Freelancing has come a long way since I started my first business in 2000. Back then, you had to either have  a big company or give the appearance of having one.

I spent a fortune on having folders, stationary, and business cards designed and printed. And of course they all had to match the website I had built too.

Thankfully, times have changed.

With employer and employee loyalty at an all time low thanks to the continued (and inevitable) outsourcing of jobs as well as reduction of benefits like healthcare, working for oneself is a very viable option that many choose.

Depending on what services or products you provide, as long as you have an Internet connection you can work for anyone from anywhere in the world.

Case in point: I’ve been providing online marketing services to clients for more than a year while living with my family in Thailand. My clients are located in the United States and Europe. I use Skype for meetings and email for all other communication.

So why is it that I sometimes struggle with the notion that I must build a large company?

Perhaps it’s because I had it drilled into my head over so many years that to be “successful” you have to have a big company. Maybe it’s because most of the “big guns” in business I look up to built large companies or ran them. Or perhaps it’s something else altogether.

Whatever it may be it’s false.

We define success for ourselves. If that means having steady freelance work, that’s cool. If it means having a company with many employees, that’s cool. If it’s being able to afford to travel from place to place and pay the bills, that’s cool too.

It’s a choice whether to go big or stay small. But it’s not one you have to decide right away.

In the book Anything You Want, Derek Sivers talks about how a company he tried to keep small – CDBaby.com – ended up being a multi-million dollar business with 85 employees. He didn’t start the company with the intentions of making it huge; in fact, he tried to keep it small. Didn’t work out that way.

The point being though is that you don’t have to decide right now if you want to simply work for yourself or build a large business. Focus on providing the best most unique experience possible to your clients and customers.

Success will come.

It’s been more than 10 months since an update came to Life Of The Freelancer. Now we’re back to continue helping our fellow freelancers succeed.

And when I say “our” I mean “my” as it’s a one-man operation over here.

Since moving to Thailand in November of 2010 a lot has happened in my world and I’ve learned a lot of lessons about freelancing that I want to share with you, if you will allow me to do so.

What To Expect

When LOTF was in full swing I was posting interviews with freelancers two times a week along with other content. That’s going to change.

Content

The format the site will take now is more of one friend talking with another about what’s going on in their business and the lessons they’ve learned.

The content will be personal and geared toward those who are focused on creating the life they want. I’m writing for people who understand that working for themselves is the best way to have the life they want.

Structure

Over the coming months I’ll be redesigning the site. My goal is to make this site a valuable resource for you in being a successful freelancer. To that end I’ll be focusing on restructuring the site so that you can get to the resources and tools you need fast and from any device.

Define Success For Yourself

I’ve built a few company, I’ve had employees, I’ve sold the products we created, and I’ve come to the conclusion that to be “successful” you first need to determine what success means to you rather than chasing after someone else’s definition.

I’ve been stuck chasing someone else’s definition and it hasn’t done me any good.

Lesson learned.

Come With Me On This Journey

I look forward to continuing this freelance journey with you. Together we are all stronger than any single one of us, and together we can pursue our own definitions of success.

See you on the path.

But I’ll spare you the lengthy message and get right to the point.

After 9 months on the Internet I am shutting down Life Of The Freelancer, effective one week from now, on April 11th. Comments have already been closed on all posts.

I appreciate you being an email subscriber. I hope that you gained some value from my Freelance Success Tips PDF, and from the interviews on the site.

I am consolidating my online projects into a few main properties. My main site is the Itinerant Entrepreneur, where I provide marketing services and products to clients. The Itinerant Entrepreneur’s Journal is the blog for the site, where I show intermediate and advanced online marketing strategies. It is on these two sites along with my membership site – IM Training HQ – where I will be focusing my attention. I hope to see you there.

It’s been a fantastic 9 months, I’ve had the chance to interview many great people and met even more along the way – many of which I stay in touch with.

So as I close I want to again wish you the best of luck in your freelance career, and I hope to see you at the IEJ.

Since Life Of The Freelancer was launched in July of 2010 we’ve gotten tens of thousands of visitors to the site. The podcast has been growing like mad and there are more than 2,000 regular listeners subscribed on iTunes.

Before I get to the announcement I’d like to thank you for being a regular visitor and subscriber. I know how hard it can be freelancing, and the entire purpose of Life Of The Freelancer is to help you build a thriving freelance business. And that’s what today is all about.

I’m very excited to announce the launch of FreelanceSuccessTips.com.

Please take a listen to this short video and find out how this new membership site will help ensure your success in freelancing.

And here’s an audio version for you too!

Click here to learn more and sign up for FreelanceSuccessTips.com.

In this interview with Sarah find out how she made the transition from big media to PR, and then strike off on her own.

And this is one doctor that totally gets social media. He’s active on his website – drjimtaylor.com – as well as Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. The man is a machine!

