Welcome to the World of Freelance Working!

Welcome, and may this mode of an exciting, alternative career be the right choice for you!

Why am I calling 'freelance' work an alternative career choice?  It is certainly not something new that we, the new generation, has suddenly discovered out of the blue!  People have been successfully working for themselves for decades, and never have there been so much hype about this choice, till now!

It is the present generation of Bangladesh actually who have suddenly found 'freelancing' or 'outsourcing' to be the fad of the decade, and there's ample reason for that.  Compared to the local talent we host in our country, the job market is tiny, catering only to a percentage of the population.  Our offices and institutions may be able to house thousands of teachers, doctors and engineers and give them a salary suitable to their potential, but it is really hard to do the same for job-seekers who have talent in more unconventional sectors.  Thousands of our graduates who are skilled and talented do not find jobs that can challenge them enough intellectually.  There are only a limited number of websites to be built, only a number of mobile apps to be designed for the Bangladeshi market, only so many places where we can write!

What Exactly is Freelance Working?

"I want to learn freelancing!"
"How can I become a freelancer?"
"Please teach me freelancing work!"
"Can I be a freelancer?"

One way or another, all these questions above are incorrect, or misunderstood.  As with the present fad, everyone wants to "be a freelancer" or "learn freelancing".  Nope! You've got it all wrong, actually.  "Freelancing" is not something you learn, it's more like a career choice that you are making in your life.

No, you do not actually learn freelancing, you embrace it as a career option.  You use your skills and your area of expertise to become a freelance worker, because that's only a medium of working and earning.

Who can Become a Freelance Worker?

Can you become a successful freelancer? Do you have what it takes to excel in this field? Let's see!

What exactly would you need to start your career as a freelancer? First, let us compare this career with a traditional job search. For a traditional job, the first thing you would need is a degree - a graduate or a post-graduate degree, or perhaps, higher. Without a few certificates in your resume, you won't be able to get an interview call, let alone a job. The first and sometimes, the only, thing that companies look for in a candidate in a degree, with a good CGPA, from a good institution.

For the world of freelancers, a degree is not important, not so much. A client sitting in USA does not care whether you graduated from a public university or a private university; most of the times, they don't care whether you graduated or not. It's not important to them, not at all. They might, in some cases, ask what your educational background is, but they would never ask your CGPA. At least, that has never happened to me yet.

How I Entered the Freelancing World!

The freelancing world was not in my plans. I was completely happy working for JAAGO Foundation, an NGO based in Dhaka that worked to educated slum-based underprivileged children around the country. The work was awesome, and I loved it! 

I worked at JAAGO for 1.5 years - from July 2011 to December 2012 - as the Assistant Manager in the PR & Publication Department. I fell in love with the institution, with the people, with the environment, and especially with my work. It was only the daily commute that was literally killing me. 3 hours on the road everyday - 1 hour in the morning and 2 in the evening. It was exhausting, and I was tired all the time! I left the job at the end of 2012 before my daughter was born the next year. 

The next few months were for my daughter, and my daughter only. I wanted to go back to JAAGO - or at any other job - after a few months caring for my new-born. It was completely unthinkable for me to leave my new child and go back to a 8-hour job soon. 

What Do Freelance Writers Write? - Part 1

If you are thinking of starting your freelance career online as a writer, you are in for a huge treat! There are literally hundreds of different kinds of content writing opportunities for you to try your hand at. From the easiest to the most complicated, I have put together a list of all the different kinds of writing jobs that you can find online.

(N.B. I primarily work on Upwork, and these types of jobs are the different ones that I have faced or experienced so far. There can, of course, be hundreds more that I am not yet aware of. Besides, it is better for me to explain the categories that I am experienced in personally.)

I am just going to list all the jobs and explain them in this particular post. Later, in separate posts, I will expand on the ideas for your convenience.