If someone accidentally thought that I would give him a recipe on how to start earning big money without any effort, I want to lead him from the mistake at the beginning. It won’t be about it. On the contrary. This will be a description of the process and several different activities that CAN lead you to this goal. This entire entry was based on my presentation for Upwork, under the same title. The very response after her encouraged me to share my insights on this topic. I will write in the context of IT, because it is the industry in which I work myself and in my opinion is easier than in other professions.
Before you start dreaming
This photo above is for encouragement :). The truth is that nobody will pay you $ 10k for nothing! Well, unless you have an uncle in politics or on the board of a bank, but this post is not written for them. The first step is to build a personal brand. I will not write too much here because I once made a separate entry in this topic. I will say one important thing right away. You may have great PR, but a great IT feature that I personally value is that knowledge is verified very quickly. A few days in the team and we immediately know if anyone knows his job or wrote nonsense in the CV.
If you want to start earning $ 10k it’s not in Poland
This is the sad truth … I think I’m quite up to date on the subject, because every few days I have a job offer and I have general knowledge about the subject. At least when it comes to the Warsaw market, which is still overestimating statistics. I know those who earn PLN 22k on B2B or 18k on a contract of employment, but this is rather top. And there are sites on the internet, such as some programming schools, that say how to start earning such amounts after they are completed, but let’s face it. No one will give 18k to someone who has not written a line of code for production. There are quite a few articles in the subject, even Maciek Aniserowicz, that some probably have departed.
In fact, the only option here is to go your own way or go abroad. For me, the latter option is out of the question, so the solution is to work for a client from abroad. We have companies that offer such a possibility, but unfortunately in this case you have to share the money :(. See for yourself below.
Suppose you are wondering how to start making good money to read, for example the Nigel Frank website. You will find quite a lot of information and comparisons there where and how much you can earn.
In my opinion, a good start is becoming a freelancer and making money online. For example, start with job services. If you are interested, please refer to my entry on how to become a freelancer and freelancers money, where I show how to avoid financial traps.
Know your value
Top points for me? I’m not going to come up with anything new here:
- Will you earn $ 10k at a rate of $ 30 / h ???
- You won’t earn $ 10k if you’re not good at what you do
- Give up bad customers or have a subcontractor work
- Check your earnings in a given market
For me it’s just that much or so much. If you prefer, but it will definitely be a pretty good start.
Where to start earning $ 10k?
How do you start earning these magical $ 10k (at least for most of us)? In my opinion, Upwork will be a good starting point. You can also find the right customer on LinkedIn, through your blog, or the recommendation of the former. I would also like to draw attention to one thing. Don’t cross out a customer right away if something goes wrong. In my case, the appointment took a good few days. There was still something wrong until I was talking somewhere near the Romanian cement plant, on the side of the exit from the mountain peak. And then it turned out that this is my best employer to date!
It is worth emphasizing that the customer must be looked after. I started as usual with SharePoint, and how :), but when the client requested to take care of the entire Office 365, I was not surprised. When he asked for Intune, I started to train at an express pace. Generally, it is about being proactive and not generating artificial problems where they are not there.
Change the rules of the game
At some point, there may be the possibility of what we call full-time in Poland. If the offer does not appear, you can gently lead the customer to this trail :). Honestly, it took me a few months. Show potential profit and savings. What such a change follows added value. Be patient with it, but when this opportunity appears, do not hesitate too long, make decisions quickly. And now, a crucial thing. Maybe you know how to start earning remotely and well, but do not forget about a significant thing, about the contract.
How to start earning it legally!
One of the things I highlighted in my presentation is that Upwork is great. Really But working full-time for one client is a stupid idea for me. Why? Because when you work on this platform and similar platforms, you have no contract, no notice period, nothing that would protect you! And it is enough that there will be changes at your client’s that you do not need to know about, and you will stay in the potty with your hand. From day to day! So sorry, but a contract is a basis! Thus, I would never dare to connect with only one client permanently through Upwork. Companies in the west take contracts very seriously because in addition to legal effects. They can also be image-related, so agreements are generally complied with. Information on the notice period, vacation, or pay is the basis. And please, read the contracts. If your English leaves something to be desired, please let someone else read it. I know at least one person who did not read what he was signing and was surprised that the cash register did not agree. Well, according to the agreement.
Nothing can last forever
I have already said about the contract, but there are other issues to look out for. You have to remember that sooner or later, the contract ends. You have to be prepared for it. Therefore, do not throw contacts to your existing customers in the trash. If they ask you for something, don’t drop them on the tree. Do something for them from time to time. It is also worth having an emergency plan if something falls apart. Remember that when you know your employer only from conversations on the messenger, you can’t go to the HR room asking where the new contract is. Everything goes on, different time zones, someone on vacation, etc.
Earning is trivial
That’s a joke at the end. All in all, making money is easy. Most people know how to start earning. But most of them do it without a plan on their own and settle down with a warm stool. Whether you stand or lie down, you can do it anyway. But you can also try to achieve something more with hard and planned work. It won’t come alone. You need to leave your comfort zone. At the beginning of 2017, I wrote the post “Hard reset”. It was about the fact that my year 2016 was hopeless in every possible way. Three years have passed, and in general, I can say that it is excellent. What do I wish you in the New Year!
