Articles And Guides On Freelancing

Last week, I was forced to take an impromptu vacation.

With Hurricane Florence barreling toward the east coast of the United States, I was persuaded to flee north by a combination of The Weather Channel, scaremongering Facebook posts, and calls from my parents.

The result? A few days in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania and zero work accomplished, despite having my laptop in tow.

(I don’t know about you, but I always overestimate my ability to get anything done when on the road.)

For my area at least, it was a bit of a non-issue. I think a few trash bins blew over, but weather is unpredictable – and evacuating was the right thing to do.

But guess what?

Even though I took the entire week off, my finances were unaffected. People, presumably those who weren’t in the path of a hurricane, still bought from me last week.

It was a good week.

Many of us pursue freelancing for the freedom.

We want to be able to evacuate our homes, either for hurricanes or for getaways to the Caribbean, and have as little impact as possible on cash flow.

In part one of this two-article series on freelance business finances, we will focus on businesses that are just starting out.

If you’ve been in the game for a while, feel free to skip to the second post when it becomes available.  No matter what stage your business is in, improved financial record-keeping and great habits can save you time and stress while opening the door for growth.

Today, we’ll look at why records are important, how to build your war chest, and how and when to hire an accountant.  We’ll also discuss the criteria you should use when selecting software for invoicing, receipt storage, and accounts management.

Marketplaces seem like they’re giving you a great deal.  They promise to take the uncertainty out of running a freelance business.  Where there once was nobody to pitch to, sites like Upwork make potential clients easy to find. Better still, these clients are actively looking for freelancers like you. Their wallets are practically out!

Their websites and systems have a nice familiarity about them too.  They play to the logical side of our brains that tells us, “If people are looking to hire someone, they’ll post about it here,” in the same way a company would post about a new sales assistant role on Monster.

There are no barriers to entry and you can begin pitching for new work right away. The chances of landing new work are high, and as Brennan points out here, you can quickly start to make money from them.

But do these marketplaces really live up to the hype, and are they a good foundation to build your business upon?