In 2001, a skinny kid named Takeru Kobayashi devoured fifty hot dogs in 12 minutes — double the previous world record. The guy weighed a whopping 131 pounds. Yet he took down competitors 3x his size, … [Read more...] about 8 surprising Upwork proposal mistakes I see every day (and how to avoid them)
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Great Upwork jobs for beginners (and how to spot them)
There are plenty of great Upwork jobs for beginners. You just need to know how to find them. When I first stumbled onto Upwork, I was a total beginner — I’d never freelanced before, had no … [Read more...] about Great Upwork jobs for beginners (and how to spot them)
Can attitude beat skills in freelancing?
Which of the following do you think is the most important ingredient for succeeding at freelancing: A) Experience B) Skills C) Attitude While they can all be important, I believe that the … [Read more...] about Can attitude beat skills in freelancing?
My No-BS Guide to Confidence
If I had to pinpoint one trait that all successful freelancers have in common, can you guess what it’d be? It’s not intelligence… Or experience… Or a high degree of skill… Or even education. The … [Read more...] about My No-BS Guide to Confidence
50 legitimate ways to compete with more experienced freelancers
People always ask me how they can succeed at freelancing when others have more experience. So I wrote down 50 ways to do it. You can use many of these right now, regardless of where you’re at. … [Read more...] about 50 legitimate ways to compete with more experienced freelancers
How competitive is freelancing, really?
If you and I are both oral surgeons, and John needs his wisdom teeth pulled, only one of us can get his business. The other one is out of luck. In other words oral surgery is a competitive … [Read more...] about How competitive is freelancing, really?
There are 2 freelancing “stories” you can tell yourself. Which one do you choose?
There are 2 basic stories you can tell yourself (and/or other people) about freelancing. Option A: It’s hard to find clients. There’s too much competition. There aren’t enough high paying … [Read more...] about There are 2 freelancing “stories” you can tell yourself. Which one do you choose?
What clients REALLY want to see in your Upwork profile
Some people -- especially copywriters -- tend to use “pain points” to try to sell clients on working with them. The idea is to paint a picture of something the client doesn’t want, in order to get … [Read more...] about What clients REALLY want to see in your Upwork profile
Freelancing words that need to die
I don’t know whose idea it was to call dog cages “crates,” but I’ll bet that person is very rich right now. Ditto for whoever replaced the term “genetically engineered foods” with “genetically … [Read more...] about Freelancing words that need to die
5 surprising truths about how to charge — and get — what you’re worth
After years of helping freelancers at all levels raise their rates and charge what they deserve, here’s what I’ve noticed about why we charge too little in the first place: We don’t know how to … [Read more...] about 5 surprising truths about how to charge — and get — what you’re worth
Why do we charge so little, when we could charge more?
My favorite local tea shop gave me and my wife a “loyalty” discount on our first trip there -- before we’d displayed even an ounce of actual loyalty! A few months later they were out of business, … [Read more...] about Why do we charge so little, when we could charge more?