Upwork reported that 36% of the US workforce freelanced in 2020. The same report finds that 58% of traditional workers who started working remotely during the pandemic consider freelancing. Experts predict that the majority of US workers will engage in independent work by 2023. Many of these workers will fall into the category "solopreneur", an independent worker who works alone.

The solopreneur

<ul><li>The freelancer markets a specific skill-set to multiple clients - e.g. website creation, admin support, etc.</li><li>The creative is a sub-category of freelancers, e.g. graphic design, writing, etc.</li><li>The consultant advises people on how to do better.</li><li>The content creator monetises what they do in a way that does not require direct one-on-one services, for example, course creators, bloggers, etc.</li><li>The side hustler does any of these things while also working full-time.</li><li>The gig worker works for a company that has built its business model on independent workers.</li><li>The brick and mortar, e.g. personal trainers.</li></ul>

Common types of solopreneurs

Stashed ideas

The 8 types of solopreneur

<ol><li>Draw your boundaries from the beginning and stick to them. This starts when you decide to take on a client and write your first proposal for them — get super clear on what you are doing and what success looks like so there aren’t any (or at least minimal) surprises.&nbsp;</li><li>Know your ideal workload.&nbsp;</li><li>Build replicable systems for your work. If you’re only ever taking on new clients you’re always having to create/adapt your systems to some extent and learn theirs. When you work with repeat clients you can be more efficient because you’ve done it before.&nbsp;&nbsp;</li></ol>

3 keys to always deliver on your promises for clients

<ul><li>Having a guaranteed income. Most of your anxiety comes from not knowing where your income will come from next month or next year.&nbsp;</li><li>Being a part of a team. Your long-term clients give you multiple “teams” that you can call your own.</li><li>Being more connected to the work. With your long-term clients, you are deeply invested in their work because you’ve seen it evolve over time.</li></ul>

Benefits of having fewer long-term clients

Right now, I have three clients. I’ve worked with most of them for more than two years consecutively. I have ongoing contracts with all of them. They came to me in the beginning with discreet…

Why I Never Have More Than Four Clients as a Freelancer

Film credits often have producers, creative producers, executive producers, and similar titles that can confuse a layperson. Here is a quick primer:<ol><li>The Executive Producer is the one who invested all the money in the project.</li><li>The Producer is more in line with the director's vision, and is there to solve real-world problems during production.</li><li>The Line Producer runs the operation of the film production, working with payroll, insurance and vendors.</li><li>The Creative Producer works directly with the director and hatches ideas, creative elements and creative collaborators that make or break the movie.</li></ol>

What Producer Does What

Self Improvement

Film credits can get confusing, especially when it comes to the producing side of the process. Between the Producers, the Creative Producers, the Line Producers and

Finally Understand in 5min the Difference Between a Producer, an Executive Producer & a Line Producer

When you&#39;re starting out it feels difficult to start something with a budget but chances are there are more than enough tools out there that are within your budget range.
Most likely than not these are enough to nudge you to follow through on your big ideas.

Letting a small budget hold you back

Teamwork

Everyone has their own communication style and it is important that we know how to talk to the other person without sounding aggressive or like a know-it-all.Look for ways to communicate where the other person would be most receptive and where your desired impact will be effectively seen.

Not using your voice or incorrectly using it

Be pro-active. Take the initiative to be creative because you have the ability to pave the way for immense growth for both the company and yourself.Whenever possible take the time to stop and observe what is going on at your startup, list the things you've noticed, and present this list to your leader and ask which items you can go after.This helps them see that you have initiative without stepping on anyone's toes.

Waiting for things to be handed to you

Your job description is only a general guide of what the company needed at the time when they were hiring. Take this as the opportunity to learn that comes rarely.Begin listening, observing, and asking questions. This will help you get some hands-on experience in building a foundation in various areas of the company while also getting a grasp of their needs before hiring specialized people.

Limiting yourself to your job description

At a startup, there will be opportunities after opportunities and you will be eager to prove yourself. While nothing is wrong with this, it is important to make sure that you will not overwork yourself in order to get a pat on the back.
Never compromise your sanity and learn how to take the time off. Setting boundaries will help you feel less burnt out.

Not setting boundaries

Flexibility not only on projects but also on how you handle things is important.Take things in with stride and reflect on the skills you've learned.

Being inflexible

Feedbacks at startups hit different and it may often catch you off-guard.It is important to be proactive with creativity but also with feedbacks, may these be positive or negative.When feedbacks are given, reflect on it, and work on it. Don't limit yourself because you always have the potential for growth.Actively change your mindset and change your attitude in order to strengthen your reactions to feedbacks.

Being wary of feedback

It is important to let people know what you are working on.At a startup, the people we are working with are usually wearing many different hats all at once and the possibility of having many hands in one project is possible.Over-communicating is a learned skill and it may take a while but you will then be able to mitigate micromanaging, avoid duplication of work, and every work you do is noted.

Not over-communicating

Having low confidence in yourself and in your line of work is an inevitable feeling to experience but you are hired because you are worthy of a spot on a rocket ship.Don't sulk on the negative self-talk because all of us will need to get comfortable with the feeling of uncertainty and not knowing all of the answers. It's normal, so fight back the imposter syndrome.

Giving in to imposter syndrome

One of the best things you can do for your career is to generalize your skills.On one hand, you are learning about marketing while on the other you are taking on sales initiatives. This is of course dependent on your knowledge of things but being able to generalize can teach you a little about everything and can help you realize what you actually want to specialize in.

Specializing instead of generalizing

Career

10 mistakes you're making as a startup employee | Zapier

The best way to understand the term &quot;distraction&quot; is to know what it is not. It&#39;s not focus. Distraction is something that pulls us away from what we want. Traction is the opposite of distraction. It is the action that moves us toward what we really want.
The difference between traction and distraction is planning. There&#39;s little wrong with scrolling through Facebook or watching YouTube videos if you plan to do so. It is when you do it without the intention that it becomes problematic.

Distraction vs traction

Time Management

A schedule maker is a tool for building a weekly template for how you plan to spend your time. With a weekly schedule, you&#39;ll always know the difference between traction and distraction.
Time is a valuable asset. One way to guard our time is to use a schedule maker. Using it can significantly reduce the number of distractions and improve how we spend our time.

Make use of a schedule maker

In my research and consulting work, I’ve heard countless people tell me how difficult it is to manage their time. Yet, when I ask them what they got distracted from, that is, what they planned to do…