Feast or famine with freelancing

amelia88 Level 1

November 3, 2018, 3:51 am

37

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One thing that many freelancers find difficult is that some weeks can be a feast when it comes to work - and then you have other times that are like a famine.

How do you manage the inconsistencies with workflow, and how has it impacted your finances/budget?

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Martinsx1

Martinsx1

This is exactly what is meant when those who are eager to work as freelancers should expect in the future. Everyday is not always a harvest day, because time would come when most work would seem dried up thereby leaving you with few options to earn misery pay.

In such situations, I tend to get engaged in some other stuffs that would keep me occupied so I wouldn't feel bored as a result of not having much work to carry out online.

8 years ago

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nrnlss

nrnlss

I agree with you, not every time there's something to write ir something ti din

8 years ago

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theresajane

theresajane

That is true. This is something that makes us sad. Freelancing world does not guarantee you fruitful days everytime.

8 years ago

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Corzhens

Corzhens

It’s really exciting when the freelancing rewards are great that you can have some extra money. But when the well dries up it is disheartening that you may regret to be a full time freelancer. I am fortunate that I still have a daytime job and my salary in our office is very good that I cannot think of leaving in lieu of my freelancing. But I have to continue my part time freelancing as preparation for the time when I retire from my job.

8 years ago

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cmoneyspinner

cmoneyspinner

Freelance work? It's been awful. The truth is that my sons are taking care of me because I have been unable to find consistent employment outside of the home with a steady paycheck. My aim is to make enough money through freelancing to once again be able to support myself. It is a goal worth striving for. There are others who do it so it is achievable.

8 years ago

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theresajane

theresajane

That's a sad reality about freelancing. Some may become very successful while others are still struggling. Freelance world is just freelance, nothing is permanent. So, as much as possible, we have to utilize our resources well and find every means of getting an income.

8 years ago

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mitan143

mitan143

Yes, I also have considered that thought of being able to get more opportunities in freelancing but often times not. I don't rely completely in freelancing but if the person is determined and resourceful, it somehow let him survive by just working freelance. In fact, I'm thinking of seeking for regular job now but if there's opportunity while I can still do some part time jobs then I'll grab it.

8 years ago

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jayjaydimson

jayjaydimson

Well, what I can suggest is you can do a regular job while you are a freelancer online, I used to do it, it's just the time management.

8 years ago

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vhinz

vhinz

This is what append to a friend of mine. years ago he had clients that gives him big projects. He was able to purchase his car and opened up an internet cafe. Fortunately he invested some of his money on that internet cafe which gave him continuous income. Because on the following year after he bought his car, his freelancing projects drops off. Now he hardly gets big projects.

Best thing to do if you are currently working as a freelancer, is to start your own online business so that when a time comes that you could not get good projects, you still have other source of income.

8 years ago

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esteban123

esteban123

I think that this is the reality of freelancing activities that there will be a time that we will earn from it and there will be some time that we might end up a little bit worried. This would only mean that freelancing activities is not really reliable in terms of giving us some daily income. We must make some possible alternative source of daily income if we experiences some difficulties in freelancing activities so that we will not feel any irregularities in our online earnings since there are still some other options to make money online and we just need some patience to look for them in the web.

8 years ago

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jayjaydimson

jayjaydimson

I manage my consistency in workflow by doing a time management. If you have your regular work, you should know when to prepare, tho if you have a freelance job, you have your time, and there it comes to time management.

8 years ago

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esteban123

esteban123

Yes that is really true, I really manage my time properly because time for me is gold. I can do a lot of things in a single day, I am not the type of person that would just sit down and wait for the blessings to come. I mainly work hard on working online if I have some vacant time since I want it to utilize and earn from it instead of doing nothing for the whole day.

8 years ago

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anyone01

anyone01

Many freelancers sluggish down, or maybe prevent their lead gen efforts altogether once they begin getting constant work. That is a primary mistake. You want to constantly be organized for downturns to your workload by using prepping when the going is ideal. As a freelancer, your aim must be to maintain developing your job. The most effective way to develop is by means of constantly attempting to find new opportunities.

8 years ago

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focusedwriter10

focusedwriter10

This is my current situation. Early last year, I had a continuous flow of orders, but one day I just woke and my Fiverr account had been disabled. Reason being, I had delivered an order which the support thought was academic work, yet it was work for an education site.

One of the reasons why I joined postloop recently was the famine for work. I am now planning to start my own website as a side hustle.

8 years ago

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amelia88

amelia88

Sounds like you're very driven! Postloop is definitely helpful for a few extra dollars here and there, and I genuinely enjoy the conversations I have on forum sites! It certainly helps on the days where work is coming in slowly.

8 years ago

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overcast

overcast

It just can't be avoided unless you offer better pricing from the start. People who are working on low cost services, they end up with more femine than the good days. So always make sure that you are pricing the service the right way. I think freelancers need to increase their prices and also work more on the new client generation part. That way they can establish themselves lot effectively.

8 years ago

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Barida

Barida

Having a nice price is also a way that one can get to rate the services that we are offering to be better. One thing that I have always looked at the possibility of making enough during the feast days which can be used to augment the fry days.

