Many perks and benefits would come along with freelancing but on the flip side you need to face many challenges while working. The first thing is you are the boss of your time and work. Most people, especially college graduates would prefer to work as a freelancer as they can earn while gaining practical experience in their desired industry.
There is a lot of difference between working as a freelancer and working as a private enterprise. The challenges faced by freelancers are not similar to those of regular employees. If you would like to head-start as a freelancer, it is very important for you to know the problems you have to deal with as a freelancer.
Client Requirements and Demands Keep Changing
The work requirement of a new client may not be similar to that of existing client. As a freelancer you should be upgrading your skills and should not be static. What was applicable last year may not be applicable now. The basic skill you should have is adaptability and flexibility.
Working with Different Time Zones
As a freelancer you will be meeting new persons from different backgrounds and experience lot of things and new work culture. You would be working in different time zones with tough deadlines. You need to improve your efficiency to deliver the expected work within deadlines.
Face the Reality of Bad Clients
You need to be deal with a number of clients and you may come across difficult clients during your journey. Not every client you reach to will be pleasant. Some clients demand too much of work with a little pay while some may be very specific about deadlines. Most clients do not show interest to pay upfront. So, you need to develop skills to tackle any client.
Money Management
To keep your freelancing business going, you should make sure that incoming is more than outgoing. You need to manage money wisely as there are up and down times during your career.
Balance Work and Life
Balancing our work and life seems to be a major challenge for most freelancers. It is very difficult to balance both the things when tight deadlines are given.
Head-Hunt for Clients
Getting clients is biggest challenge for freelancers. Though there are many freelance portals like Elance.com, Guru.com and Freelancer.com, competition is very high. Finding clients is not easy as you think; you should expand your network and build connections to find a client in reality.
You should Become your Own Boss
As a freelancer, you become the boss of your own business. You should manage your financials, marketing and client relationships on your own. You should learn multi-tasking and should actively manage your day to day activities. Being versatile and efficient can be overwhelming and cumbersome.
Battle with Different Payment Methods
Freelancers should be familiar with various payment options as some countries follow different payment methods. In few cases, payment methods suitable for the client may not be suitable for you.
Good at Negotiation
Clients feel they can take advantage of freelancers through unfair pricing. Firstly, it is very difficult to land a client offering better payment. You should be strategic negotiator to not to lose clients due to payments.
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