There’s an article on  CNBC make it that caught my eye because there has been a growing trend that I've seen and heard people are having where they're just not as comfortable with their current career trajectory as they previously were before the pandemic. Because of that, a lot of people are seeing how they can plan out their next steps and their next moves career-wise.

I have a part highlighted that stood out to me as the main part of who's leaving and why, and it states that:

"Of the 26% of workers planning to leave their employers after the pandemic, 80% are doing so because they’re concerned about their career advancement; meanwhile, 72% say the pandemic caused them to rethink their skill sets"

Skills are important because that is what you're going to be providing as a service when you freelance. When you learn new skills you can apply to new jobs, perform new services, and make money in different areas. The article also says that:

“More than half of the potential job hoppers have sought out new training and skills during the pandemic possibly to prepare to change jobs in the next few months.”

What this comes down to is showing that people are uncertain. It shows they have this fear that their 9-5 career path is not as stable as they thought it was. People are seeing this with a lot of big corporations in the nine to five world. The job that people felt so secure in (the one which would allow them to work there for decades and get a pension plus benefits) is actually not dependable when you have all your eggs in one basket.

There’s also that uncertainty where the employee may lose their job if the company has to lay off staff. Or if the company has to downsize or go out of business. That is something that got brought to the light during the pandemic. In fact, in the CNBC article it states that in 2019 people were already starting to look at new career paths. It is also stated that people are jumping jobs a lot more than they used to compared to 20 years ago.

That brings us to the question, what are all these people going to do? What are over a quarter of all people that are in the marketplace right now going to do, that want to quit their 9-5 job? How are they going to go about this?

Well, that is where freelancing comes into play. As a freelancer a lot of these people working 9-5 jobs are realizing that they can take their same skills, add a couple more on and then build multiple streams of income. They can do this from online clients paying them from every single different area they want to focus on. As opposed to having one boss that only pays them for their time like in a nine to five, as a freelancer, you're able to grow at your own pace and do what you want to do in your day-to-day life.

There is also a topic that needs to be brought to the light, which is the fact that not everyone can go and have success as a freelancer immediately. Not everyone that you see in this CNBC article might not even be a good fit to be a successful freelancer.

There's nothing wrong with that, but for the people that are asking themselves:

• "Can I go into business for myself?"
• "Can I become a freelancer, a consultant?"
• "Can I leave this nine-to-five world and provide for myself, and my family and build the life I want?"

Ask yourself if you fit into the mold of what the three qualities of a profitable freelancer are. If what I’m about to go over does not align with where you're at, then you're likely not going to have success as a freelancer when you go into business for yourself. So If you want to discover if you are fit to be a freelancer, let’s dive into the three qualities that make up a successful freelancer.

(Quality #1) Desire To Have Flexibility

The first quality of any successful freelancer is the desire to make sacrifices to have flexibility. That desire means putting in that extra work that others don't aren’t willing to do. What I mean is you must be willing to put in the work and build your career from the ground up. As a freelancer, you can get that flexibility that you crave and desire when you put in the actions necessary to get there. You also have to develop a strong mindset and understand that the business that you start is not going to kick off in a week or a month. It all depends on how much effort, time, and dedication you have to make it work.

Freelancers have the flexibility to choose the hours they work, the type of projects they work on, and the clients they work with. This provides immense control of their day-to-day schedule as well as eliminates the need for a commute. That's one of the other big reasons why people are shifting more towards freelancing and remote work positions in general. People are beginning to see that they don't want to be tied to a job where they have to commute during rush hour traffic just to get to work and get paid less, and maybe have an hour to eat dinner and unwind before they have to go and do that again the next morning. I was in that cycle and there's nothing wrong with it if you're working for a company you love and you're doing everything that you feel called to, but if you're not I'm telling you that that lack of flexibility will begin to eat away at you.

So you need to have the desire to want to build flexibility. It doesn't mean as soon as you start freelancing you're going to be able to just work whenever you want but what it does mean is if you put in the work, you build yourself from the ground up the right way as a professional freelancer that is treating it like a business, and taking it seriously. When I say flexibility I mean freedom over your day and your schedule. Flexibility is just really something that relates to all the different aspects of your life from the micro down to what you do every single day to the macro, which is planning vacations, being able to spend more time with your family, going to events, and there's just so much there but that is the first quality if you want to be a profitable freelancer is to have the desire to put in the work to get the desired flexibility that freelancing offers, but only if you commit and take it seriously.

