How to Start Freelancing: 5 Tips for Getting Ready to Make the Leap
If you are looking for a clear-cut guide that explains exactly how to start freelancing, well, I hate to inform you that it doesn’t exist.
No two freelancers have the same origin story. Sure, there are common themes. Some come to freelancing in pursuit of more personal freedoms. Others use it as a bridge between full-time jobs, or to slather on some extra income like butter.
Plenty of folks end up here by accident, because of a life change—a layoff, the demands of parenthood, a move.
I read origin stories like these every day from members of the Freelance Success community. And I’ve coached more than a few fresh-on-the-scene freelancers through those tricky early months.
I still don’t have a perfect recipe for how to start freelancing. But I have picked up on some consistent activities that tell me whether or not a new freelancer is going to be a success.
1. Build Your Freelancer Network Before You Need It
I won’t sugarcoat it: Starting out as a freelancer is scary. Anything that involves risk and the unknown will cause your anxiety to spike.
Anxiety's worst enemy is information, so gathering information about what's to come is your best strategy.
There are so many wonderful blogs, ebooks, and videos you can use to gather information (you're doing it right now, aren't you?). But there's one excellent resource you can't find in a Google search or through a chat-bot: genuine, human Freelancer friends.
I was lucky when I started; thanks to my agency job, I already knew a lot of very talented and experienced freelancers. As soon as I started prodding them for information, I quickly discovered three themes from my conversations with them:
They wished they'd started freelancing years earlier
They had way more work than they could handle
They were more than happy to share their wisdom and war stories
I reckon #3 has to do with the fact that many freelancers spend their hours alone at their computer, so any chance for human contact is welcome. Whatever the reason, there are so many freelancers out there who are more than happy to share their wisdom and experiences with you.
In fact, I've found the freelance community to be one of the most welcoming and friendly places—which is saying something, seeing that most of the communication is done through social media.
If you don't know many freelancers now, don't fret. There are many online groups, websites, and blogs out there, with interesting and illuminating conversations happening every day.
Here's where and how to find them:
Freelance Success is the top community for freelancers in my opinion, because I co-host it and have helped shape it into the community I wish I’d had when I was learning how to start freelancing.
FLX has been around since 2000, so you're getting advice from people with decades of combined experience, while also learning alongside newer generations of the ever-growing freelance workforce.
Our members include writers, designers, consultants, marketers, and freelancers from every industry you can imagine. It’s a private space where people ask the kinds of questions they can’t ask on social media. We also bring in exclusive speakers every other week, host quarterly group challenges, offer exclusive resources and…
Oh heck, I could go on and on, but why don’t you just check it out yourself? Here’s a free month trial.
Other Communities: I have to also shout out to two communities that I used as I was coming up as a freelancer: Austin Church’s Freelance Cake and the Top of the Funnel Community. Both are worth a visit (and pair well with FLX).
LinkedIn: LinkedIn has been a consistent network building tool for me for most of my freelance business. Though it has certainly changed a lot of the years (and feels more saturated now than ever), it is still the number-one social media tool for building connections. We have an entire course dedicated to Leveling Up Your LinkedIn the Freelance Success Community, which you can check out during your one-month trial.
Facebook groups: I don't use Facebook for much anymore, but there was a time when it was my main resource for freelance community, and I know folks who still use it as a their favorite networking tool. There are many active groups on Facebook, all you need to do is start searching for topics that interest you. Limit your search to groups, and look for words like "freelance" and "remote work" and "bloggers". If you have a specialty (like photography) or a niche (like SaaS copywriting), look for those terms too.
It might be intimidating at first, and it's fine to watch from the sidelines for a while. But once you find a conversation or individual who you think is interesting, reach out to them. Introduce yourself, let them know what you like about them, and ask some questions. Odds are, they'll be happy to help.
Start engaging before you need help. Comment genuinely on posts, ask thoughtful questions, and offer your own insights when you have them. The relationships you build now will be invaluable when you're starting out.
2. Invest Time in Foundation Work (However You Can Find It)
I am not one of those people who answers the question, "What would you do with a billion dollars?" with an answer like, "I would continue to work because I love what I do." Not for me.
I have a long-term goal to work less.
