Even before the world pandemic, people were looking for remote work. It comes with a lot of benefits, especially with that flexibility a 9-to-5 job does not offer you. You have power over your time and agenda, and you schedule your activities however you want.
But another thing that has been on the rise recently is freelancing. All freelancers are working remotely, thus organizing their time however they want. They also work with more clients at the same time and take on interesting projects, so they can choose what to work on. And so, remote freelancing becomes a more appealing option than working on a strict schedule at a corporation.
Most people think that if you will be a remote freelancer, you will not be able to separate your work and personal life. That they will become so strongly tangled that you will be more stressed, less productive and that you will be constantly distracted. But this is not simply the case.
While some people might experience difficulties when they start their work as remote freelancers, some others experience good changes. If you are used to working from a cubicle, taking regular breaks with your colleagues, and having lunch with your team, then switching to remote freelancing will be a huge change.
According to freelance experts who offer assignment help and assignment proofreading, most remote freelancers experience positive emotions when they start working from home. This can be easily explained by the fact that you begin to work in a familiar environment. You also have the power over your time, schedule, and projects.
But remote freelancing comes with other benefits too. You save time because you no longer need to commute. And this is of huge help not only for you but for the environment too. There are too many cars on our roads and the effects are visible. The last years were the most polluting ones and the level of greenhouse gases rose drastically.
Remote freelancing comes with challenges and pitfalls too. And knowing how to cope with them, to organize your schedule and work is important for your success. Which are the skills that you need to develop to improve your work as a remote freelancer and submit successful works? Why is it essential to have them developed and constantly work on them?
In this article, you will find out which are the 5 must-have skills for successful remote freelancing.
1. Time Management
Remote freelancing comes with the greatest benefit of all. The power to organize your time however you want. If you are a night owl, you can work during the night. If you like mornings, you can wake up and start working in the morning.
The common trap many people fall into is failing to set a clear schedule. If you have worked a 9-to-5 job, you probably love the feeling of waking up when you want. You will be mesmerized by the amount of time you have available and you will want to do as many things as possible.
Although having hobbies and pursuing your passions is important, as they are sources of positive emotions, not organizing your time in a clear way comes with downsides. You may not meet your deadlines, find the power to focus and enter a flow state, or prevent you from being creative.
Time management skills are very important in the life of a remote freelancer. They include a variety of skills that you need to develop and improve to acquire a strong power over your time.
You need to set clear goals and break them into smaller ones. Like this, you plan your tasks and activities depending on your deadline. Besides, because remote freelancers are usually working on multiple projects at the same time, they need to know how to prioritize their tasks. Learning to do this and to structure your day can give you even more time for yourself. You only need to stick to your clear schedule, set small goals, and work towards them.
2. Organizational Skills
Organizational and time management skills are so deeply intertwined. Time management is about time. Time can make you lose clients and projects, miss deadlines, stress, and lose productivity. If it is not organized accordingly.
You need to prioritize tasks, organize meetings, and your agenda, think of and implement a strategy to accomplish your goals. And if you are leading a remote team, then you need to know how to manage it, delegate tasks, and solve problems and issues that might appear.
Organizational skills are very important if you want to be a successful remote freelancer. The truth is, there will always be distractions and urgent tasks that need to be done. And this is valid both for working from the office and your home.
But the things that make the difference are your skills. Your skills to organize your time and work to meet your deadlines and accomplish your tasks. The skills to organize your working space so that you reduce distractions to a minimum and increase productivity. Organizational skills are a must-have if you want to secure your success in the domain of remote freelancing.
3. Communication
Communication is easier done face to face, and this should be something you, as a remote freelancer, should be aware of. This is the way we, as humans, have been built. Many people fail to understand the importance of communication and all its subtypes.
There is verbal communication, the most common and recognized one. You use words, either spoken or written, to send an idea, express your opinion and emotions, and brainstorm solutions. There is nonverbal communication which includes all nonverbal cues we are not aware of, but which add value and meaning to our words. Think about your body language, facial expressions, tone of voice, posture, and so on.
When working in the remote freelancing domain, you will rarely meet your clients or team face-to-face. But you need to cooperate to make sure that you are on the right path. Communication is the key to all problems and issues that might appear, but also the best solution to prevent them.
You need good communication skills to succeed as a remote freelancer. You need to communicate simple, clear, and concise messages, especially during remote meetings with the team and clients.
4. Adaptability
Adaptability is another skill you need to have to be a successful remote freelancer. Many freelancers start their flexible journey thinking that they can work from everywhere and anything will go smoothly. But what they fail to realize is that there are minor issues that can always appear and perturb their work.
This is why you need to be able to adapt quickly. For example, many remote freelancers choose exotic locations as their offices and prefer to travel frequently. Why wouldn’t they, if they have the possibility?
And even though you organize your time and schedule accordingly, minor problems can appear. You can have your flights delayed or the internet connection might be poorer than you expected. Besides, there is always a challenge with the time zone, jet lag, and deadlines. So, adaptability and problem-solving skills are the key.
The solution would be to always take buffer time when you change places. Like this, you are sure that you have enough time to submit your work and find solutions to problems that might arise on the road.
5. Knowledge
Last but not least, having the knowledge necessary to take on multiple projects is mandatory. When you embark on your journey as a remote freelancer, you need to have the technical knowledge to accomplish and solve tasks.
Besides the domain-specific tasks, you need to know a few things about the current technologies used on the market. You might work with customers that are using specific tools for communication, task assignments, or collaboration. And knowing about them adds more value to your work because you will also work on it more smoothly.
The most important thing to keep in mind is that you should already have the knowledge and skills certain companies are looking for in the market. They will not pay for your services if you do not know how to work with or use specific technologies and software, especially if they can hire someone who already has this knowledge.
When starting your job as a remote freelancer it is important to assess and understand your needs, your knowledge, and the areas where you need to improve. Like this, it is easier to focus on improving specific skills by practicing and informing about them more.
Bonus tip:
If you’d like to make your online calls with clients more productive and noise-free, try Krisp noise cancelling app. It works with over 800 communication apps, including Zoom, MS Teams, Google Meet and more.
[demo-new]
Conclusion
The world of remote freelancing is very appealing, interesting, and challenging at the same time. It comes with benefits, flexibility, and freedom. But at the same time, it comes with challenges and tasks to accomplish.
To be successful as a remote freelancer in an environment where you can do your work wherever and whenever you want, you need to have good time management and organizational skills. You need to know how to prioritize your tasks, organize your agenda, plan a strategy, and your working environment.
You need to know how to communicate effectively and assertively, to send clear messages. Adaptability helps you find solutions to problems and face some challenges easier, while knowledge is the most valuable asset.
