My latest money making idea is all about freelancing -using skills you already have to make extra money in addition to your full-time job. The cool thing about making money with a side gig is that you have the freedom to work your own hours while being your own boss.
As a freelancer, you have the option to take on as many (or as few) projects as you like to fit your schedule. It's a great option if you're in a job with a slow season, or just want to make some additional money with a side hustle while preserving time for your family and other obligations.
Why Should You Freelance?
Why is freelancing such a great way to make extra money? There are a few good reasons why it's a great option to consider:
- Freelancing allows you to have more freedom in how you work and how much you work, without having to deal with a boss and a set time schedule. A traditional extra job doesn't have these benefits.
- You don't have to learn new skills. You can use the knowledge and skills you already have instead of having to receive training at a new job and deal with a new company culture. As a freelancer, you make your own company culture!
- It's an excellent way to improve your income in a flexible way. One week you might be able to tackle several projects, and the next week you may not be able to do any. The beauty is that it's up to you!
Who Can Make Money as a Freelancer?
More people than you might think can freelance their skills. Many people think of freelancing as a white collar phenomenon. However, many people involved in blue collar professions can benefit from freelancing as well.
Professionals like plumbers, electricians, carpenters, landscapers, and others can make money with side gigs as well (I'll cover that below). Even non-professionals with few skills can benefit from the side gig economy. Anybody can do it!
How Do You Get Started Freelancing?
It's easy to get started. You can literally put yourself out there in just a few minutes!
- First, start marketing your skills to other people. You don't need any special knowledge or sophisticated marketing stratefy. Just put the word out to friends, family, and business contacts who might be willing to spread the word and/or use your services.
- Next, create a profile on sites such as Elance, Guru, Upwork, oDesk, or Freelancer. Just fill out a profile detailing your skills and what kind of projects you're looking for.
Potential clients will find you by searching for the specific skills found in your profile. As you complete more projects and do a great job for those people, you build a good reputation which eventually translates into more work.
All of these sites have great tools to track the progress of each project. Payment is guaranteed once the job has been satisfactorily completed.
The sites above are primarily for information based skills such as data entry, computer programming, writing copy, and other projects that can be completed electronically.
It's Not Just For Computer Geeks
But you don't have to be a writer or computer geek to be a freelancer.
If you're a mechanic, plumber, electrician, carpenter, etc., you can also cash in with a side gig, freelancing your skills in your local area.
All you have to do is market yourself using friends and family as I mentioned above, along with marketing yourself on sites such as Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, and other sites that reach a local audience.
The ads reach a local audience and work especially well if you display pictures of your completed projects and testimonials from satisfied customers about what a great job you did for them.
Anybody Can Start a Side Gig
Freelancing using your existing skills is not hard to do, especially in today's hyper connected society. You can literally market your skills to almost anyone in the world who needs them.
Just about everyone has a skill they can use to make extra money. It's simply a matter of putting yourself out there and going for it!
Here's a sample of some of the skills you can leverage for a little extra income through freelancing:
- Teachers- tutoring
- Data entry
- Formatting Word or Excel documents.
- App development
- Software coding
- Fixing leaks, unclogging drains
- Electrical work
- Auto care
- Foreign language translation
- Graphic design
- Web design
- Construction
- Landscaping
- Interior design
- Photography
- Social media services
- Copy writing
- Marketing consulting/projects
- and many more…
You Could Decide to Go Full Time with Your Side Gig
Who knows, if you work hard enough and build a good reputation, you might decide to replace your traditional income and make a full-time living as a freelancer (My best friend is a stay-at-home dad who does freelance marketing consulting full time and he absolutely loves it).
You'll be able to work when you please, take only the projects that you want, and work for the best boss ever (yourself)!
Question: Have you ever done any freelancing?
Tell me about your experience by leaving a comment.
Resources:
5 Profitable Ways to Work at Home with Amazon
I’m currently actively trying to become a freelancer, but can’t seem to land any jobs on elance. I guess you need good track record to get hired.
A good track record definitely helps. Getting started can be slow, and it can take awhile to establish yourself. But you have to be willing to continue if you want to see any results. Take a look at the way you’re marketing your skills and tweak it if need be. You may even have to do some free or reduced fee work to build a portfolio that you can show people what you’re capable of. Keep working at it. Jobs will come.
I agree that many people from many walks of life can freelance, you just have to look for it and know where to find it. My wife freelanced before starting our business and was able to grow a nice little business out of it. In fact, many of the clients she started out with we still have as part of our business today. We also still look to do a little freelancing on the side to make a little extra income and gain new long term clients.
Freelancing is fun, because for the most part it’s on your own terms. I like it because it can be great for building a side biz that eventually turns into a living. Lots of people have done it. I think the hard part is deciding when it’s time to turn the side gig into a career.