How To Start Freelancing: From $0 To $10k/mo With No Experience

Last Updated on October 18, 2023 by John Cirelly

If want to learn how to start freelancing, you’re in the right place. Below I’ll share exactly how I started my freelance business from scratch, quit my job, and scaled it to over 10k per month.

How To Start Freelancing in 2024

Below are the exact steps you can follow to start freelancing alongside a full-time job, even if you don’t have any skills or experience. Keep in mind, you can do this alongside your full-time job. It won’t be easy, but you can make it happen.

1. Create Your “To Don’t” List

Before you jump into the world of freelancing, it’s important to understand where you want to be. By starting with the end in mind, you can narrow down the skills you’ll learn, and filter the opportunities you’ll be presented with in the future.

I want you to take stock of where you are right now. What would you choose never to do again? List them out. I’ll share mine:

• Don’t want to commute to work.
• Don’t want to compete on price with others.
• Don’t want to work for W2 income.
• Don’t want to have a set schedule.

Your “To Don’t” list should be non-negotiable. For example, I loved remote work so much, I wouldn’t take on any opportunities that required me to work in the office. Even if times were particularly tough.

Next, list out what you want from your freelance business. Focus more on the lifestyle you want verse and exact income amount. Include a monthly income goal that’s at least 25% more than your current expenses. Below is an example of my list:

• I want to work anywhere in the world.
• I want to have autonomy over my time.
• I want to work with clients that value my abilities.
• I want to have time to work on my personal projects on the side.
• I want to earn at least $8500/mo.

Over the years your goals will change. I like to check back on my Do’s and Dont’s list every year or so and update it. For example, your income goal may increase, or you might need more free time to spend with your growing family.

2. Obtain a High-Income Skill That Matches Your Goals & Abilities

The truth is, businesses hire freelancers because they want professionals that can deliver results without having to hire them as an employee.

This means, you’ll need a skill you can provide as a service. There are various high-income skills to choose from. Not all will be a great fit. For example, freelance graphic design work pays great, but I can’t draw a stick figure to save my life.

I personally bounced around a few different skills before I settled on the one that worked for me. This part takes time, time most people aren’t willing to put in, hence why they’re stuck working for someone else.

Below are a few examples of high-paying freelance skills:

• Sales
• Graphic Design
• Content Writing
• Copywriting
• Programming
• Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
• Web Development
• Social Media Marketing/Management
• Video Editing
• Audio/Music Production

If you want more examples of different skills you can learn or services to offer head over to Upwork, Fiverr, or Toptal and check out their services page. Look at what people are offering, how many jobs they’ve had, and what the average rate is for each job.

Think about what you’d enjoy going, or naturally be good at. For example, if you’re a full-time programmer you could use your existing skills to write apps. Or if you’re in sales, you can use that experience in a freelance capacity.

I strongly believe that you can earn a living doing what you like. Especially with the rise of remote work, social media, and artificial intelligence. There’s a balance between finding something you enjoy doing and matching that with helping others who can afford your services.

This balance, or “purpose for living” is called Ikigai. It’s the secret behind living a fulfilled life and the foundation for any lifestyle business.

If you haven’t done this exercise I highly recommend you check out the video below as you explore different freelance services.

3. Learn New Skills For Free (Or Cheap)

You don’t need a college degree to start freelancing. Businesses that hire freelancers often don’t care if you have a college degree. Rather, they want to see examples of your work. They want to see if you can deliver the service you offer.

If the freelance skill you chose aligns with the experience you already have, that’s great. Skip to step 4.

If you’re wondering how to start freelancing with no experience, this step is for you.

There are tons of free resources where you can learn high-income freelance skills. I personally learned 95% of my freelance skills from YouTube and blog articles online.

The danger in this is that there are a lot of fake gurus who will tell you anything to get you to buy their course. It can also be overwhelming with a ton of information scattered everywhere.

Below are the best places to learn freelance skills if you have no experience:

• SkillShare – Find experts teaching affordable classes.
• YouTube – Find authorities in your niche (Graphic Design, Writing, Etc).
• Free Online Harvard Courses – Yes, that Harvard. 114+ classes.
• Udemy – Not a bad alternative to SkillShare. Better for tech skills.

Start by learning the basics and get your feet wet ASAP. This means actually try doing what you’ll be doing for your clients. If you’re writing blog posts, write a few mock blog posts. If you’re practicing graphic design, make a few fictional logos.

You don’t need to be an expert at this point, you only need to know how to get results better than the average person.

Having these mockups will help you build one of your most valuable assets: Your portfolio.

4. Build Your Freelance Portfolio

Your portfolio is simply a folder full of work you’ve done. It should showcase your best work that is relevant to the business looking to hire you.

Portfolios are important because they enable you to get higher-paying jobs. You can use your past experience to justify higher rates and work with larger clients. This can take time but it can snowball to those $100+/hr rates you’ve heard about.

