Over the years I have experienced many different levels of success and failure while pursuing success as a freelancer. Ultimately I decided to make a pivot after several years of just wanting to quit. These are my top two reasons that I believe causes many of us to fail at freelancing.
#1 - Your Ego
Yep your ego is going to cause you to get your ass kicked.
Because your ego will make you think that you are better than you are.
Just because a few of your clients “love your work” or your Mom tells you that she is proud of you, it does not guarantee shit.
There is always going to be someone better than you, and a ton of people out in the world that are willing to be bigger suckers and do jobs for less than than it will take you just to put food on your own table.
Your ego will tell you that you have more time and capacity to work on projects, than you really have.
So get yourself in check and realize that you have much less time than you think, if any, to trade hours for dollars.
Especially if you “freelance”.
Your ego will tell you that you are “doing the right thing” by offering cheap prices and discounts on your work. You tell yourself that it will earn you trust and respect and come back around… after providing yet another free consultation or design comp.
Do you REALLY enjoy painting yourself in the corner or running on a hamster wheel?
Your ego will convince you that because you had success on that last client project, that this next one will be a slam dunk. But no one gives a hoot about what you did for that other business.
Then your ego will tell you that it’s everyone else’s fault that things are not working out for you.
#2 - Inability to manage finances
Reason #2 that you will fail is quite simply your inability to manage finances.
You probably don’t even have a clue how much is required to pay for and maintain your current lifestyle, nor do you know how much you need to buy all of the things you want now and will want in the future.
Thus, since you don’t know that part of the equation you can’t accurately price your services or estimate how many clients you need at the price you do set.
Which will then lead to you working yourself to the bone just to make ends meet.
Then the first “big deal” you land, you will squander the extra cash on those nice dinners out or those things you always wanted rather than reinvesting it back into growth factors such as personal development, marketing and advertising, or hiring qualified help in your “freelance business”.
Conclusion
I’ve kept this post short and it may even be a little oversimplified. But just keep in mind that most anything that we do in life requires consistent practice. And to succeed requires skill.
We should try not to let our egos get out of check, and we should also try to gain as much clarity as we can about what will be required financially to support ourselves and our families.
Another important step is simply acknowledging it. For example, I acknowledge that I’m still working on both my ego and my ability to manage finances and have had my own ass handed to me more than once.
