While doing some research online at the weekend I stumbled across CareerVanity.com, a blog offering expert career advice for working women. One of the articles that jumped out at me was their Top 3 Freelancing Mistakes To Avoid.

On a global level, everyone seems concerned these days with the phrases “recession” and “economic downturn”. The article does raise some valid points though that one needs to be reminded of now and again.

1. Don’t charge too little
2. Pick the right clients and if taking a partner on board, make sure they’re right for you
3. Plan ahead for economic downturns… just like we’re seeing now.

Of course, each of these points raised you will come to deal with with a greater level of experience. Only through starting to take on work can you determine what you should be charging and what you can be charging.

You should know in advance what you want to charge and need to charge in order to sustain yourself through your work but there will always be additional factors such as the state of the economy, competition (whether locally or further afield), client budgets, how badly you want the work etc. The main thing though is to find your price point, find it quickly and stick to it.

I’ve also mentioned in the past about setting up a partnership (a move I made a few years ago) and what to look out for.

Speaking with another freelancer recently, it was summised that you often find a partnership is a good way to start a new business or venture but ultimately one of the partners will keep the drive going while the other slowly takes their eye off the ball.

Don’t let this happen to you - at the end of the day you need to be certain the partnership that you’re form (if you are indeed forming one) is 100% right for you. Even at an early stage it is always worth drawing up some form of partnership agreement or planning ahead for the possibility of the partnership diverging at some point. The above can be taken whether running a freelance business with a partner or forming strategic partnerships with other freelancers to bounce work to/from.

As the article says itself,

If you’re ready to take the plunge into freelancing, don’t wait until you’re knee deep into your dream to make costly errors. Avoid these top freelancing mistakes and ride the entrepreneurial tidal wave to riches, like a pro.

As for budgeting, I’ve already spoken about budgeting for the unexpected and I continue to work from a spreadsheet myself with an outlook as to how my personal financial year is going.

Sometime it’s important to remind ourselves of the basic lessons involved in working for yourself!

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