I enjoy work, but I don't enjoy working 8 hours a day. I definitely don't enjoy working overtime. Unfortunately, I do enjoy having a comfortable income, so this was a difficult (read: impossible) goal to reconcile when I was working full-time and thinking about going freelance.
What I did find out, though, is that setting a long-term goal of "less than 8 hours a day" required a short-term sprint of really hard work.
For over a year, my daily schedule looked like this:
5am: Wake up and go to gym/eat quick breakfast
6am: Come home and work on freelancing
8:30am – 5:30pm: Attend my day job at a digital marketing agency
6pm – 8pm: Come home and work for two more hours on freelancing
8pm – 10pm: Free time
10pm – 11pm: Prepare freelance work I want to do in the morning
11pm: Sleep for six hours and do it again
Weekends would usually involve at least three or four hours of working on freelance preparation each day.
I won't lie—this wasn't the most fun time of my life. I was exhausted a lot of the time, and fortunately had friends and a partner who were very good at helping me schedule in appropriate amounts of free time and self care.
Not everyone has the luxury of this approach.
Maybe you've been laid off and are starting freelancing out of necessity, not choice. In that case, you might actually have more time than I did to focus on building your foundation, but less financial runway. Or maybe you're working multiple jobs already and can only find 30 minutes before the kids wake up.
The upshot: Whatever your situation, use the time you have to build your freelance foundation. If you've been laid off, think of this foundational work as your new full-time job. It's not directly earning money yet, but it's the most valuable thing you can be doing. If you're squeezing time around other commitments, be realistic about what you can achieve, but be consistent.
What made the difference for me was that the work was so energizing. I was watching myself build what could be the future I'd always dreamed of, and so waking up early to be a step closer to that goal didn't feel like a terrible sacrifice.
The result? By the time I finally quit my job, I already had a website set up, a business name registered, and my first few clients submitting their payments.
3. Build Whatever Financial Cushion You Can
"What if I don't make any money??"
That's one of the biggest fears I had as a freelancer, and I hate to say it, but it's actually worth worrying about.
When you start out, you'll be growing your client base and won't be raking in the big bucks (unless you get really lucky). This means you'll likely have to swallow at least a few months where you aren't making as much as you had been at your last job. For me, this happened during my third and fourth month freelancing.
Before you commit to a life of freelancing, squirrel away as much money as you can. This is easier said than done, especially if you currently live paycheck to paycheck, or if you've been laid off and are starting from a tighter financial position than you'd like.
If you can save up the ideal amount: 3 months’ worth of living expenses helps, but 6-9 months of living expenses gives you real freedom to be selective with clients and weather slow periods without panic.
If you can't save that much: Even $500-1000 can make a difference in those early weeks. It might cover a website setup, some basic tools, or give you breathing room during a slow patch.
Strategies that actually work:
Automate your savings (if you're employed): Set up automatic transfers to a dedicated "freelance fund" so you're not tempted to spend it.
Cut expenses where possible: Practice living leaner before you make the freelance leap. Cancel subscriptions you don't need, find ways to cut your monthly expenses. This serves two purposes: you stretch any savings you do have further, and you adjust to potentially lower income during your transition.
Earn extra income: Take on small freelance projects while still employed, or keep some part-time work if you can't save much upfront. This builds your portfolio and adds to your financial cushion.
The key insight here: freelancers who are desperate for money often take on poor-paying clients or bad projects because they feel they have no choice. Even a small financial cushion gives you the power to make better decisions about the work you accept.
If these strategies aren't possible for you, perhaps you can take on a few freelancing gigs in your spare time. You'll need to research your state/country laws to see how much you can earn without being designated as a sole proprietor/LLC, but usually, you can have a small stream of side income with no problem. As a bonus, this builds your experience and can give you a foundation for a portfolio.
4. Get Professional Business Guidance
Try this. Open up a new tab, go to Google, and type in:
"free business advice" + [your city/town/state]
What do you see? I did this twice as I was starting up my business—first in Australia, then when I moved back to the US. Both times, I was emailing a business coach within 30 minutes.
My first coach is one of my own personal heroes. I met her while living in Sydney, and thanks to the New South Wales state government, I was entitled to four free sessions through an undersung government program.
