Where to find freelance opportunities?

Hello, and welcome back!

In this blog, I’d like to share useful tips, templates, and web resources for freelancers interested in working with Microsoft Excel and Power BI.

Where to find freelance projects?

There are numerous opportunities for freelance work. My top three choices are as follows:

1. Request within your own network: Inform your former bosses, colleagues, and business contacts that you are available for freelance work. It will be simple to try and convince them because they already know you and have worked with you.
2. Fiverr: Use Fiverr to find work, learn the trade, and build your reputation.
3. Upwork:  Upwork is another excellent resource for finding work, freelance opportunities, and long-term contracts.

Establish your profile

If you have a strong freelance profile, you can demand high rates and work on interesting projects. Here are some pointers to help you build your freelancer profile:

1. Make a name for yourself: Consider yourself to be a brand. Every social media post, share, and behavior in public should reflect the brand.
2. Become Authority: Focus on one or two topics or niches and establish yourself as an authentic authority in those areas. You can, for example, learn visualization and become a world-class dashboard reporting expert. This could open up a slew of new opportunities for you.
3. Connect with the world: Make a website for yourself and share your important information and accomplishments there. Use the website to share your knowledge, interests, and current projects. This helps to establish your expertise and brand.
   WordPress and Wix, in my opinion, are the best resources for creating a website.
4. Network with like-minded people: Create a strong and consistent social media presence to expand your expertise, network with like-minded individuals, and learn and grow as a freelancer.
   I suggest beginning with Facebook, Linkedin, YouTube, and Twitter.

How much should you charge?

In a nutshell, whatever you can get. But here’s a lengthy response:

• The Begining: The first 1000 hours are dedicated to learning: Consider your first few projects or 1000 hours (roughly 6 months of full-time work) as learning opportunities. So don’t be concerned if you don’t make a lot of money right away. Instead, concentrate on understanding the business, developing systems and processes, and gathering testimonials.
• Hourly Rate: Calculate your hourly rate by taking your current annual salary and dividing it by 2,000 to determine your current hourly rate. This is the freelance rate multiplied by two. After one or two years of serious freelancing, this should be your target rate.
• Diversified Income Stream: Freelancing is a great way to earn money while being your own boss. However, it is also risky and variable. This is why you shouldn’t put all your eggs in one basket and work on diversifying your income streams.
  Consider the following options to reduce your freelance risk:
  • Getting a part-time job: If you have a family, ask your spouse to continue working full-time while you freelance.
  • Make some digital (or physical) products to alleviate your clients’ pain or make their lives easier.
  • Create some work streams for ongoing maintenance.
  • Saving extra money and investing it so that when things slow down in the freelance world, you can use the dividends.
• Review your rates on a regular basis: As a general rule, if you have more work than you can handle, consider doubling your rate. Similarly, if you are not getting enough work, consider halving your hourly rate. In my freelance career, I’ve used both of these methods to make money.

I wish you all the best in your freelance career. Happy Freelancing!