To Recap: If you have the desire to have more flexibility in your life and it sounds appealing to you, and even helpful for the type of lifestyle that you have, I highly encourage you to look into making freelancing a side hustle or full-time career to fully enjoy all the benefits freelancing can do for your life.

(Quality #2) Desire For More

The second quality to be a profitable freelancer and to be a successful freelancer is you need to have the desire to create more for yourself and to live up to your full potential. There are so many people that quite frankly just do the minimum in life. They do just enough to get by at their job in their life. They do enough where nothing bad necessarily happens to them but at the end of their life, they're filled with all these regrets and all these questions in the back of their head such as...

• What if I tried harder in my career and put in the work?
• What if I took a chance and started that business?
• What if I learned that new skill I am passionate about?

All of those “what-ifs” eat away at you so much more than if you tried something new, and you failed you know that okay at least you know you gave it your all and tried. On the contrary to what some may believe, as a freelancer, you have a higher earning potential than a traditional position. Your salary as a freelancer is not limited like it is in a corporate job. When you are a freelancer, you are working for yourself and you are in control of how much you want to earn. Being in control of your earnings and working for yourself makes freelancing an overall more stable and secure career path as opposed to a typical corporate position.

People no longer have to settle for a set salary because they now can access abundance online, creating multiple flows of income from clients. Once you become a freelancer, you can get paid for the work that you put in. This type of freedom lets you break free from being tied to a set paycheck because you create your earnings. Once you build multiple flows of online income, the more freedom and security you will be able to create in your life. 

Many people who are unhappy with their 9-to-5 jobs are beginning to flock to making money online by providing freelance services. The gig economy is providing amazing opportunities that range from every skill level and schedule type, and work has never been more accessible as long as you have an internet connection and a laptop. Take advantage of the higher income opportunities and freedom that freelancing can provide for you no matter what type of lifestyle or position you want. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket with one traditional job. By being a freelancer and having multiple streams of income, you put yourself in the best position possible for success.

Recap: Wanting to create more in your life is the other quality you need to have if you want to be successful when you're working for yourself as a freelancer.

(Quality #3) Having Discipline

The third quality of a successful freelancer is you need to have discipline. So with all of this, all of these amazing benefits from freelancing doesn't work if you're not disciplined. Being consistent every day will lead you to form good habits which are the keys to success. There will be days where you just won't feel like working and will take the whole day off.

While it's okay to take a mental day off, you must decipher between if you're really looking to recharge, or if you just want to be lazy that day and not put in the work. To create success, you must push through these feelings and stay consistent. If you think you're going to become a freelancer just so you can work two days a week and play video games the rest of the time... then this might not be the most suitable career path for you.

The truth is, once you fall into the trap of doing the bare minimum possible in your work life, you will never be able to separate yourself from the competition. To get to that next level of being a successful freelancer, you must be consistent, always grinding, and on your game. You do this by...

• Waking up early
• Sticking to your schedule
• Focusing on important tasks first
• Putting time into developing your skills
• Showing up even when you don't feel like it

Having discipline is vital to keeping your life balanced and on the best path. It’s necessary to make these sacrifices so you can be consistent every single day. For example, instead of saying ‘yes’ to going out late, you can be disciplined and choose to spend that time working on your business. Another example is to wake up early to get more accomplished instead of sleeping in.

Recap: Practicing discipline is what it takes if you want to be successful. It all comes down to practice, sticking to your schedule, and holding yourself accountable at the end of each day.

In Conclusion

In conclusion, if you have the desire to create flexibility in your life, the desire to live up to your full potential, as well as the discipline to hold yourself accountable, then you are a great candidate to be a freelancer.

I hope this was helpful for some people that are thinking about becoming a freelancer or that want to quit their job and don't know what the next step is. If you want to hear more about the three qualities of a successful freelancer,  l cover them in more depth in this video here.

- Paul Mendes

 Founder of Profitable Freelancer