Rise of Freelancing
There is a rise of the freelance workforce as more people desire to live comfortably by working remotely. More freelancers are working from home to spend time with their families. In addition, the workforce is changing as more people leaving the security of an 8-to-5 job for the flexibility of freelancing. They can spend more time with their family. They don’t need to go out to commute and get stuck in the traffic. Instead of spending time commuting, they can be productive working from home.
Furthermore, people swap their corporate job to freelancing. According to CNBC, “There are now 57 million Americans in the freelance economy, up from 53 million in 2014.” To add, “freelancers doing skilled services earn a median rate of $28 an hour, earning more per hour than 70% of workers in the overall U.S. economy.” Also, “51% of freelancers say no amount of money would entice them to take a traditional job.” Meanwhile, Rappler reported that there are more than 1.5 million freelancers in the Philippines and “by 2020, almost one in 5 workers will be a freelancer or contract workers, according to a 2012 global study done by Big 5 auditing firm Ernst & Young.” With the recent COVID-19 pandemic more people had shifted to finding possible income through remote working.
Free Freelancing Courses and Resources
There are a lot of ways in which one can start freelancing. With the time and resources available right now, one can definitely learn how to become a freelance workforce. Here are some free learning tools you can start with:
Udemy – Udemy is a paid online course site but they also offer free courses like Using a Photographic Light Meter, Use Crowdfunding Effectively With Indiegogo and Kickstarter, and Learn How To Build A Corporate Website Using Joomla! 2.5.
Harvard University – Harvard opened some of their online courses and made it available to the public. There are online courses on web programming, game development, and mobile app development.
There are also a lot of video resources available on YouTube and Vimeo.
Free Freelancing Tools
Aside from free courses and resources, one can also be acquainted with different freelancing tools. It is important to note that freelancing is still work. Thus, one needs to have a skill he can provide services with to different clients and brands around the world. Data entry tasks and other administrative assistance have a lot of competition. Most importantly, newbies in the freelance world need to be equipped with freelancing skills and tools. Here are examples of freelancing apps and sites you can start with.
Infograhic Sites:
Infogram
Visualize.me
Snappa
BeFunky
Video Editing Sites:
Clipchamp
Online Video Cutter
WeVideo
Wideo
Powtoon
Video Toolbox
Kizoa
Hippo Video
Magisto
Kapwing
In the rise of freelancing industry in the Philippines and around the world, it is important to be competitive and relevant. One can do this by having a specialized skill, providing proof through different portfolios and sending personalized applications geared to give solutions to businesses spotted in each job post description.
Be the best freelancer out there! Be the one who is able to give exemplary assistance to different brands around the world, especially in these trying times.
Other Helpful Resources:
How to Choose a Good Freelancing Coach
Client Considerations in Hiring a Virtual Assistant
Combating COVID-19 Crisis In Freelancing