Everyone Is Talented, be it in Computers, Sports, or entertaining others. We all got some skills, and so we all should know how to effectively use them. A Freelancer is a person who’s not committed to an organization or an employer on a long-term contract. They are always self-employed usually in the field of their interests. That’s why they are called ‘FREE-lancers’.

Generally, there are many strong points of differences between Freelancing and a regular job, and many people prefer being a Freelancer than doing a regular job, while others criticize. In my opinion, freelancing have numerous advantages over a regular job, but as we all know it, ‘Pros don’t exist without Cons’. Being a freelancer means you’re FREE to do whatever you find suitable for you, based on your interests, and your skills. You are your own master. Unlike a regular job, where you have to work on a weekly or a monthly basis, a freelancer always have the option to take a break in between projects. Thus, the risk of losing up a regular job on getting sick, or going for a vacation, or something, is not the case here. So, as a freelancer, you get to furnish your skills, earn some quick money, peacefully enjoy vacations, and live the life the way you always wanted to.

However, there are obviously some disadvantages, but if you look at the advantages and establish yourself as a proper freelancer, you don’t have to worry about it. When you get a regular job, its certain you’re gonna get paid on a regular basis (probably fixed amount, be it hourly, daily, weekly or monthly). But, In the initial stages as a freelancer, you might not get enough projects or earn regular income, but if you hold on to it, there are certain chances that you’re gonna get opportunities for sure. In today’s Internet reliable generation, Organizations have gone online, and they are outsourcing most of their projects. And, so there’s no doubt about the number of opportunities in near future. They are surely gonna increase. And, who knows you might be earning much more than you can ever imagine, or the income you’re earning, or going to earn doing a regular job.

Here, I’m going to discuss about establishing yourself as an online freelancer, based on my personal experience. Though its not that much by far, but still, I think I’m well established as I get projects whenever I want to, without much struggling. I’m a web-developer, and I develop websites based on WordPress, and Joomla CMS. I had my own domain then (not this one), where I used to upload and test all my work. I didn’t know a thing about freelancing then. And then, I came to hear about few online websites which give the opportunity to Bid on open-projects outsourced by some organizations or individual employers. And if the employer approves your bid, you get the chance to work on it, and submit it before deadline to earn the money you initially quoted for that very project. I really liked that idea because of the above said reasons. Earning real money sitting at home, no strict working hours, working on projects I was interested in, and capable of handling them on my own…couldn’t get any better for me, as I’m still an under-graduate student. So, I finally started placing bids on multiple Freelancing websites, but one can’t be successful that easily. One has to work harder, and improvise things, and that’s what I did. I improvised my bidding style, created a proper portfolio of work I had previously done, and mentioning it in every relevant bid I place on those websites. But, out of them all, I liked one such website – vWorker (previously RentACoder.com), and thats because of three big reasons:

1. The bidding system was closed, i.e. you don’t get to see other person’s bid until the project is alloted to someone. Thus, giving everyone a fair chance of quoting genuine project price, and preventing cut-throat mechanism (placing the lowest bid by looking at others’ bid price…literally cutting other person’s throat).
2. The mediation system was rock-solid, and very effective. In case if your project goes into arbitration, and one can’t continue to work on the project due to some reason, the moderators analyze it, and take the right decision. It isn’t biased at all.
3. Unlike some other websites, no signup charges, comparatively less commission charges per project, and less money transfer charges.

When I signed up on this website, I was very confident about getting success there, and so I did get my first project (though a small one) on the 4th day after signup, and it never stopped after that. Some people are very talented that they earn their first project on the first day itself, or even within the first hour. But, on the other end, some keep trying and trying, and ultimately lose hope, and self-confidence. And If I look at the other end, I find myself far more lucky, and I seriously feel bad for those who ultimately give up trying. So here, I’m gonna summarize a few important points which you should always keep in mind, if you want to become a successful freelancer:

1. First, and the most important one, do not ever give up trying. If you’re not getting success, don’t worry, just improvise your style and technique. Like, if you’re a project bidder like me, try to improvise your bidding style, and Try again. Don’t try to convince or force the employer to hand-over the project to you, by just saying “I can do it”. Instead, try to convince by saying “How I’ll do it, How I’m gonna approach it, My strategy, etc.”. Mention your previous work experience to them.
2. Be as informative as you can, and yes “Be Professional!”.
   
3. Don’t always run for projects with high budget value. Always go for those projects which you’re interested in, can handle and wrap it up in a given period of time. There’s no use of earning those high-valued projects, if you can’t finish them off on time, with the resources you have available with you.
4. Have your portfolio created, and always available online for the employers to look into, whenever they want to. Almost every employer hand-over a project to someone, only after checking their past work in the similar area. No portfolio…No significant projects.
5. Always keep track of work being done point-by-point, and learn time-management tactics to meet the deadline. If you want success, you should understand the price of every minute you spend, and so, use it wisely. If project demands more time, try to keep up with that pace, or else you’ll surely miss the deadline, and hence lose the project. Or better, don’t take those projects which will certainly put enough pressure on your shoulders. The more you’re free from pressure, the more you’ll have the ability to think, more you’ll be comfortable with it, and more you’re gonna enjoy every second of it.