COMMON FREELANCERS MISTAKE
Everyone makes mistakes, the biggest mistake of all is not learning from the mistakes that we make. If you make a mistake once, you can learn from it and not make it again. If you make the same mistake a 2nd time, it is a choice, not a mistake. You have chosen not to learn, you have chosen to follow the same pattern of behaviour, you have chosen to go down the same path again, hoping that it will turn out different, but knowing that it probably won’t. Making the same mistake twice is a decision, not a mistake.
In any workplace setting, traditional or gig work, it is important to note that there will always be room for mistakes. Getting negative feedback from bosses, trainers, superiors can be heart crushing, especially when you have tried your hardest, but the feedback can be used to improve the future. When someone commits an error, they must have to acknowledge it and learn from it. Positive feedback, helpful feedback, coaching feedback can all help to make you better in the future.
In fact, there are applications that are specifically designed to help freelancers and solopreneurs in their everyday tasks. And.Co is a business management software that could help giggers track time, manage tasks, invoicing, payments, proposals, contracts, and organised income and expenses. Having a tool like And.Co is suitable for any gigger to avoid mistakes that are often overlooked. Below are some of the errors any freelancer will experience sometime in their career:
- OVERSPENDING
In the Gig Economy, workers don’t have a stable and predictable income. Money Management can be harder than for people working in a regular job because a giggers income varies depending on the project. Freelancers can overspend when they make work-related purchases. It is always necessary to update your laptop, have a motorbike, a car, or other large purchases that are useful in the Gig Economy. If you have an accountant you should discuss what purchases you can offset, and what are tax deductible. Tax deductible purchases could be: Mobile Phone Plan, Advertising Cost, and Tech Equipment.
- MISSING DEADLINES
Knowing your schedule might be difficult as you can’t hold on to a specific client for your whole career. Schedules change, hours of work change, work can be fluid. But having all your projects sorted by the deadline is a good way to avoid missing targets. So, get a notebook or create a file where you can list down all your commitments for a month and track it daily according to the status of the project. Doing this will give you a visible outline of your responsibilities.
- NOT DRAFTING A CONTRACT
A contract is important, a lot of freelancers continue to accept projects without having contracts signed between them and their clients. Remember that before taking a deal, a freelancer should request or draft a contract as it would be the backbone of the whole project. This will protect the client and the worker whenever someone fails to do what was agreed by two parties.
