There are countless freelance jobs advertised every day. Why not take advantage of the trend, and sell your expertise, too?

Most freelance (or independent contractor) work is done on a project or contract basis, and assignments can often be completed on evenings and weekends, leaving you free to work your “regular” job as well. Freelancing is also an excellent way to update a resume, get back in the civilian workforce, keep skills fresh, and broaden your expertise and professional network.

Many Specialties to Choose From

We’ve identified more than 100 freelancing specialties that can be done from a home office (for details, see http://www.ratracerebellion.com/HBCareers.htm), including website designer, payroll specialist, help desk consultant, project manager, administrative assistant, and many more. With the convergence of outsourcing and high-speed Internet, the range of freelance work is broad and growing steadily.  

The Five Steps

Many people jump into freelancing without thinking it through, and later wonder why they’re unhappy with their work, or not reaching their financial goals. Often, it’s because they didn’t make the link between passion and progress.

So we lead off our five steps with the most important one -- matching your core values with your work. And that means taking a good look at who you are, and how you want to evolve.

1. Do an effective self-assessment. Freelance work is self-employment. Therefore, why not choose something that the “self” -- you -- really wants to do? (As Chris says in our trainings, “No need to look for a job that makes you miserable. If you want to be miserable, just go stand in line at DMV.”)

The in-depth self-assessments in Richard Bolles’ book “What Color is Your Parachute?” are particularly effective. They take time to complete, but you’ll benefit by knowing more about your core values, and what kind of work will make you happiest. That’s what we mean by linking passion and progress.  

2. Research the marketplace. You may have a passion for making buggy whips, but the demand doesn’t exist. So passion alone will only get you so far. You need to know the jobscape.

To get a sense of the freelance work being done now, see the jobs we’ve listed at  http://www.ratracerebellion.com/job_postings.htm. You can also subscribe to our free telework jobs bulletin, at http://www.ratracerebellion.com/R3Military.html. Checking sites like Monster.com and oDesk.com regularly will help, too.

If you need to upgrade your skills or acquire new expertise, don’t procrastinate. Get financial aid if you need it, knuckle down, and take every useful detail from your courses. Make your sweat and dollars count.

3. Set your fees carefully. Many new freelancers aren’t sure how to set their fees, and often wind up charging too little for their services. The result? A tide of low-end work, customers who don’t respect you, and costs that exceed revenues.     

Economists have spilled vats of ink over how prices are determined in the marketplace, and any basic business book will cover it, too. In our own book on home-based freelancing, “The 2-Second Commute,” we included the following formula as a “thought-starter” for setting an hourly rate:

A. Decide how much you want to make per year (your salary), and add your projected annual expenses to this figure.
B. Multiply the sum by 15 percent (or whatever profit margin you’d like to make).
C. Add “A” to “B.”
D. Divide “C” by your projected annual billable hours.

The result will give you an idea of how much you should charge by the hour to earn your target income. (Value-based pricing, of course -- where you charge according to the value that your expertise provides -- will require a different approach.)

4. Market your services effectively. In our opinion, most freelancers don't need a business plan (it bogs them down), but they do need a brief but effective marketing plan. (Most freelancers fail due to ineffective marketing.) Once the plan is fleshed out, market like heck, then market some more. Don't let the drumbeat stop.

5. Serve your customers unforgettably. Dazzle your customers, and all will be well. They will give you references, they will talk about you, and they will give you more work. They will grow from using you, and you will thrive from their loyalty and their respect -- and their checks.

But most of all, you'll benefit from doing something that (see step one) links your passion to your progress.

And that's not a bad day's work, is it?