Your portfolio will look different depending on your skill set. For example, a programmer might have live app demos he’s made, while a freelance writer will have various writing samples.

When you first start freelancing you can either fill your portfolio with mock samples or take on lower-paying jobs to build your portfolio quickly. I personally used a combination of the two.

I got really confused about this when I first started, but it’s really quite simple. These are the easiest steps to build your portfolio:

1. Create mockups or take on lower-paying jobs. Save your work and results.
2. Place your work into a folder in Google Drive.
3. If you have a lot of work, organize it by industry or use case.
4. Make sure your folder is set to allow anyone to “read” that has the link.
5. Share links to potential clients. Make sure the samples are relevant to their business.

That’s literally it. As your skills advance consider swapping out older work that doesn’t reflect your level of skills. For instance, if you’re a copywriter and you made a client 4x on their money, replace your older sample where you made them less.

5. Get Freelance Clients

Arguably one of the toughest hurdles you’ll face when learning how to start freelancing is getting clients. There are three ways you can get freelance work. Keep in mind you don’t have to pick just one method.

Side Note: You don’t need a contract or LLC to get started freelancing. You can always set this up later. The important thing is to just get started! 🙂

Freelance Marketplaces

Sites like Upwork, Fiverr, and Toptal put you in front of different businesses looking for your skills, Kinda like a big store full of freelancers.

Upside: You don’t have to chase clients as much. You won’t be cold-calling or pitching people that aren’t interested.

Downside: You’re competing with everyone else on that platform. On sites like Fiverr, that means competing with overseas freelancers willing to work for less. Some sites may also take a small fee from each of your jobs.

If you don’t have any experience freelancing, leveraging marketplaces is a great option. While you’ll have to build up your authority and skills, you don’t have to look for clients from scratch. I’d recommend sticking with one platform and then expanding as you get more comfortable.

Freelance Jobboards

Freelance job boards are like marketplaces, but hiring managers typically can’t browse your profile or invite you to new opportunities. Job boards like We Work Remotely and SolidGig are great places to start. Keep in mind, they might be as competitive if not more competitive than freelance marketplaces.

Upside: You can find specialized job boards for your specific skill. For example, job boards specifically for writers. This helps you find the best opportunities.

Downside: Just like marketplaces, you’re competing against other freelancers. In specialized job boards, you might be competing against freelancers with more experience and better portfolios.

Cold Outreach

Cold outreach is a great way to find new clients without relying on job boards. Ultimately, you’ll need a list of leads that might be interested in your services. At the end of the day, cold outreach is a numbers game, but can get you new clients on autopilot when you set it up.

Examples of cold outreach methods include LinkedIn messaging, cold email, Instagram DMs, and personalized video outreach.

Upside: You can automate or outsource cold outreach for only a few hundred dollars a month. This enables you to get clients even when you’re not working.

Downside: This method costs money to do at scale, and requires you to have some sales skills to close the deal. This method is better for those who are more experienced in freelancing.

6. Freelancing Fulltime (optional)

So say you’re freelancing and you’re starting to earn some serious income. Maybe it even exceeds the amount you make at your job. If you want to switch full-time to the freelance lifestyle, here’s how you can do it.

Build Yourself a Runway

Before you quit your job to freelance full time it’s vital to have enough money in the bank to sustain you if work slows down. You’ll want this money easily accessible, so consider using a high-yield savings account.

How much to save will depend on your living expenses, risk tolerance, and confidence to find new work. On average, you should look to save 6-12 months’ worth of living expenses. Before I quit my job, I had a year’s salary saved. I saved all the money I earned freelancing on the side as my runway.

Create a Backlog of Prospects

Relying on one or two clients can leave you in a tough place if they both leave tomorrow. Having a backlog of prospects allows you to contact them if you lose a client or simply want to take on more work.

I use a Google Sheet with the contact name, type of work they want, and company name. I typically fill my sheet up with opportunities I find on job boards when I’m not looking to take on any more work.

Leave on Good Terms

Even if your boss sucks, just leave on good terms. Give your two weeks, but feel free to leave earlier if your mental health is suffering from your job. Burning bridges can come back to bite you, even as a freelancer, so keeping it cordial is the best move.

Keep up on Responsibilities

As a freelancer, you’ll be in charge of withholding your own income for taxes, finding your own healthcare provider, and saving for the future. It can sound daunting but there are plenty of programs available to freelancers.

For example, freelancers in the United States can open up a Simplified Employee Pension Plan (SEP) to contribute to their retirement and find health insurance plans designed for self-employed individuals.

Wrap Up

This sums up my guide on how to start freelancing. I hope this helps you on your journey to financial freedom. Do you have any freelance tips I should include in this article? Be sure to send them to my inbox. 🙂