Remember when the only freelancers you knew
were grungy nomads who lived out of a backpack
and wrote a travel blog?
Okay, I was definitely one of those people back in 2011,
but consider those the good old days
because freelancing is now officially everywhere.
Your neighbor, your aunt, even your high school teacher
might have a freelancing side hustle these days.
And if you wanna know how you can earn money
as a freelancer too, stick around to the end of this video
where I will go over the three things
that you can do to start making money today on the internet.
(upbeat music)
Yes, it is no secret
that freelancing is taking over the freaking world.
From social media managers to copywriters,
to bloggers, proofreaders, designers,
branding specialists, video editors.
There's a freelancing side hustle
for just about any and every industry out there.
And while the recent global pandemic
dramatically increased the number of freelancers
we see out there hustling day-to-day,
freelancing had already been trending up for years.
In fact, the freelancing industry
is growing three times faster
than the traditional workforce,
and stats predict that by 2027
the majority of the US workforce will be freelancers.
That's crazy.
So what is the big deal?
Why are so many people jumping on the freelancer bandwagon?
Well, as someone who has had
a freelancing copywriting business for 10 years now,
I can confidently tell you
that there are literally hundreds of perks
to being a freelancer
versus working the typical nine to five.
But today I am sharing six of the biggest
and best reasons why freelancing has become so mainstream
and why it is not going anywhere any time soon.
And because I know you're thinking it, in number six,
I'll talk all about artificial intelligence
and how that is impacting the role
of freelancers in the future.
Hey, posse, what's up.
It's Alex, give me a thumbs up below
if you're already a freelancer
who is out there slaying your trade,
and if you're new to the crew, welcome.
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Now let's dive straight in.
Here are the six reasons why freelancing is the future.
Number one, brands and businesses need specialized skills.
Think about it.
Every business at some point in time or another
will encounter one of those one-off projects
or a task that needs specialized help with,
and it is way more efficient
and financially smart for that business to hire a freelancer
as a contract worker,
rather than scouting a new employee
that they have to onboard, train
and give salary and benefits to.
So if they go straight to the source
and just hire an expert freelancer
who already knows what they're doing and they're good at it,
then they'll get their deliverable quicker and cheaper.
And a lot of the time
those one-off projects will turn into a consistent gig
with a monthly check for us freelancers.
It is a win-win.
Number two, job freedom and flexibility.
So what's the number one biggest reason
that most people chase that nine to five life?
It's for job security, right?
Well, that is such a crock of bologna
because if 2020 has taught us anything
is that there is no such thing as job security,
just like that your stable position
could be deemed unessential,
and you could be laid off, let go,
or have your business closed, thanks to an economic crash.
And then you're left sitting there wondering
what in the heck do I do now?
But when you're a freelancer, you work for yourself
which means you can never really be laid off or let go
because you are in complete control of your workload,
how many clients you have,
how much you charge and what skills you can learn.
This job freedom and flexibility is life-changing.
As a freelancer, you become a master of the pivot.
Yes, a word we heard so much in 2020.
You know you can learn a new skill,
find a new client if you lose one
and grow professionally as much as you want to or need to.
And no matter the state of the global economy,
businesses will always need specialized skills.
So while freelancing might not give you the job security
in that traditional biweekly paycheck
for the exact same amount sense,
it does give you the freedom
to work with as many clients as you want to
at the hours you choose from anywhere in the world.
It's like diversifying your paycheck portfolio.
Multiple streams of income is the secret to security.
And we'll talk more about the type of money
you can make in number four.
But first, number three,
technology makes your freelance business a breeze.
So today, more than ever, all of the tech advancements
and innovations that we're seeing in the workforce
are really pulling society away
from that corporate style of conferences and meetings
and going towards digital meetings and communications
which favors, yes, you guessed it, freelancers.
Businesses are no longer limited
to finding employees just in their local area.
Now they can employ experts
and specialists from anywhere in the world
which makes a lot of sense for businesses
because it opens up their options
for hiring the best talent they can find.
And thanks to tools like Zoom, Skype, Asana, Slack,
FreshBooks, Stripe, and TransferWise, and so many more,
the online work environment has been streamlined
and optimized for freelancer success.
These kinds of tools make it effortless for a freelancer
to communicate, manage,
and get payments from clients all around the world
which leads me to that money you are wondering about,
number four, your earning potential is unlimited.
Yes, this is the big one
that a lot of freelancers get the most excited about.
And while it is true that money isn't everything,
it is nice to know that there is no glass ceiling
in terms of how much income you can bring in.
