What would an extra $10,000 per year do for you? Would it help you pay down your student loan balance, take a nice trip, or fund your emergency savings? Did you ever think it was possible to earn that freelancing?
A few years ago I thought that $10,000 amount was out of reach but today I’m here to tell you it’s very doable, especially if you’re a hard worker.
If you need to earn extra money, are willing to put in the work, but are just unsure how to go about it here’s how you can make an extra $10,000 per year freelancing.
Choose Your Service
As a freelancer you’re offering a service, only instead of being paid by one employer you’re going out and finding your own customers. This gives you a lot of freedom. You get to pick exactly what you want to do and are able to set your own rates.
Your first step in your journey towards that $10,000 is figuring out exactly what you want to do.
This can be online or offline and just needs to coincide with your skillset and interests. Some examples would be painting, cleaning, web design, and even tutoring.
The service is up to you.
Here are some popular side hustle ideas:
- Freelance Writing
- Freelance Editing
- Coding
- Social Media Work
Determine Your Rate
In order to bring in the $10,000 per year you must first determine your availability.
If you have an extra seven hours a week (that’s only one hour per day!) you would need to charge around $27 per hour to earn an extra $10,000 per year. If you had an extra 10 hours per week you’d only need to charge $19 per hour. (Or you could charge more and beat that $10k mark.)
If you think that sounds high it’s really not. When you become a freelancer you’re specializing in one area and can charge accordingly.
Plus, many freelance activities are flat-fee. Meaning, if you're a freelance writer, you might get paid $100 per article. In that case, you want to make sure you're not spending more than 2-3 hours on an article - or else your hourly rate will be too low!
Find Your Clients
The toughest part about all of this is that you need to be able to find your own clients. This is a little intimidating at first but gets easier with time.
Start by spreading the word about your service to friends and family. Post about your new side gig at least a couple times per week on your social media networks. Then start thinking of where your clients are at. Do you need to send cold emails? Advertise in certain stores?
Be specific and be perseverant until you land a nice steady stream of clients.
Start Working and Tweak as You Go
The first few clients you take on will be somewhat of an experiment. You’ll be judged on the quality of work you deliver and you’ll soon learn whether you need to charge more or pull back on your prices a little bit.
Just keeping pushing forward. The longer you stick with your new freelance business the easier it will become to make the necessary changes.
If you follow this method you will be able to earn an extra $10,000 this year by working an extra 7-10 hours per week. Remember, the process for doing this is simple but it’s going to take hard work on your part!
Alexa Mason is a freelance writer and wanna be internet entrepreneur. She is also a newly single mom to two beautiful little girls. She chronicles her journey as a single mom trying to make it big at www.singlemomsincome.com.