Successful Freelancer Personality Traits

As you meet freelancers of all varieties, you’ll be struck by how different they are. The very nature of the freelance lifestyle suggests that it attracts individuals, independent thinkers, creative personalities—all sorts of people who have, for their own reasons, decided that the nine-to-five working-for-somebody-else full-time employment model is not for them.

Typically, though, these are the predominant personality traits and abilities you’ll be likely to find in a successful freelancer:

■ambition

■an aptitude for problem solving

■courage

■a mature outlook

■a high level of communication skills

■a strong work ethic

■perfectionism

■a professional attitude

■self-confidence

When weighing up your own compatibility with such a work choice, it’s important to consider these traits. You’ll ideally possess more than a few of these qualities, if not all of them.

In real-life terms, this means that to be a successful freelancer, you should be able to find resonance in many of the following characteristics; ideally, you:

■believe organization includes keeping the works pace tidy and planning ahead

■form short-term and long-term plans, preferably detailed on paper

■remain calm and able to work through issues in times of stress

■are able to handle a high level of responsibility

■understand that research goes beyond a two-minute Google search

■appreciate the role of financial planning

■are passionate about design or development, or both

■understand that budgeting means planning ahead, not spending every cent as it comes in

■value your health as important, so that you exercise and get regular checkups

■consider freelancing because you believe you can be successful, not just to escape your current job

■understand selling and embrace the process

■have a good support network of family and friends

■acknowledge that cash flow is vital to success

■appreciate that education is a continual process, not a once-off effort to gain a qualification

■plan towards gaining a work–life balance, and not work round the clock

■realize that customer service is about empathy and understanding, not just saying sorry after the fact

When looking at the four areas of skills and the personality traits above, you may begin to feel a twinge of self-doubt. That’s absolutely normal and healthy. If you weren’t at all nervous about taking the plunge, you’d be crazy!

And of course, if you don’t tick all of the boxes, it doesn’t mean you won’t be a great freelancer. Nor will it guarantee your immediate freelance success to claim that each point fits you like a glove. However, if these points do ring a bell with you to some degree, you'll be in excellent shape to work your way to a great freelance career.

To reiterate: a successful freelancer is one who plans, who understands that the role is varied, who acknowledges his or her limitations, and who realizes there’s far more to the role than writing code or creating designs. If these desirable attributes haven’t scared you off completely, you’re probably an ideal candidate for the freelance life.