The Pathstream Guide to Building Your Freelance Career

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Pathstream

5 min readFeb 1, 2021

Freelancing is the practice of working for yourself, rather than being employed directly by a company. Increasingly, many people are pursuing freelance careers in fields like digital marketing or even data analysis. As platforms like UpWork and Fiverr grow in popularity, it’s becoming easier than ever for skilled professionals to find projects where they can apply their skills and get paid directly for their work.

Yet, while becoming a freelancer can be an exciting undertaking, it can also be challenging to reliably source projects and deal with all the complications of being your own boss. The Pathstream Career Services team has compiled the following list of articles and resources to help you understand the basics of a freelance career.

Understand the Freelance World

To start, here’s a snapshot of the freelancing world:

A third of the US workforce has done freelance work at some point in their career.
61% of freelancers went into this type of work by choice.
When in need, 25% of freelancers can find work within a day.
In 2019, freelancing contributed $1 trillion to the US economy.
Freelancers earn over $1 billion on Upwork yearly.
There are 12 million registered freelancers on Upwork.
Content writers earn $15–$80 per hour on Upwork.
Developers earn $15–$150 per hour on Upwork.
Graphic designers earn $20–$150 per hour on Upwork.

Source: Website Builder

Before getting into freelance work, here are some introductory articles we recommend reading:

Get into the Mindset of a Freelancer

We’ve also found that understanding the mentality of being a freelancer is key. Starting your own business can be challenging but these articles can provide a helpful overview of how to prepare:

Once you’ve read these introductory articles, the next step is to explore these comprehensive guides that can help take you through each stage of your freelance career.

Begin Your Own Freelance Career

When you are ready to begin your own freelance career, the first thing you need to get clear on is the service you are pitching to people. For example, if you are a freelance photographer, what type of photography are you offering? Are you a wedding photographer? Are you exclusively a photographer of dogs?

These are the fundamental questions to focus on in the beginning of your journey. After you have figured out what you are selling, start focusing on the details of your pitch. The Pitch is an articulation of why your services are worth buying or a digestible and persuasive message that will get people to pay for your services.

These articles will provide you with some tips on how to develop a successful pitch:

Create A Portfolio to Showcase Your Work

In addition to a pitch, we suggest setting up a portfolio to showcase your work samples to potential clients. Here are a few platforms that Pathstream students have used to create portfolios:

Find Freelance Opportunities:

Once you have your work samples ready, you can begin exploring and seeking freelance projects and opportunities on the following platforms. Keep in mind that it may take some time to establish a profile on these sites. Pathstream students often find it helpful to start by charging a lower rate and then raising their price once they have a few happy clients.

Figure out your Finances and the Legal Details:

Don’t forget to get the financial details of your business in order. Here is a list of articles that provide money management tips for freelancers:

In particular, you should focus on determining your rate for freelance projects and make sure you have set up a business account that is separate from your personal account. You should also work to set up standard contract and invoice templates and hire a good accountant who can help you prepare necessary tax documentation. Matt Olpinski put out a helpful article titled “What Do You Need to Start Freelancing, Legally?” that goes over all the main documents you should make sure you prepare.

Market Your Work:

Many freelancers have their own website and portfolio. When you’re starting, you might use Facebook as your website, Instagram as your portfolio, and Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook as channels to get the word out. Over time, you might find you need to build a more sophisticated marketing strategy,but many freelancers get their initial jobs and much of their business from networking. Spread the word to your immediate network about the kinds of projects you are willing to take on. You never know who might be interested! Here are great articles about how to use networking to get the word out about your business:

Many other freelancers have recommended reaching out to other freelancers not only to network but to be able to understand what they are doing to be successful. There are also Freelancing organizations like Freelancer Union that you can join.

At Pathstream, we teach digital skills that can set you up for a successful freelance career. To learn more about Pathstream and our certificates, click here to explore all our program offerings.

The Pathstream Guide to Building Your Freelance Career

Written by Anthony So