So when it comes to making money as a freelancer,
the sky is really the limit.
You set your prices and you decide
on how many clients you wanna work with.
And therefore you can make as much
or as little money as you want to.
Just remember, though, that your prices
should be in direct reflection of your skills, experience,
and the value you bring to the table.
I feel like this is obvious, but I still have to say it,
you won't start off your freelancing career
making millions of dollars.
However, it's absolutely possible for you to get there
if you put in the work.
In freelancing, you get out what you put in.
So as long as you're willing to do the work
and find the right clients
you can definitely make buckets of that money, honey.
But before you get swept away
in finding 40 clients to work for,
remember the importance of number five,
a better work/life balance.
So for a long time, people had to choose, right?
Family or work, a good career or traveling the world,
a high income or doing something that brings you joy.
For a long time it really wasn't possible
to have the best of both worlds,
at least not easy, right?
But with freelancing, it is.
Freelancing bridges the gap between having a stable income
and being able to spend more time with your family,
travel the world, or do what you really love to do,
because it can be done
from anywhere you choose and whenever you choose.
So for example, the new mom
who wants to spend all day with her baby
can still earn money by working during naps
and after bedtime,
or the millennial who wants to travel the world
without staying in hostels
can travel whenever their heart desires,
stay at the best resorts and hotels along the way,
and supplement their income through freelancing.
And now more than ever before,
people can actually do what they love
and make good money doing it
provided they're actually good at it, of course.
And all of this drastically improves the quality of life
for those that exchange the daily grind
for freelancing freedom.
We're talking less depression, less stress,
less job turnover and fewer health problems
because hey, now I actually have time to go to the gym.
And now for the big one that's on everyone's mind,
what does artificial intelligence mean for freelancers?
I get this question all the time.
Well, I am here to tell you, number six,
freelancing is not replaceable by AI.
So in my opinion, AI will never fully replace freelancing,
not completely because we are humans
and we need emotional connection and that will never change.
So rather than seeing this inevitable advancement
in technology as a threat or as an excuse
to not get started,
think about how you can strategically use these AI tools
to support you in your freelancing journey.
The truth is that freelancers are actually more prepared
for those AI shifts than the general workforce
because freelancers can work with the AI tools
to generate quicker and better results for their clients.
Whereas other more standard employment options
may be completely if not already replaced by AI,
so think manufacturing lines and call centers.
No matter what though, real human connection,
empathy and creativity cannot be replaced by a robot,
which is so, so important for copywriting.
So are you convinced yet that freelancing is the future?
If you're ready to kickstart your freelancing journey
here are three quick, easy and practical ways
for you to get started making money today.
Number one, get specific.
So the first step is obvious.
You have to actually pick what you wanna do.
So start with your passions
and your natural skillsets and go from there.
Do you love writing?
Web design, photography or social media?
You can easily turn any one of those passions
into a full-time profitable
and fulfilling freelancing career.
So get out a pen and a piece of paper
and start brainstorming some ideas.
Write down a list of three to four things
that you're passionate about and could be great at,
and start researching them so that you have a better idea
of what it takes to freelance in each industry.
Once you narrow it down to your top pick,
you can then move on to number two, package your skills.
You need to get very clear on who you are,
what you do and how you can help businesses.
So if you wanna be a copywriter, for example,
you aren't gonna land very many clients
by approaching them and saying, hi,
I'm a copywriter and I'll write copy for you.
You will however, have much more success
if you say, hey, I'm a copywriter
and I specialize in writing email sequences.
Can I help you out with your email sequences
to sell more of your product?
No matter what freelancing industry you're in,
getting super specific on what you offer
is very important before you pitch any clients.
And once you have your skills all packaged up,
you can move on to number three, find clients.
Yes, put yourself out there and find some clients.
Remember that you need to be visible in order to be seen.
So update your Instagram, your Facebook,
your LinkedIn profile, to reflect who you are
and what you're now doing.
Get on freelancing sites like Fiverr and Upwork
and start reaching out directly to brands
and businesses that you wanna work for.
And this is the most important advice of all, guys,
be real and be personal and make sure you're talking about
how you can help them, not why they should hire you.
And I know that initial process
of finding your first client can seem like a daunting task
but once you get over that initial hump,
if you do a great job and show up in integrity,
I promise it'll get so, so much easier.
So I will see you next week.
Until then, I'm Alex, ciao for now.
All right, guys, if you enjoyed that video
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So what does a day in the life of a copywriter look like?
Well, no two days are the exact same.
And if you asked me that question in 2019
before the global pandemic,
my answer would be wildly different than it is today.