again. If you set the bar crazy high as to deliverables, you might find yourself trapped by your own cockiness. Plus, there’s always the danger of not being able to follow through.

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tags: backend freelancer freelancing pay rate time managment work-life balance