My First Year of Freelancing
Tags: career, productivity
Published: 2018-05-23 19:05:41

---
title: My First Year of Freelancing
published: true
description: About a year ago, I started with a freelance career. This experience has changed me as a professional, but also as a person.
canonical_url: "https://www.silvestar.codes/articles/my-first-year-of-freelancing/"
tags: 
    - career
    - productivity
series: Yearly Reviews
---

![My First Year of Freelancing
](https://thepracticaldev.s3.amazonaws.com/i/g99i58ojn2p3dmmhap1g.jpg)

_This post was originally published on [silvestar.codes](https://www.silvestar.codes/articles/my-first-year-of-freelancing/)._

_I am writing this article from a frontend developer perspective, as I am one. I have specialized in User Interface, Static Page Generators, Wordpress, and page speed optimization._

About a year ago, I started with a freelance career. This experience has changed me as a professional, but also as a person.

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## Clients
I am a member of [Toptal] talent network, and most of my clients are part of this [formidable networks] as well. I worked with seven Toptal clients. I also worked with a couple of [Upwork] clients. Two of my clients engaged me via my website. I worked as a mentor on [Codementor]. I also worked on a couple of projects with my friends, pro bono.

> Toptal is a private, elite talent network with thousands of members across 100+ countries. Of the hundreds of thousands who apply each year, fewer than 3% gain admission to the network.

In total, I worked with thirteen clients and seventeen mentees.

Clients came from all over the world: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Denmark, Romania, and Croatia. Most of them were agencies, but I also worked with designers and developers, too.

In my opinion, investing in the relationship with a client is the most critical part. Earning trust from a remote position is not easy. Being kind could take you a long way with your client, and it doesn't cost you a thing.

> During my first year of freelancing, I didn't have a single negative experience with any client. ❤️

Getting the job done is also important. Never promise what you cannot deliver. It is okay to say that you need a couple of hours to do research. It is okay to say that you are not the right person for that task. It depends on a project type and the team.

## Projects
I worked on various projects last year, mostly on Wordpress platform:
- developed a custom theme for [a wedding photography website],
- developed a custom theme for a digital ID validation solution website,
- installed a premium theme for [another wedding photography website],
- installed a premium theme for [a travel journal website], and
- helped a few clients to finish Wordpress projects by applying style improvements and making websites responsive.

I created a couple of styleguides:
- one for a Wordpress-based website for a large real-estate company, and
- other for a website built using static site generator.

I developed a few websites using static page generators:
- a website for an agency from Germany using Middleman framework,
- [a personal website for a designer from Montreal] using Middleman, and
- a personal website for myself using the Hexo framework.

I have worked on web speed optimization:
- on Wordpress-based projects, and
- on [a Shopify project].

In the spare time, I worked on open-source projects. I published [three] [simple] [plugins] and [a theme] for the Hexo framework, [an Angular directive], [a JavaScript plugin], and [a boilerplate of Gulp tasks].

## Problems
Not everything is perfect. Freelancing comes with difficulties. Searching for a job is one of the biggest I came across.

Last summer I had a difficult time to find a client. I created new profiles on different hiring networks. I searched on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, AngelList, newsletters, everywhere.

I found out that biding all over the place is a time-consuming and counter-effective process. I caught myself getting responses (negative ones) from clients that I didn't even remember sending. I became nervous and felt terrible about myself. I was feeling more tired of bidding than when I worked on an actual project.

Eventually, I learned that it is better to bid on a couple of places and invest more time in a more quality cover-letter or application. There is enough job for everybody. The key is to find a proper way to get one.

## Lessons
Working as a freelancer is hard, and it isn't for everyone. Many obstacles are on that way. Here is what I have learned in the last year:
- how to manage time more efficiently,
- how to become more productive,
- how to get away from a computer,
- how to decline a job offer, especially if I am not fully qualified for the position,
- that saying "I don't know" is OK,
- it takes time to find a client,
- it takes time to land a client,
- it takes time to get paid, and
- to be kind to others.

## Summary
I am happy to be able to share my experience as a freelance developer. Successful freelancing takes time and patience. Luckily that is something that could be learned along the way.

If you like this article, share it with your friends. 👋

If you want to become Toptal professional, use [this link] to join! 🔗

[Toptal]: https://www.toptal.com/resume/silvestar-bistrovic
[formidable networks]: https://www.toptal.com/
[Upwork]: https://www.upwork.com/o/profiles/users/_~01c831478a40df279f/
[Codementor]: https://www.codementor.io/malimirkeccita
[a wedding photography website]: https://www.silvestar.codes/portfolio/irinaandmatej/
[a digital ID validation solution website]: https://www.silvestar.codes/portfolio/netki/
[another wedding photography website]: https://www.silvestar.codes/portfolio/marcijusweddings/
[a travel journal website]: https://www.silvestar.codes/portfolio/borninjune/
[an agency from Germany]: https://www.silvestar.codes/portfolio/contiamo/
[a personal website for a designer from Montreal]: https://www.silvestar.codes/portfolio/hanhanxue/
[a Shopify project]: https://www.silvestar.codes/portfolio/moodings/
[three]: https://www.npmjs.com/package/hexo-codepen
[simple]: https://www.npmjs.com/package/hexo-caniuse
[plugins]: https://www.npmjs.com/package/hexo-cloudinary
[a theme]: https://www.npmjs.com/package/hexo-theme-sb
[an Angular directive]: https://www.npmjs.com/package/angular-dragtable
[a JavaScript plugin]: https://www.npmjs.com/package/classily.js
[a boilerplate of Gulp tasks]: https://www.npmjs.com/package/starter-project
[Static Page Generators]: https://www.staticgen.com/
[this link]: https://www.toptal.com/#trust-nothing-but-brilliant-freelancers