8 years ago

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overcast

overcast

The thing is that you should not have the price listed on the website. So usually when in doing some bidding online on sites, you have to work on things like say negotiation and also having some sort of fixed rate for some projects. That way you can definitely work around with the freelancing.

8 years ago

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Everett

Everett

If there was a period of time where there were no sales coming I would probably do one of two things:

1. Advertise my products or services.
I do not believe you should just wait for sales and not advertise your product or services. Advertising your product or services creates awareness. How are people suppose to know you have products and services for sale if you are not advertising them. Some people tend to believe that you can just create something and the sales will come, this is not always the case especially if you are a new seller.

2. Work on services/products.
I would also spend some time to better my services or products. I would make them better, update things, and find better ways to do something.

So with this being said, you should not waste valuable time because you are not getting sales. Instead, you should do something about that to help your business/brand.

8 years ago

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amelia88

amelia88

I really like that you'd be using your downtime to push for further business, whether that's through generating new customers through advertising or working on refining products and services to make them even more appealing.

Great advice!

8 years ago

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nrnlss

nrnlss

This is really a good advice, thnk you for this.

8 years ago

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nrnlss

nrnlss

I distract myself if this happen or find another online site where I can have a little income.

8 years ago

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overcast

overcast

I think that approach is not a good option long term. because you can't face that issue long enough, you'd not make enough money. So instead of chasing little income one has to go for the skill based jobs. That way one can earn good enough on long enough investment. That's what I have seen so far.

8 years ago

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Jeane

Jeane

When I worked exclusively on the internet when the famine days came round it would be really bad for my finances because I'd be forced to spend money I'd been saving when there was no work available.

Currently I'm thinking - - - when I start working online once again, I'd need to have an offline investment that can pay for all my expenses just in case. So technically, I'll only get back to full-time freelancing when I can live off the proceeds of an offline business.

8 years ago

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amelia88

amelia88

That's how I find the slow weeks now - you end up having to save a bit of a nest egg, but the slow weeks see you eating through that (and sometimes pretty quickly!)

I like your idea about having an offline investment that would cover things. A smart way to ensure that you're not left struggling on the quiet freelancing weeks.

8 years ago

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theresajane

theresajane

Well, I don't entirely rely on felreelance jobs. I have some freelance jobs and it's good to earn extra income especially during your free time. But to top that, I actually have a stable job, so whenever dry times for freelancing comes, I still have my main backup and I can still support myself and my family. Earning money will never be easy, anyway.

8 years ago

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Barida

Barida

This is one of the reasons I have not really taken out time to do things that will limit my offline work too. I understand clearly that it is not everytime that I should be getting work from clients to do. So, I always look at ways that I can balance things while still keeping the fun that comes with working online. This balance is one of the ways that I control this type of situation.

8 years ago

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Jeane

Jeane

When It’s Feast. Get some help – When things get crazy busy it’s OK to get help. Consider subcontracting.

This is what freelancers should do more often. When there is plenty of work available, you don't need to do it all yourself. Get others to help you. When other writers have their surplus days they may need your help too. It can work like some sort of symbiotic relationship that benefits all.

8 years ago

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Corzhens

Corzhens

There was a time that I was earning so little that it couldn’t even provide me with breakfast. What can you buy with $5 in a week? But sometimes my weekly earnings would reach $20 and that is pretty good enough because I am only working part time of about 3 hours in a day. Maybe if I would work full time then I can probably earn a good amount that can handle my daily expenses at home.

8 years ago

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jaymish2

jaymish2

With freelancing you need to be a jack of all trades. You need to identify your skills and where you can use them. You also need to work on multiple sites. If there is no work on one site then you can find work on the other. Have a combination of direct clients, bidding sites and sites where you just sign in and there is work.This is the only way you will be able to find work that is a bot steady.

8 years ago

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Judas2018

Judas2018

This is very true. Some weeks and months can bring very high earnings. Other times, you'll see a ghost-town in terms of clients or buyers. Very good freelancers can still turn somewhat of a profit in this type of environment. Others? Not so much.

8 years ago

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amelia88

amelia88

I’m glad in a way that those kinds of circumstances have meant that I’ve put more of a focus on developing a budget. Before I was a freelancer I didn’t really worry about saving money because I already knew where my next pay check was coming from. The instability that can come with freelancing has oddly made my spending habits more stable - so that’s a plus!

8 years ago

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knnon

knnon

I think freelancing is best as a part time job to avoid the days of famine. Use it as a back up or as a means to earn extra income. I don't solely rely on my freelancing, but it does help me save up money.

8 years ago

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esteban123

esteban123

knnon I agree wit you that we must not really rely on freelancing jobs because they were really some days that it will become a famine which will be hard for us to earn. I am just really treating my freelancing activities as a potential source of extra income because it only gives me a few money and it cannot even gives me a decent living that I really want. It is only good as a part time job during our idle time to maximize our vacant time and earning as well.

8 years ago

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jessie271

jessie271

Yes, This is so true. Freelancing is not easy. It's not really a stable income unlike if you have a regular job outside. There are times of feasting but they are also times of famine when you can't get a project or a job to work on. For me, I don't stick to one source of income. I actually have a lot of source so that when one job is a "famine", I can still earn from my other jobs.

8 years ago

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