Take a listen to this audio-only interview with the doctor as he tells us what it’s like being a full-time consultant and sharing his lessons.

John Ullman

In this interview with John he tells how he got into the music business, and how he landed huge award-winning music stars as clients. His story is a true inspiration and one I am very excited and happy to share with you.

My apologies on the audio on this video. My testing of a new microphone continued. For the video version you can hear John clearly and me barely – but I’m sure that’s allright with you. The audio version has much better audio.

Click here to view the embedded video.

And here’s the audio:

Check out this interview with Rick where he tells us all about the experience founding a successful software development firm with a few good friends. And after, head on over to RickBradley.com to learn more about Rick and tell him hello.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Or take a listen if you prefer…

I was introduced to Ben through a HARO request and had a great time talking with him. He has a lot to offer. Who says attorneys can’t use social media? Ben can and does like a pro.

Watch this interview with Ben and then learn moe about him and his services on his blog – Electronic Data Records Law.

Quick note about the audio – my audio on the video is very low, but Ben’s is perfect. His answers and lessons are what counts so you’re covered there. However thanks to the editing powers of Audacity the volume on the audio only version (below) is consistent.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Take a listen if you prefer….

This is a question that is highly relevant for those new to freelancers, or those that are going through a famine cycle with their business.

That question is this:

How can you market when you have no money and no budget?

The answer is simple, and one many won’t want to hear: network like crazy and don’t stop. If you have no money, and don’t want to borrow some money to try to ramp things up, then the only other asset you have at your disposal is time.

Let’s look at this in more detail.

The #1 Key To Networking

There is no secret to networking in general, but there’s a lesson I’ve learned over the years – building relationships takes time, they take work, and they take giving. No relationship is one-sided, and none are formed over night. Networking is not a “get money and work fast” strategy, however in the long run it pays off.

That’s not to say that you cannot get fast work via networking. If you run into someone that has an immediate need for what you offer you’re golden. Otherwise, you’re looking at developing the relationship over time.

With that said and proper expectations in place, let’s look at the two forms of networking: online and offline.

Offline Networking

Step into the light, it's outside

There is a huge amount of value to meeting people in person that online networking just doesn’t give you. In fact I think it’s the only shortcut in all of this. When you meet someone you can see if you really click, and you can get to know the person at a deeper level.

Networking in your peer groups (people that do the same thing as you, for instance programming, design, writing, etc.) is good and you should definitely do it, but don’t spend a majority of your time there. Unless people in the group are going to become your customers in some form, then these places should take up very little time. Yes that sounds mercenary, but I ‘m trying to help you get money here, not friends.

So where to go…

Here’s a short list of places I’ve used to get work:

• Meetups (non peer-group): look for complimentary meetups for your industry. For instance, developers need designers, writers need editors, etc.
• Co-working spots: these places have people in many industries, some of which could use your services
• Business conferences: if you’re technical awesome, many business people are not. For this to be effective though you have to speak business. Start going off about code or CSS or something technical and you’re screwed. The main question here is- what’s in it for them?
• Tech conferences: if you’re in tech in some way, shape or form, these can be great places to find subcontract gigs
• Local Tweetups: how many people in how many industries use Twitter? Right. They also meet offline too.
• Unconferences: unconferences are unstructured events where the attendees are the speakers. The biggest one in many cities is BarCamp. These unconferences are great places to network and show your expertise.
• Startup Weekend: there is no better way to show your talents than to join a group of people and start a business over a weekend. I met a now good friend of mine Scott Scanlon at one such event. Scott and I have been trading ideas ever since, and the help and advice he’s given me is worth more than money.

This list should get you started.

The point here being though is to get out and go meet people.

So what if you’re shy, introverted, or just won’t go anywhere? You’re talking online networking now my friend.

Online Networking

The same rules apply to online networking as they do to offline: be yourself at all times, be giving, don’t push the sale, and develop the relationship.

The best thing about online networking is scalability – you can meet more people in a much shorter amount of time. I did this with Life Of The Freelancer, and within a few months I had about 200 interviews recorded.

But as with anything this can become a huge time suck when done wrong, so here’s how to do it right.

While the interview strategy won’t work for getting more business, at least not directly, the underlying networking method will. The method is this: for each person you speak with, ask them to introduce you to two more people. When you get in touch with these folks, DO NOT try to sell them anything; rather get to know them, and especially get to know what their problems are.

That research and relationship building is gold. If you follow up with these folks on a regular basis then when they need your help they will think of you. Don’t needle them on a weekly basis with an email or add them to a mailing list without their permission, but do send them an email every few weeks to find out how they are doing and what’s new in their world.

There are a ton of places online you can meet people, with the biggies being:

• LinkedIn: more for business
• Twitter: we’ll talk about using Twitter for business in later posts
• Facebook: same rules as Twitter + the rules from LinkedIn

After that you’re talking:

• Online forums: niche forums outside of your industry are best
• Blogs: choose your blogs wisely. Again don’t spend your time on the blogs of people that do the same thing as you unless you’re keeping up with your industry or trying to get that person as a customer. Spend time commenting on the blogs where your potential customers are.

