I have been into freelancing, specifically web developing and designing from past 4 years. I got my first project in college. Though I wasn’t paid a dime, I put my one’s all just to brag, I was making the next Amazon, to my friends every night. But soon due to some management issues the company didn’t sustain, and my work was gone. Little did I know, the experience scooped and the failure faced during, were the stepping stone to my future career.

In my initial days, before I start any project my goal was to make it portfolio worthy, that way I would give my 100% and that will make me enjoy doing it.

On the left is a list of projects that made me unhappy and to the right that made me happy.

Things that made me unhappy –

I was making my portfolio, I wanted to be happy about my portfolio thus project needed to be “Portfolio worthy”. The project is too big, don’t have the technical skills, Don’t have a direction where to start, it feels risky, it’s a big commitment, and so on…

On the other hand, getting done with my project was great, if I had a good idea that will keep me motivated till the end, learning new skills and applying them, getting feedback gave my confidence a boost, limitless creativity gave me the freedom to showcase my creativity.

Looking at the table, a lot of points go hand in hand i.e. the points in the left match the right.

As a freelancer one thing that thrills me is DEADLINE. “Creativity expands and contracts according to deadline”. We shall talk about DEADLINE on another blog. So more is the time doesn’t equal better work which is said in LAW OF DIMINISHING RETURNS.

1. So setting a deadline will finish the project which will make me happy.
2. Pursuing new problems makes you learn, so setting my goal to learning makes me happy.
3. Doing things that you are uncomfortable with will make you better, that’s what makes me happy.
4. Sharing my projects makes me happy. Not only it provides me with valuable feedback but also it brings like-minded people close.
5. Creating restrictive boundaries in the project makes me happy.

I believe with limited resources we tend to make a better product. If a client tells me I need a logo with 2 colors only that will not only make me creative with my restrictions but also help me meet my deadline.

FINAL WORDS:-

The client asks “I need a project”, He tells the deadline, what to do and what not to do, tools to be used, what challenges I will face, and after completing I will share the project that’s it. However big the project is, I keep these 5 components to break the project into slices and later join them to say my client “I can do this, maybe not by myself but I can do it”

If I was able to motivate you, please feel free to share it with others.