I came to her sunny office about four months before I went totally freelance. In our first session, she interviewed me about everything going on not just with my businesses, but also with my personal dreams and goals.
Then, like a white-board magician, she neatly drew up everything I'd told her in colored markers. We made a plan for some homework, and I left feeling like someone had lifted an enormous weight off my shoulders.
After I'd gone through four sessions, I decided it was well worth it to pay for ongoing quarterly sessions. In fact, I began to see her services almost like a form of business therapy—a way to help me manage my anxiety about my freelance career and equip myself with the tools I needed to succeed.
Over the course of our sessions, she helped me figure out how to price my services properly, set up business banking and accounting, plan for taxes, and develop a marketing strategy that didn't make me feel slimy.
I want to be clear, she didn't do these things for me. Instead, she helped me untangle the issues myself, and then together we identified strategies to overcome any obstacles. It was magic.
Now, years later, I offer similar mentorship to freelancers who are navigating their early months and beyond. I work one-on-one with people on everything from pricing strategy to client management to scaling their businesses. It’s part of the package when you join the Freelance Success Community.
FLX also brings in business professionals monthly to address specific topics like taxes, legal issues, and business growth strategies. It's like having a rotating cast of experts available to the entire community.
If you're worried that you're too small for a business advisor, or that it will be out of your price range, think again. Business advisors work with freelancers and startups all the time, and if you can't find one that's free through your local community, you can probably find something that's low-cost or subsidized.
Other places to look:
Your local Small Business Development Center/Library
Industry associations that offer member resources
Community colleges often have business development programs
I've seen freelancers waste months trying to figure out things that a good advisor could explain in a single session. Don't let pride or cost concerns prevent you from getting the help that will accelerate your success.
5. Treat Your Freelance Work Like a Real Business (Because It Is One)
I've coached dozens of freelancers through their launch phase, and here's the biggest difference I see between those who struggle and those who thrive: The successful ones think of themselves as business owners from day one, not as "freelancers" or "side hustlers."
When I made this mental shift myself, everything changed. I stopped accepting poor treatment from clients, started charging appropriately for my time, and began making strategic decisions about my business growth instead of just reacting to whatever came my way.
What thinking like a business owner actually looks like:
Get your basic infrastructure sorted. You need a business name (yours or something you create), a professional email address with your domain name, and a simple website. Your website should have a homepage that clearly explains what you do, an about page, a services page, contact information, and some samples of your work.
For design, you don't need to win awards, but you do need to look intentional. I used WordPress and designed 90% of my site myself, then enlisted help from a developer for the finishing touches. Many freelancers start with something simple from Canva or hire a designer on Fiverr. Others start with a robust LinkedIn profile or use a simple portfolio builder.
The key is getting something up quickly and improving it over time.
Be clear about what business you're actually in. Successful businesses don't just say "I'll do whatever you need." They have specific services with defined deliverables and timelines. Even if you're just starting out, get clear on what exactly you're offering clients. Are you a copywriter? A graphic designer? A consultant? What specific problems do you solve?
Set up proper financial systems. This means separate business and personal bank accounts, tracking expenses, setting aside money for taxes, and knowing your actual profit margins.
Establish boundaries and policies. Real businesses have operating hours, payment terms, and service agreements. You should too. When do you work? How do clients communicate with you? What's your revision policy? What are your payment terms? These aren't restrictions - they're professional standards.
Invest in your growth. Whether that's joining a professional community like Freelance Success, working with a mentor, taking a course, or upgrading your tools - treating your freelance work like a business means putting money back into its growth.
Remember, clients hire you for your skills and results, not your logo. Get the basics in place and start building relationships with potential clients.
Note: Do NOT let your website, and its lack of perfection, slow you down too much. You can keep moving toward your freelance goal, even if you only have a single homepage or nothing at all.
Don’t try to start freelancing alone
Starting out as a freelancer doesn’t have to be a lonely, confusing experience. Our community is here to help you launch your independent career and grow it into something stable, long-term, and fulfilling.
Plus, you won’t spend as much time talking to yourself, because we’ll be here to listen to you. Start your one-month trial here, or subscribe to get more of the good stuff delivered for free.