And that’s pretty much that for online networking.

What To Do When You Need Money Fast

If you are really strapped for cash there are a few things you can do:

• Start making a lot of calls: call up the companies that could subcontract to you and ask if they have any work
• Figure out inventive ways to use sites like Fiverr.com to get leads from customers. I recently did this for the UEJ by offering my SEO report – typically $79 – for $5 for two weeks only. I ended up getting much more work from a few of the $5 customers.
• Look for a part-time job to tide you over: I know you don’t want to hear this one, but you gotta do what you gotta do. Suck up your pride and just do it. The alternative is getting into massive debt as you attempt to sustain a business that isn’t making money. I ended up $30,000 in debt back in the day because of my pride – don’t let that happen to you.
• Do not stop marketing: I cannot stress this enough and it’s something I see freelancers fail to do over and over again. As a freelancer you are a marketer, a sales person, a finance person and the production person. Without marketing no one knows about you, with out sales you don’t make money, without finance you can lose your shirt, and without production there is nothing to be sold. There is no choice between these 4 things – you have to do all of them, all the time.

/rant and the lecture

So What Do You Think?

What do you think of the ideas I have here? Have you used these to get more business? What did I leave out that you’ve used?

Let’s discuss it in the comments below.

See you there!

To give more background, Shane is a freelance evangelist, distributed workforce expert, speaker, writer, SEO, and all around great guy to know. And I believe there’s a bit of woodworking in there somewhere too, but you’ll have to ask him about that.

Find out in this video how Shane built a successful business servicing very well known companies, with a workforce made entirely of freelancers. And after that, connect with Shane on his site – ShanePearlman.com – and on Twitter.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Or take a listen if you prefer…

If you want to see how a company composed entirely of freelancers cannot only succeed but do extremely well, then check out this interview with Ron. And after the interview check out The Hybrid Group site and connect with Ron and company on Twitter.

Click here to view the embedded video.

… or take a listen

In this interview Beth takes us from her love of writing as a child through her freelance career and then how she became a coach for other writers. If you’ve been wondering how you can turn your passion for writing into a business, this is the interview for you.

After watching the interview with Beth find out more about her and the help she can offer at BethBarany.com.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Listen to this if you prefer…

This is one interview you’ll just have to watch to grasp all the awesome. I have friends in software development that worked with Jessie and speak extremely highly of her. Watch the interview and then learn more about Jessie and her company, The Improv Effect.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Or take a listen!

In this interview Lea talks about what it takes to be a successful independent web studio, how the podcast she’s a part of helps her business, and much more. Watch the interview with Lea and then find out more about her design studio, Lealea Design.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Take a listen instead!

Rob has has many successes, and learned many lessons from businesses that didn’t work out.

In this interview Rob talks about what he’s learned over the past 11 years, and what other budding web entrepreneurs can do to be successful today.

Take a listen to this interview and then connect with Rob on his website – Software By Rob – and then talk with him on Twitter.

He has a great story of surviving rounds of layoffs, becoming self-employed, trying numerous businesses, finding online marketing, and becoming an international speaker.

He took some time out of his very busy schedule to talk with me about how he used his background in marketing to transition to a full-time public speaker.

Take a listen to this interview with Patrick, absorb all the lessons he provides, and then connect with him on his professional website and on Twitter.

J.B. Rainsberger

JB Rainsberger helps companies profit sooner from software projects with a combination of consulting, coaching, training, and speaking. I knew of J.B. from his excellent reputation in software development and Agile consulting. J.B. is one of those people with seemingly infinite patience and an impassioned drive to improve the working conditions of many.

Watch how J.B. makes it all happen in this interview, and then connect with him on his website – jbrains – and on Twitter.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Take a listen perhaps…

With my crystal ball being broken I really need your help.

Please fill out my two question survey below to help me figure out where to take this. I started the site not for me but to help freelancers in their businesses. I must be doing that to some degree with the interviews, however if there’s nothing more you want then frankly there’s no reason for me to do anything with the site past that.

But perhaps I’m wrong. Am I?

Please let me know by filling out my two question survey below.

Thanks!

Candi Wingate

Candi Wingate is the very definition of a successful freelancer and entrepreneur. She is an expert in the child care industry with over 20 years experience. She is the founder of Nannies4Hire.com and Care4Hire.com, and author of 100 Tips for Nannies & Families and The Nanny Factor: A Parent’s Guide to Finding the Right Nanny for Your Family.

Her experience has led her to create relationships with Dr. Phil, Supernanny, TLC, and many big name celebrities.

Candi has a ton of lessons to share in this audio only 20 minute interview so get ready to take notes.